Does
that surprise you much given how our 2 PTOs have under-performed in
service standards, especially SMRT? The QoS and the fines are
really lenient in reality when you consider that our buses are
still a major fail-point in the hub-spoke system (comparatively
slow and not too reliable)
The
govt's rhetoric is and will still be "free market".
But
you can expect them to also meddle more and more in the workings of
the PTOs. They can't be expected to "back-pedal" after talking so
much about privatisation. But you can see that LTA is taking
increasing steps to reign in many aspects of bus service provision.
The most visible examples have been the central bus planning,
competitive tendering of bus routes. And now, assets will be leased
as well.
If
you guys are curious enough, it seems that the govt is studying the
"London bus model" and the "Scandinavian bus model" very
intensively. Go read that up....these models hold the keys to
potential improvements for our buses.
In
the long term, building depot for SMRT/SBST will be better.
For the simple reason that
when the lease terms come up and SMRT under-performs again, no more
fine. They will just get the boot.
Also, the new Citydirect route from Jurong is unique. Fare revenue
is collected by govt and the operator gets a fixed fare.
How
is this "free market"?
Nope. If you guys bother to read the trends carefully it is clear:
Govt is stepping away from privatising bus services.
We’re building another new bus depot
off Loyang Avenue to support the expansion of the bus fleet under
the Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP). This depot will have
the capacity to accommodate 500 buses. It will be equipped with
facilities for bus operations, repair & maintenance, and a rest
area for drivers. When completed in 2015, Loyang bus depot
will be leased to SBS Transit Ltd at a
nominal fee. This follows the Government’s announcement at the
Committee of Supply 2012, to fund the development and land cost of
bus depots and bus parking infrastructure, and lowering the
entry barriers for new operators when we introduce contestability in the bus
industry.
Yup,
looks like my earlier assessment was right.
Govt
is really not as stupid as many of you guys seem to think.
