Caged Lorries for Transporting Workers to be Banned by Jan 2027: Statement from HOME

The ban on transporting workers on caged lorries does very little in signalling that migrant workers deserve safe and dignified transport. However, this ban does not solve the problem: lorries are a fundamentally unsafe mode of transport which exposes workers to serious injury and death when accidents occur, whether the lorries are caged or not. In fact, none of the reported lorry accidents involving injuries and fatalities, in the last five years, have involved caged lorries.

In any case, reports indicate that caged lorries constitute only 1–2% of the approximately 50,000 lorries in Singapore. As such, this measure will affect only a small fraction of workers, who will still continue to be transported on the back of lorries and exposed to the same risks as before.

In our 2025 report, Risky Rides, workers recount injuries sustained when lorries brake or swerve, or when they are made to travel alongside equipment. They also describe overcrowded lorry decks, and exposure to rain (despite the presence of rain covers) and to the scorching sun. 

Migrant workers deserve to be conveyed with dignity and safety — not as cargo — and this practice has persisted for far too long. There needs to be a clear timeline on moving towards a complete ban on lorry transport altogether. We recognise that businesses, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs), may face practical and financial challenges in transitioning to safer transport arrangements.  It has been revealed that in 2024 alone, the government had collected over S$6 billion in foreign worker levies. HOME recommends that some of this be directed towards alleviating cost pressures on SMEs and supporting the transition to safer modes of transport.  

We need decisive political action rather than ineffectual tweaks that don’t address the fundamental issue of hazardous transport. 

Published on 5 March 2026