Debated in Parliament on 17 Feb 2014.
Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song asked the Minister for Transport whether the Ministry can provide the specific list of justifications submitted by each of the two public transport operators for their recent application to the Public Transport Council for fare adjustments.
In its applications to the Public Transport Council (PTC), SMRT indicated that overall operating costs for their bus and train operations had increased by almost 30% between 2010 and 2012. This is largely attributed to an increase of about 35% in their energy costs, and about 28% increase in manpower costs arising from additional recruitment and salary increments. Increased expenditure to maintain an ageing MRT network, and for mid-life refurbishment of the trains and infrastructure, has also impacted their finances.
Similarly, SBS Transit informed that their operating costs increased by almost 8% between 2011 and 2012, with manpower seeing the most significant increase of over 11%. In the first nine months of 2013, rising costs for the North-East Line, and start-up costs for the new Downtown Line, have resulted in their
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train operations going into the red.
Both operators also highlighted the growing losses in their bus business.
PAPERCUTS