Some comments about 969:
As a frequent user of it to Tampines I'd say it's demand is
higher than any of the other town routes I can find. Firstly it's
the only fast service linking Yishun to Tampines, given that
Yishun town is so big. 39 is a little bit longer but the waiting
time for one is already very long, secondly the speed of the
buses along TPE bores people and thirdly, the monotone
radiator sound from the KUB along TPE puts people to sleep. I
didn't mind taking 39 from Tampines to Yishun during the N113 &
DM3500 era but now I'd rather take 168 or 969. Secondly it is
SUPER direct, with totally no stops in Tampines. After Khatib it's
just zoom all the way.
I've seen it's loading during peak hours before. Try observing
at Yishun as SMRT schedules alot of downroutes at Yishun MRT &
Blk 923 during AM peak. The headway is at 3-4 mins but almost every
bus I see are fully seated and half-filled with standees.
And if I'd comment on the bendy deployment, I'd say SMRT has
improved over the years about 969 by adding more bendies. So it's a
no to removing bendies from that service, in fact it needs
more.
Seems like SMRT needs to buck up more about routes
plying by Yishun since it's a really huge town to be
honest.
