Not many pax would bother to take the DTL to Bukit Panjang then
take LRT to CCK then take bus home.. it is too troublesome. Sv 190
is still the best option. Same for 972.. 972 directly connects pax
from their homes in bukit panjang to town. Like for instance i have
a friend living near teck whye. He prefers to take 190 from town
home rather than taking the DTL. If DTL serves choa chu kang it
would be a different story ;)
However i feel DTL has taken off some of Sv 171's and 700/700A's
loading from Orchard towards Bukit Timah / Bukit Panjang. Sometimes
700 can run half full or empty from town during peak hours.
I know - that's what I kept saying from day 1 that DTL2 will not
impact 190 and 972's loading.
Loadings that have been impacted are 67, 171, 700,
960.
But 171 and 700 still have good loading between Dunearn road and
Orchard road as it is the fastest link. The loading drops right
after. 700 comes to Whitley road bus stop on its way to BPJ with
only 30-40 pax on board. But at Scotts road near Newton MRT, it has
around 70 pax. So you can guess where the bulk of loading went.
Same for 171.
960 likewise don't see super crowded buses anymore except
weekends but it is because of workers near Mandai who go to
Bugis/Little India area.