A STUDY OF PUBLIC TRANSPORT IN SINGAPORE

Abstract

This is an empirical study, attempting to explore the issue of public transport and the Government's overall land transport policy in Singapore. Today, the two main forms of public transport in Singapore are buses and taxis. While buses cater mainly to the lower income groups and school children, taxis are supposedly more suited to serving the higher income groups and catering for special occasions which warrant a faster and more personalised service. Since the majority of the population uses public transport and relies on its services, a highly efficient public transport system is needed for the island. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the performance and operation of public transportation in Singapore. Chapter One will highlight the transport problems in Singapore. There are two major sources of the problems: firstly, the limited land area, and secondly, the rising affluence of the population resulting in a rapid increase in private car ownership. It is pointed out that efficient land use requires a more optimal use of transport system, rather than private car usage. Chapter Two gives the historical development of the public transport system in Singapore from the time it first took shape in 1902 until the formation of the Singapore Bus Service (1978) Limited (SBS). The Chapter also outlines the various supplementary bus services which help to improve the public transport system. Chapter Three analyses the operations and management of the SBS. It first attempts to evaluate the performance of the SBS in terms of its objectives by studying the various measures adopted by the Company to achieve these objectives. It then analyses the demand pattern of the bus service and the fare structure of the SBS. Chapter Four discusses the possible challenges facine the SBS in the future, including increasing passenger demands and expectations of the commuters. The Chapter also deals with the impact of the MRT on the SBS and conjectures some possible responses of the bus services to this new competitor for commuters. Chapter Five focusses on taxi service. It examines the role of taxi as a public transport, and discusses the developments and improvements of the taxi service. The Chapter also studies the fare structure of the taxi service in comparison with the fare structures of taxi services in the other major cities in the world. The final Chapter discusses the effects of Government policies on the overall land transportation and their implications for the future generation. The Chapter concludes by making some recommendations for further improvements to the public transport in Singapore.