Consultations with Wheelchair Users for "First to Board, First to Use" Shared Priority Bay Pilot on Public Bus Services

Miss Rachel Ong asked the Minister for Transport (a) whether wheelchair users were consulted before the "First to Board, First to Use" pilot; (b) if so, how their feedback informed its design; and (c) how had the Ministry assessed the differing transport needs of wheelchair users, who may be unable to board without the wheelchair bay, and passengers with strollers, before proceeding with the pilot.

Before embarking on the trial, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) had consulted Social Service Agencies, such as SG Enable, the Handicaps Welfare Association and Society for the Physically Disabled (SPD). LTA's intent is to assess how to address situations where passengers who are already using the wheelchair bay cannot practically give way to someone who is about to board the bus. Today, conflicts and passenger unhappiness do arise, and bus captains are put in a difficult situation. The trial also enables us to get better feedback on how different commuter groups are impacted. Since the commencement of the trial, LTA has indeed received more feedback, particularly from groups, such as the Muscular Dystrophy Association and the Disabled People's Association, as well as from parents with young children, which we appreciate.

As of August 2026, there were three reported cases where wheelchair users were unable to board the bus because the wheelchair bay was occupied. This is approximately 0.005% of all trips on the 10 trial services taken by persons with disabilities in the same period.

We recognise that buses with only one wheelchair bay can make it challenging to share the space. Newer public buses have two wheelchair bays and make up 25% of our fleet today. However, adding wheelchair bays means reducing the number of seats which also affects other passengers with needs, such as seniors. Foldable seats do not fully replace the number of seats removed. We will need to consider the impact across all commuters when reviewing the design of buses to increase the number of wheelchair bays further.