Written Reply to Parliamentary Questions on Publicising of Rationalisation of Bus Services that Run Parallel to New MRT Lines

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song asked the Minister for Transport for future openings of new MRT lines, whether LTA will immediately announce (i) the planned rationalisation of bus services running parallel to the new lines (ii) the cost savings to be obtained from the rationalisation and (iii) the plans on using these cost savings to directly benefit commuters, for example in the form of reduced fares.

Reply by Minister for Transport Chee Hong Tat:

1.     LTA does not make decisions to change bus services immediately after a new MRT line is opened. Commuters need time to adjust to the new travel options. LTA will monitor the situation and assess possible changes to a bus service if there is a significant reduction in its ridership.

2.     The Government is currently providing more than $2 billion of subsidies for public transport every year, including about $1 billion for trains and $1 billion for buses. As we had explained previously, it is necessary to make changes to bus services from time to time to match the evolving needs of commuters, while keeping our public transport system sustainable. The affected buses and bus captains will be redeployed to serve new estates and new routes with greater demand from commuters.