27 out of 34 bus services show improvement in reliability

A 'carrot-and-stick' pilot scheme introduced two years ago to make bus operators improve service reliability continues to bear fruit, with 27 out of 34 bus routes under the scheme showing improvements, reported The Straits Times. 

SBS Transit was given a total of $1.34 million for improving the regularity of bus arrivals for 18 services over the evaluation period from June to November last year. SMRT, meanwhile, earned $504,000 for bettering seven services, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said yesterday. Another two services SMRT operates registered marginal improvements, but did not qualify for an incentive payment.

This is the third evaluation period for the Bus Service Reliability Framework (BSRF), which was introduced in February 2014. Under the framework, operators are given monetary incentives for reducing commuters' excess waiting time - the difference between actual and scheduled waiting times - or handed penalties if this waiting time increases. While the BSRF started with 22 services, the LTA added another 12 more routes for the third evaluation phase. Another 11 more services were added for the fourth evaluation round from December last year to May this year.

"Commuters benefited as wait times were more regular and bus loads were spread more evenly," the LTA said in a press release. "Overall, both operators have sustained improvements in reliability since the implementation of the BSRF trial, through enhanced management of the bus fleet and the hiring of more service controllers," the LTA added.