This may seem heartless.
But any concession given to the disabled people would probably
mean subsidy from the adult fares. This would mean slighly
higher adult fares.
And then there are the polytechnic students asking for lower
fares. How can you subsidise all groups of people and to
remain profitable enough for your shareholders?
To me the argument is flawed that they cannot use the transport
system if there is no concession as most of the disabled people are
either not working or in the low income group.
There are many other able-bodied Singaporeans who have been
retrenched or unemployed. Similarly there are many other
low-income families, or able-bodied Singaporeans who are in the
low-income group and they too have to rely on public
transport. Penalising them and over-burdening them through in
light of a fare increase just to subsidise a minority group of
Singaporeans isn't fair.
But yet, they need help, so why don't the government offer them
subsidies or dish out transport subsidies instead for these
people. I think this is a more equitable way. And I
don't think this is being done out of pity or whatever, but more
caring of a government inclusive of all Singaporeans.
Before the WAB buses and retrofit of stations, the PIW cannot
even take the train or bus. So there isn't that loss to begin in
the first place.
Even if they were already taking buses and trains long ago, Is
the PIW population *that* large for SBST to lose so much in
profitability, that they have to jack up the fares?
Are we going to say that since PIWs take buses and trains now
rather than taxis, taxi fares go up because of the loss in profit
from PIW?