Updates on Peak Period Short Services

Mr Alex Yam asked the Minister for Transport (a) how is the current bus ridership of the Peak Period Short Services (PPSS) after their introduction; (b) how effective has the PPSS been in alleviating crowding on public buses; (c) whether there are differing experiences of service standards between the different providers; and (d) whether LTA will introduce a PPSS to supplement Service 302 in Yew Tee as soon as possible.

The nine Peak Period Short Services (PPSS) introduced since April 2014 have an average ridership of about 650 rides per day. They have helped alleviate crowding, with the utilisation rate on the parent feeder services falling by about 5% to 7% during the peak hour.

All PPSS have met the contracted service standards and there are no major differences in service standards among the providers.

The Land Transport Authority currently has no plans to introduce a PPSS for Service 302 as it will be improving the frequency of the parent service under the Bus Service Enhancement Programme later this month. Service 302 has also been placed on the Bus Service Reliability Framework which should lead to an improvement in regularity over time.