Besides ft, LTA is also another of our 'favourite'.
Public transport
'Wasteful and we also destroy history'
Online views of LTA, and the millions spent with little in
return.
Aug 27, 2006, littlespeck.com
By Heng-Cheong Leong
LTA - Land Transport Authority - is probably the agency that wasted
the most taxpayers' money.
From failed projects such as the GPS system on buses, to aborted
projects such as the headquarter-over-canal, to stupid projects
such as the
we-estimate-time-and-you-guess-whether-got-congestion-on-expression
display panels, LTA has probably wasted millions and millions of
money paid by taxpayers.
Now, we discover things get worse. LTA also destroys our history.
Without permission from anyone, LTA destroyed part of a
100-year-old structure that is supposed to be protected under the
Preservation of Monuments Act.
Of course, destroying history is not something new. Remember the
National Library that was destroyed because LTA want to build a
tunnel?
Remember the National Theatre that was destroyed because... er...
for no good reason at all?
And, of course, all the homes and families that had been forced to
move and abandon memories, in the name of progress (read: roads and
rails)?
Along the line of the "new NKF", I guess it's time we tear down the
current LTA, rethink what we really want in terms of land transport
management, and redo a new LTA. - Heng-Cheong Leong
Meanwhile in Funkygrad.com, reader Egoz posted similar
views:-
But you must look deeper than economics. You see, economics is just
more than demand and supply and equilibrium. It involves value
judgment, something which JC students aren't taught.
It involves an analysis whether such a policy would actually be
socially beneficial or socially adverseĀ
..They (the bus companies) implemented the EZ-Link system and
charge the bill to the public.
They introduced air-conditioned bus interchange for amusing and
unbelieving reasons and charge the commuters for these
extras.
(Littlespeck.com: Another wasteful costly item: Installing TV sets
on buses whose shows passengers hardly - if ever - watch.)
And again, they introduced the GPS system on the buses and make the
public users pay for their hoo-haa. I didn't ask them to 'invest'
into such areas. I am sure many other users didn't either.
I don't need a GPS system to tell me if my bus is coming in 5
minutes because even if it is coming in 15 minutes, I will still
have to take that darn bus.
Neither do knowing these real-time information at the last minute
leave me with other alternatives of reaching my destination, if the
entire street is experiencing a traffic slowdown.
And looking on the other side of the coin, instead of profit
maximisation, there is an alternative for cost-minimisation too.
There is more than one specific path to take to reach an
objective.
Besides, they are private firms producing semi-public goods, which
bears social benefits above social costs.
The government has a part to play in this fee hike.
According to a minister that SM LKY had praised in front of the
Potong Pasir crowd as being a straight 'A's student, this minister,
when asked why should public bus service providers pay ERP charges,
his learned reply was, 'without ERP, the flow of buses will
increase in the CDB area'.
What a 'duh' answer! Bus companies have a schedule to follow,
regardless with or without ERP.
What sort of nonsense is that? Then again, it's a 'honest mistake',
and we are working towards a 'world-class' transport system.
Aug 27, 2006
