Better connectivity, more comfortable journeys and more regular bus arrivals
9 October 2015 - As of 30 September 2015, 690 Government-funded buses have been added via the Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP1). Together with the Bus Service Reliability Framework (BSRF), which aims to improve the regularity of buses at bus stops, commuters have experienced better connectivity, less crowded buses and more regular bus arrivals.
45 new or amended bus services since start of BSEP
2. In September 2015, four new bus services i.e. SBS Transit Service 102 and City Direct Services CDS 661, 662 and 663 were implemented to provide additional connectivity to commuters. These four services bring the total number of new or amended services under the BSEP to 45.
3. In the fourth quarter of this year, residents of Tampines / Simei2 and Marsiling / Woodlands can look forward to the implementation of another two City Direct Services, CDS 664 and 665. Seven more new routes will also be introduced to enhance connectivity in areas such as Bedok, Bukit Panjang, Choa Chu Kang, Jurong East, Jurong West, Marine Parade, Punggol, Sembawang, Tampines and Yishun. Details of these new routes are currently being worked out and will be shared closer to their implementation dates.
450 weekly bus trips added as part of BSEP
4. To reduce crowding and shorten wait times, 30 additional buses were deployed to improve 213 existing services during the morning and evening peak hours in the third quarter of 2015. Some of these services have seen significant improvements in their frequencies. In total, 450 weekly peak-hour bus trips were added in this period.
5. As part of the on-going quarterly bus service review process, SBS Transit and SMRT have also improved 254 bus services by deploying higher capacity buses and/or adding more bus trips along sectors that experience heavy ridership. In total, the operators have added 110 weekly trips during peak hours for these services in the third quarter of 2015. This is in addition to the 450 additional weekly peak-hour bus trips added by the Government under the BSEP during the same period.
More regular wait times and less crowding
6. The second assessment period of the BSRF5 trial (December 2014 to May 2015) has shown that commuters on average have benefitted from more regular wait times and less crowding, as there is less prolonged waits, and passenger loads are spread more evenly across bus trips. 17 out of 22 services reduced their Excess Wait Times6. SBST earned $816,000 for reliability improvements to 12 services, and SMRT earned $384,000 for improvements to five services. These incentives help offset costs, such as the hiring of more service controllers, incurred by the PTOs to support the BSRF.
7. The BSRF trial has been expanded by 12 services in June 2015, with 11 more services joining the trial in December 2015. This brings the total number of services under the trial to 45.
Bus Service Enhancement Fund (BSEF)
8. About $420 million of the $1.1 billion BSEF have been disbursed. The fund has gone towards the purchase and operating costs of new buses, the introduction of new bus services, and improvement of existing bus services.
Annex A: Examples of BSEP improvements (Jul - Sept 2015)
Annex B: Enhancements to existing bus services (Jul - Sept 2015)
Annex C: Map of BSEP improvements
Annex D: Results of Second BSRF Assessment Period (Dec 2014 – May 2015)
[1] The BSEP was started in September 2012 and targets to introduce 1,000 government-funded buses by 2017. Together with the buses injected by the public transport operators and the use of private bus operators to provide additional capacity through the City Direct Services and the Peak Period Short Services, the BSEP will expand the public bus fleet by about 35%. The BSEP also includes the introduction of 80 new routes.
[2] City Direct Service 664 was implemented on 6 Oct 2015.
[3] Services that have been improved under the BSEP in 3Q2015: 50, 85, 87, 222, 231, 232, 240, 265, 282, 284, 315, 317, 335, 803, 812, 858, 860, 904, 922, 972, 983
[4] These 25 services are: SBS Transit services 3, 4, 23, 35, 70, 89, 90, 130, 138, 168, 186 , and SMRT services 169, 172, 189, 854, 856, 857, 901, 911, 961, 962, 963, 964, 969, 985
[5] The BSRF was introduced to 22 existing services in February 2014 to improve bus reliability by reducing the instances of bus bunching and prolonged wait times. Each bus service is measured against a unique baseline across six-month assessment periods. Bus operators are rewarded with incentives if they improve service reliability, and penalised if there is deterioration in reliability.
[6] Excess Wait Time is the average additional waiting time experienced by commuters at bus stops over the expected waiting time.
