SINGAPORE – When content creator Winston Chuang crosses the border on his motorbike every week, he dreads having to fiddle with the chin strap of his helmet when he takes it off to pass through immigration checks – first on the Singapore side, then again before entering Malaysia.

Motorcyclists like Mr Chuang, 42, have reason to rejoice after recently revised national standards for motorcycle helmets appear set to pave the way for quick-release chin bar mechanisms to be approved for use here.

Announced on October 19 during the National Bikers Weekend, a mass motorcycle event at the Changi Expo Centre, the change means such helmets can be approved for use here if they pass tests carried out in Singapore.

Helmets must be tested before they are allowed to be used on the roads here.

Currently, testing includes determining the resistance of chin straps and helmets against penetration, as well as the ability of a helmet visor to let light through.

The revised standards were released by trade agency Enterprise Singapore’s standards division in November.

The respective regulators will make the final assessment of the content of their regulations.

Enterprise Singapore and the traffic police have not revealed how or when the revised standards will be rolled out at the request of The Straits Times.

The quick-release mechanisms lock like the seat belt buckle in cars, eliminating the hassle of passing a helmet’s chin strap through two metal D-rings.

Mr Rex Tan, co-leader of a task force reviewing motorcycle helmet standards, said such mechanisms are quick and convenient, even when a motorcyclist is wearing motorcycle gloves.

The updated specifications bring them in line with the latest regulations set by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) in 2021. This means that helmets that comply with UNECE regulations – including those with quick release chin straps – will pass testing in Singapore.

The standards, unique to Singapore, were last revised in 2014.

Importers said that because the 2014 requirements differed from recognized standards adopted in countries such as Europe or the United States, it was not a given that a helmet meeting these foreign standards would pass testing in Singapore.

They also said that because Singapore is not a large market for helmets, manufacturers generally do not design helmets specific to the country’s requirements.