From TodayOnline.com
SMRT has a plan ...
Buses could be run parallel to MRT lines in bid to alleviate
overcrowding
SINGAPORE - Public transport operator SMRT is in discussions
with the Government to roll out peak-hour bus services which would
run parallel to congested stretches of MRT train lines.
This is one alternative SMRT is exploring, chief executive Saw
Phaik Hwa told MediaCorp, as trains are running at their highest
frequency possible - given the train network's design - during peak
hours.
Currently, there is one bus, Service 128, which runs parallel to
parts of the North-South Line. "We're looking at other parts to see
whether it can work," said Ms Saw, who declined to reveal where or
the number of possible services, due to the discussions with the
Land Transport Authority (LTA) and the Public Transport
Council.
Introduced in July 2008, Service 128 was the first in 18 years
to be allowed to run parallel to an MRT line since such services
were scrapped.
While transport policy has focused on avoiding duplicate bus and
train routes, Member of Parliament Ong Kian Min felt SMRT's plan
should be studied further. "The number of trains are limited by
capacity and infrastructure. Buses, on the other hand, can provide
more flexibility in tackling congestion on trains," said Mr Ong, a
member of the Government Parliamentary Committee for transport.
But a potential speedbump to this plan could be commuters'
preference to travel by train. SMRT has been monitoring commuters'
responses to Service 128 and found that most passengers prefer to
wait another few minutes for the next train rather than take the
bus.
"So customers have not really supported the alternative ...
We'll continue to explore this," said Ms Saw.
She was speaking to MediaCorp on Friday, almost a week after her
comments about train loads and congestion prompted irate responses
on the Internet.
While she acknowledged trains here are crowded, especially
during peak periods, Ms Saw pointed out that the average number of
passengers per square metre is lower than that of metros in other
major cities.
At a frequency of two to three minutes, SMRT train loads range
from 1,200 to 1,450 passengers, or an average of 3.8 passengers per
square metre. In the likes of London, Shanghai and Tokyo, it is
five to eight passengers per square metre, according to SMRT.
LTA guidelines, meanwhile, stipulate a maximum loading standard
of 1,600 passengers per train, or about 4.9 passengers per square
metre.
SMRT said its trains are already pushing optimal levels when
trains run at intervals of two minutes.
"You may add a few more (trains) here and there, but we have to
watch it because every time you add a train, you're risking a train
not being maintained," Ms Saw said.
Maintenance schedules have been tweaked to allow for "as many
trains as possible" to be utilised, while not compromising safety
and reliability, she added.
At the Jurong East interchange station, crowdedness "is a
problem" due to constraints of the system's design, said SMRT.
LTA is undertaking infrastructural works at the station, due to
be completed next year. Together with 22 new trains which will be
put into service progressively from next May, SMRT will then be
able to add more train trips.
Until then, SMRT will explore options such as parallel bus
services to ease congestion.
While the new Circle Line has alleviated congestion "to some
extent" - by a few single-digit percentage points - Ms Saw said it
may also add congestion at some stations.
Bishan Station, for example, is one such "pressure point", as it
serves both the North-South and Circle Lines. "Eventually, the more
it (Circle Line) crosses the lines that are affected, there will be
some impact," Ms Saw said.
