Tuesday April 18, 2:18
PM
Public transport fare revision exercise deferred by three
months
SINGAPORE : Any public transport fare increases this year will only
be effected in October, instead of in July.
This is because the Public Transport Council has deferred the
annual fare revision exercise by three months.
The deadline for public transport operators to submit their
applications for fare revision was to have been May 2.
Any fare adjustment, if approved, would then be effected on July
1.
But the council has decided to defer this year's exercise.
It says this is to give it time to implement changes to the PTC
(Amendment) Act 2006, which came into effect on April 3.
Under the amended act, new licensing and regulatory regimes, which
include the bus service operator licensing scheme and ticket
payment services licensing framework have been placed under the
purview of the council.
Its Chairman, Mr Gerard Ee, says over the next few months, the
council will need to work closely with the Land Transport Authority
to prepare for the implementation of these new licensing regimes,
and issue the necessary licences to bus service operators and
ticket payment service providers in July.
Along with the new bus service operator licences, the council will
also introduce a new set of Quality of Service standards to better
regulate bus services.
In the light of the changes in the public transport industry, the
council says it has to focus its priority and resources to ensure
that commuters' interests are safeguarded ... and had decided to
defer this year's fare revision exercise by three months.
The new deadline for applications will be August 1, and any fare
adjustment, if approved, will take effect from October 1. -
CNA/de
