Orchard Road bus priority boxes to start on Monday

Many buses along Orchard Road serve only alternate stops along the road. However, this means a bus not serving a stop often has to wait unnecessarily behind one that is - especially during peak hours. The waiting bus could leave the bus lane and overtake but, in heavy traffic, this is practically impossible.

This is why the Land Transport Authority (LTA) is trying out a bus priority box - that will allow buses to cut out of bus lanes - at two stops along the road, reported The Straits Times.

The boxes will be operational next Monday (21^st March) at the stops opposite Mandarin Orchard and at Midpoint Orchard. They will be the first stops without bus bays in the city to be in the Mandatory Give Way to Buses scheme.

When contacted, the LTA explained in an e-mail, "The Bus Priority Box will help buses to overtake the bus queue and exit the bus stops more quickly."

Next Monday will also see the full-day bus lane scheme operating until 11:00pm instead of 8:00pm. About 23km of bus lanes will be affected, mostly in the city centre. The LTA said these roads have high bus and traffic volume beyond the evening peak hours especially along stretches where there are office and commercial buildings. The authority said, "By extending the operating hours... we can shorten travel times for bus commuters and make bus journeys smoother."