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  Today Online 24 Oct 06
My other car's a bus
Drive to promote public transport as roads struggle to keep pace with cars
Derrick A Paulo derrick@mediacorp.com.sg

Channel NewsAsia 23 Oct 06
Comprehensive review of land transport system to be ready end 2007
By Wong Siew Ying

SINGAPORE : Commuting is almost a way of life, with four million trips are made daily on the public transport system.

And the Land Transport Authority (LTA) wants to change the way we travel, with a comprehensive review due by the end of 2007. This is a follow up to the White Paper on Land Transport - the government's blueprint for a world-class road and rail system released in 1996.

Buying and using a car come at a price in Singapore. Still, the car population grew by some 10 percent between 1997 and 2004. There are about 780,000 vehicles plying the Singapore streets and most of them are used intensively - with the daily number of trips increasing by 23 percent.

In contrast, the proportion of trips taken on public transport dipped from 67 percent to 63 percent over the same period. And this is something the authorities want to address in the review.

"For a start, we will have to reverse the trend of declining public transport modal share, and over time, we aim to raise it. Our focus would be on the morning peak period, where we target to increase the public transport model share of 63 percent to at least 70 percent over the next 10 to 15 years," says Transport Minister Raymond Lim.

"(We hope) to achieve a high quality and sustainable land transport system that is able to handle a significantly larger population base with greater economic, business and tourism activities in tandem with Singapore's next phase of development."

With competing demand for limited land, the government has put the brakes on car ownership and its usage. In the last 15 years, the vehicle population grew at 2.3% per year while roads grew at 1% annually.

But annual road growth is expected to be halved in the next 15 years. Currently, 12% of land is used for transport, 12% for industry and 15% for housing. This is done through measures like Electronic Road Pricing and quotas on cars.

But analysts say these may not be enough in the long run. "We need to focus on improving all the alternatives to public transport. This alternative package of public transport includes cooperating with taxis, car share, car rental, bicycle industry and town councils to make the pedestrian environment attractive for walking and cycling," says transport analyst Dr Paul Barter with the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy.

Analysts say the Singapore public transport system is still some way from being world-class.

A main issue is to cut waiting time by increasing the frequency of public transport services significantly.

The train network also needs to be expanded. "When you do this, (extending) some of the lines to the more remote areas even though you may not have sufficient rider-ship for that line, but taking the system as a whole, so long as there is profit to the operator, those lines can be sustained," says transport analyst Prof K. Raguraman at NUS.

Another suggestion is to open up the transport market to more players the way Hong Kong has, by allowing operators to tender for routes as well as mini buses to serve specific areas.

Government Parliamentary Committee chairman for transport Cedric Foo hopes the authorities can work with city planners to integrate amenities within the heartlands so as to reduce the need for travel.

Also on the wish list are ways to tackle road safety and pollution control. Another aspect of the review is to add more "human touch" in transport planning. This includes making buses more wheelchair accessible as well as upgrading bus stops and road kerbs to make them more elderly friendly.

The Land Transport Authority says it will consult stakeholders and the public on the review. - CNA /ls

Today Online 24 Oct 06
My other car's a bus
Drive to promote public transport as roads struggle to keep pace with cars
Derrick A Paulo derrick@mediacorp.com.sg

MORE and more people are driving to work, and the Ministry of Transport (MOT) aims to put the brakes on this and steer people to buses and trains instead.

This will be a key part of the most comprehensive review of Singapore's land transport system in 10 years.

The drive to "aggressively" promote public transport is also, so far, the most specific and measurable target to be set. Transport Minister Raymond Lim, who was given his portfolio in May, announced yesterday plans to develop "a new urban transport roadmap" for the next 10 to 15 years.

The final destination: A more sustainable transport system to support the growth in population, economy and people's expectations.

One trend that the authorities hope to reverse is the decline in the share of public transport trips. From 67 per cent in 1997, it has fallen to 63 per cent in 2004 for the morning peak period, despite the heavy investment put into providing a good public transport system, said Mr Lim.

While the total number of bus and rail trips did not drop — rising slightly by 2.3 per cent — this has been overtaken by the 23-per-cent jump in daily car trips from a mere 10-per-cent growth in the car population.

About 35 per cent of households now own at least one car. The trend is to use a car increasingly once it is bought, due to the current vehicle cost system. "Having paid heavily upfront on a car with a limited period for use before it has to be scrapped, owners tend to drive as much as they can. Another reason is that the additional cost for car usage, even after taking into account petrol taxes, ERP charges and parking, have remained relatively low," said Mr Lim.

Over the next 15 years, though, annual road growth is expected to halve from the 1-per-cent annual growth of the last 15 years.

If private transport becomes the dominant transport mode, it would be "catastrophic" and cause "huge degradation to the city's liveability and quality of life", said Mr Lim.

So, the ministry will focus on increasing the share of public transport trips during the morning peak period to at least 70 per cent over the next 10 to 15 years.

Mr Lim said it would be "quite a challenge" to win over a middle-class who can afford private transport. "People must feel that 'my other car is a bus' or train, as the case may be," he said.

To achieve that, the authorities will improve the bus system through bus priority schemes including full-day bus lanes, new service quality standards and more niche services for those willing to pay for faster or more direct travel.

The Land Transport Authority is also reviewing plans for new train lines, other then the upcoming Circle Line, to recommend to the Government.

At the same time, the MOT review will study how to calibrate vehicle population growth, which averaged 2.3 per cent per annum since 1991. Drivers can expect a sharper trade-off between increasing vehicle population and its impact on higher Electronic Road Pricing charges and more extensive ERP coverage.

Mr Cedric Foo, chairman of the Government Parliamentary Committee for Transport, told Today the review was timely to "keep Singapore in pole position" relative to rising cities like Dubai and Shanghai. He also welcomed the emphasis on public transport.

"In Tokyo, many senior executives take public transport to work. It takes a change in attitude. It takes the pricing of private transport. It takes the Government making the investments and providing the alternatives," he said.

Besides a more extensive rail network, trains should be "faster and more regular", he said. "In Narita, buses come on the dot," he noted of the city whose airport serves Japan's capital of Tokyo.

One other outcome Mr Foo would like to see is better coordination between the MOT and the Ministry of National Development in urban planning. Punggol residents, for example, moved in before the Paya Lebar Expressway was completed, leading to extra traffic along the Central Expressway, he said.

Public Transport Council chairman Gerard Ee believes that the anecdotal evidence of the roads being "more congested despite the ERP" suggests there is a need to "question our vehicle population growth cap" of 3 per cent, which will be in place until 2008.

Besides public transport, Dr Paul Barter — assistant professor at the National University of Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy — would like to see creative alternatives involving car sharing, car rentals, taxis, bicycles and even in-line skates. Otherwise, he said, it would take a long time to wait for a comprehensive public transport coverage.

The review will take about a year, and will also look at increasing mobile accessibility and including the public more in transport planning.
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