Further Professionalising Bus Captain Roles to Attract Younger Singaporeans

Written Reply to Parliamentary Question 

Mr Abdul Muhaimin Abdul Malik asked the Acting Minister for Transport

a.          what the Ministry’s plans are to further professionalise bus captain roles; and

b.          what the Ministry’s plan is to encourage more young Singaporeans to take up bus captain positions.

Reply by Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow: 

1.          Bus captains receive structured training by bus operators and the Singapore Bus Academy to ensure that they have a common set of skills to handle their work responsibilities. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) also works with bus operators and the National Transport Workers’ Union to review career progression pathways so that bus captains have the opportunity to progress into training or mentorship roles, or manage other aspects of bus operations.

2.          To attract more locals to join the industry, the public transport operators have introduced sign-on bonuses of up to $20,000 and have been improving working conditions through better rest facilities as well as optimisation of duty rosters. They have also introduced more flexible work arrangements and part-time opportunities to cater to a more diverse profile of prospective bus captains. The Government is also reviewing starting salaries to improve recruitment of new drivers.