SINGAPORE: More initiatives are in the pipeline to
shorten travel times on buses.
Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew said the Land
Transport Authority (LTA) is looking at expanding the scheme which
makes it mandatory for motorists to give way to buses exiting bus
bays.
There could also be more bus lanes and bus hubs to
drive up bus speeds.
Such measures are necessary, given that 800 more buses will go on
the roads in the next five years.
Mr Lui's comments came as he observed operations at a new bus hub
on Monday morning.
The LTA has completed upgrading works for three bus stops selected
for expansion as bus hubs, four months ahead of schedule.
Bus hubs are bus stops which have extended bays to allow more buses
to pull in at the same time.
They can accommodate up to three single- or double-deck buses in
the bay for simultaneous boarding and alighting.
This reduces the average time each bus needs to dwell at the bus
stops, shortening waiting and boarding times for commuters and
improving overall journey times.
The bus hubs also help to relieve traffic congestion near bus
stops.
Four more bus hubs -- at Marine Parade Road, Upper Serangoon Road,
Yishun Avenue 2 and Victoria Street -- will be ready by the end of
the year.
The remaining 28 will be completed by the end of next year.
Minister Lui visited the latest bus hub, at Bedok Reservoir Road
along Block 121, on Monday.
He said: "For the first and second buses, obviously there aren't
really time savings. The greatest time savings will come with the
fourth and fifth buses.
"Rather than wait another round which may [take] up to a minute,
[the extended bays] can actually help to speed up the flow.
"Having said that, this cannot be the only measure to improve bus
services. You need to do more with regard to [the] mandatory Give
Way [to Buses Scheme] where possible, to extend the use of bus
lanes -- and LTA is looking into that."
Currently, there are 202 bus stops where the Give Way to Buses
Scheme is in place.
To help commuters better manage their travel time, real-time bus
arrival information panels will be installed progressively at the
bus hubs, from the first quarter of next year.
Mr Lui said plans to develop an application to provide more
comprehensive information to commuters, such as whether there are
available seats on buses, have entered the next phase.
He added LTA will be getting volunteers to test out the system
soon.
"We want to make sure it is properly tested and sufficiently
robust, rather than put something out in a hurry," Mr Lui
said.
"When it is ready to be put out, I think it ought to be at a stage
where it is going to be of great use and of value to
commuters."
- CNA/wm/wk/ir
