Adequacy of Reserve Buses to Minimise Disruptions to Commuters Caught in Train Breakdowns

Miss Cheng Li Hui asked the Minister for Transport (a) how large is our reserve fleet of buses and drivers; (b) whether it is sufficient to minimise disruptions caused to commuters during MRT breakdowns; (c) whether there are plans to involve taxi companies and their network of taxis during such disruptions to minimise the impact on commuters; and (d) whether there is a system currently in place to hold the operators to task in cases of service disruption.

It is not prudent use of resources to maintain a fleet of reserve buses and drivers to cater purely for train disruptions. It is just not possible. In the event of a prolonged disruption, operators will use buses that are off-duty or cross-deploy buses from less crowded services to provide bus-bridging services. Taxi companies are also alerted to inform their drivers of high demand areas along the affected routes, so that more drivers can make their vehicles available in those areas.

As part of their licences, rail operators are required to have a robust Rail Incident Management Plan, which includes accurate and timely information dissemination and the provision of bus bridging services. LTA will take regulatory action if there are failings in the implementation of this plan. The bottom line is this. That when we have a prolonged disruption, we will try to ease the pain by providing free buses for bridging. But it is never satisfactory because the bus capacity just cannot cope, especially if it happens during peak hours. That is why MRT is always preferred to buses. The moment the MRT starts to run, the queue, even though it is for free buses, just disappears. Everybody just goes straight into the MRT. Therefore, our priority is straightforward − focus on the basic needs, ensure train reliability. We are not there yet but we will get there.