Committee of Supply – Head W (Ministry of Transport)

The Chairman: Head W, Ministry of Transport. Mr Saktiandi Supaat. If you could just take your first cut.

Reliable and Resilient Transport Node

Mr Saktiandi Supaat (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Mr Chairman, I beg to move, "That the total sum to be allocated for Head W of the Estimates be reduced by $100."

As we hopefully look to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic year, it is timely for us to take stock of the lessons we have learnt from the supply chain disruptions amidst the COVID-19 pandemic and how businesses are responding to the same. This will prepare us to bolster our hub status as a reliable and resilient transport node to the world.

First, there is a general consensus that digitalisation is required to mitigate the risk of supply chain disruptions. To utilise our limited resources productively, we have already been focusing on digitalisation before the pandemic. But other larger and resource-rich countries will also see the same need now – whether it is using AI and machine learning to decrease dependency on human labour in critical parts of the supply chain or digitising the cumbersome paperwork that accompanies the cargo flowing through the chain.

So, while I welcome the launch of our Supply Chain 4.0 Initiative to help small businesses scale up on digital and automated solutions to make supply chains more resilient and secure, we need to think about how we can continue to stay ahead as the transport node of choice.

Second, the unpredictability of supply chain disruptions has led businesses to move from "just in time" to a "just in case" inventory strategy. As businesses start to keep a fair level of buffer beyond their expected inventory needs, they are also looking for integrated short-term storage solutions in addition to the efficient processing and clearance of goods at our ports.

This creates a conundrum for land-scarce Singapore, where storage space at our ports or elsewhere is only available at a premium. Perhaps the Government can consider how we can use idle state land to support this – as part of our more general plan to move our sea port westwards in the coming years.

Third, we must remember that supply chain disruptions are a global problem and no one country is going to solve it themselves. So, collaboration is key. Even as we compete, we must recognise that sharing knowledge and solutions will improve the interoperability across a network of ports and enhance our resilience and reliability as a regional transport solution.

Through this pandemic, I am glad that we have succeeded in developing and sharing safe crew change protocols with fellow International Maritime Organisation member states and enhanced our digital OCEANSTM initiative to shape and harmonise global data standards. We must continue these efforts to export knowledge. How does the Ministry intend to further enhance Singapore as a reliable and resilient transport node?

Question proposed.

Advanced Tech in the Transport Sector

Mr Saktiandi Supaat: Mr Chairman, today, many countries in the world are talking about smart transportation or intelligent transportation systems. We are no different. Under our Smart Mobility 2030 masterplan launched in 2014, we aim to optimise transport systems and enhance commuter travel experience across Singapore with the latest developments in transport technologies. Time-wise, we are almost at the 50% mark. Could the Ministry share an update on our progress? What are the Ministry's plan and strategy to embrace, testbed and utilise new and advanced technologies to benefit commuters in Singapore or even globally?

Putting aside autonomous and green vehicles, one of the centrepieces in the Smart Mobility vision is to leverage data and analytics to optimise the use of transport systems. Besides collecting information and analysing them at the backend, it is equally important to push such information to individual commuters, so that we are able to influence our user behaviour in real time. This is not new – we have long been informing motorists of road conditions through radio broadcasts and the Expressway Monitoring and Advisory System’s (EMAS) electronic signboards.

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However, rapid improvements in technology mean there are now faster and more efficient ways to push information to commuters. We can now look to apps and websites on our mobile phone for bus arrival timings from the SBS Transit app, ERP rates from the MyTransport app and road conditions from OneMotoring. But these are only as useful as we can get commuters to use them.

What is the utilisation of feedback on these informative apps? Is there an opportunity to centralise information on a single user-friendly platform, now that a global chip shortage has delayed the rollout of the Next-Gen-ERP to the latter half of 2023?

For example, at the usage of Park Connector Network (PCN) level, we can roll out a PCN cycling and pedestrian density real-time "crowd level" map akin to NParks' Safe Distance website where it helps users avoid or navigate with the understanding it is a busy PCN peak period.

Growth and Job Creation in Transport Sector

We are seeing these exciting transport evolutions as we see the transport industry facing a sea change globally. International climate change objectives have intensified the race to decarbonise transport, which accounts for around one-fifth of global carbon emissions. Technological advancements are driving the evolution of smart and intelligent transport systems.

We are seeing these exciting transport evolutions in Singapore as well, including the Hyundai electric vehicle (EV) plant that is coming up, the commercial air taxi services that are coming up as well. Smart technology can complement our transport system by providing last-mile connectivity where required, such as to our islands.

At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic has also shaken up the transport industry over the past two years as transport routes and norms are disrupted. While our seaport continued to post stellar results despite the pandemic, the same cannot be said about our air transport and supporting services industry, which has bled thousands of jobs since the pandemic broke.

What is the projected job creation outlook in the transport sector, be it air, land or maritime? What are the emerging areas and what future jobs will be there and how can we encourage and develop local talent to join these sectors early on?

The Chairman: Mr Melvin Yong, take both your cuts together.

Strengthening Workforce Resilience

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye (Radin Mas): Mr Chairman, the COVID-19 pandemic has a profound impact on our transport workforce across the air, sea and land sectors.

First, it is no secret that our aviation sector has been hard hit by the pandemic. But as more vaccinated travel lane arrangements are made and air travel starts to recover, what is the Government's outlook for the aviation sector? Is the worst behind us or are we looking at a long bottom of a U-shape recovery curve?

It takes years to train our aviation staff, especially highly-skilled jobs, such as pilots and aircraft technicians. According to MOM's data, our air transport workforce has dropped by about 30%, compared to pre-COVID-19 staffing levels. A well-trained and well-staffed workforce is vital for Singapore to recover our status as a travel hub. How does the Government intend to support the aviation sector and revive Changi Airport's manpower capacity? Are there any plans to increase recruitment to prepare for the return of air travel demand?

Our maritime sector, however, has done well amidst the pandemic. Singapore's ports handled a record number of container throughput in 2021. As the sector grows and transforms, what are the Ministry's plans to attract more local workers to join the maritime sector? Has the enhanced Career Conversion Programme for Sea Transport Professionals and Associates been successful in attracting Singaporeans into this growth sector?

Lastly, our land transport sector saw more locals joining as bus captains, bus technicians and rail engineers in the past two years, many of whom are mid-career switchers. But as our economy recovers and companies in the hospitality and tourism industries ask ex-staff to return, do we foresee an increase in attrition among our public transport workforce? How does the Ministry intend to tackle this attrition and keep our essential services attractive to Singaporeans?

Sir, COVID-19 also highlighted the vulnerability of our public bus workforce. We should build a reserve public bus captain pool, one that can be activated upon short notice to fill urgent manpower gaps. I propose to train taxi drivers to act as reserve bus captains. This reserve force could drive buses once a month to keep their driving skills and route familiarity current so that they can be activated upon an emergency. Two of our public bus operators, SBS Transit and SMRT, have taxi companies within their corporate groups today. I hope LTA can work with the National Transport Workers' Union (NTWU) to initiate a pilot with these two companies.

Review Long-term Infrastructure Projects

COVID-19 has fundamentally changed the way we live, work and play. My concern is whether we need to review our pre-pandemic key planning parameters for our major transport infrastructure projects.

According to data from LTA, public transport ridership in 2021 has continued to remain low. There was an average of 5.25 million bus and train trips a day, the second lowest since 2010 and much lower than the record 7.69 million daily trips in 2019.

How will the permanent shifts in the way we live and work affect our long-term plans to grow the MRT network? Can the Ministry provide an update on our rail expansion plans, specifically, the Cross Island and Jurong Regional Lines, and whether we need to review the earlier ridership projections for these lines?

Our aviation sector, too, has seen a continued slump and the Ministry had announced a two-year pause in Changi Airport Terminal 5's construction. Can the Ministry provide an update on when construction will resume, if at all, and whether there will be changes to the scope of the project?

Lastly, the maritime sector, however, has performed well amidst the pandemic. According to MPA, Singapore was the world's busiest container transhipment port, handling a record high of 37.5 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of container throughput in 2021.

We are currently building the Tuas Mega Port which, when fully completed in 2040, will be the world's largest fully-automated terminal with the ability to handle up to 65 million TEUs annually. This is twice our current record high. I would like to ask whether we have oversized the capacity of the Tuas Mega Port and whether the pandemic has delayed its construction timeline.

Next Step for Land Transport

Mr Ang Wei Neng (West Coast): Chairman, the pandemic has completely changed our lives in the past two years. There may not be an exact endpoint where we can say life is going back to normal. While we are slowly restoring parts of our lives, some parts have changed forever.

I would like to touch on one aspect which is close to my heart – how the pandemic has altered our transport patterns. Before I proceed, I would like to declare my interest as I am working in the land transport industry.

It is amazing how all of us have been forced to work from home in one way or another in the past two years. Will working from home be a permanent feature in the future?

From my conversations with many business leaders, the consensus is that most staff, barring the frontline staff, will likely be working from home between 10% and 30% of the time even after the pandemic. More employers are also willing to have their workers put on staggered working hours.

Indeed, data from a study in San Francisco showed that the pandemic had reduced traffic throughout the morning peak hour and spread it all over throughout the day. Ultimately, this can also contribute to healthier communities as there is less air pollution and is aligned with our green plan. Therefore, we need to capitalise on the work-from-home trend to permanently reduce the level of travel demand during the peak hours between 7.30 am and 9.30 am.

Before the pandemic, the resources devoted to the morning peak hours often defined the maximum capacity required to meet the travel demand.

Going forward, firstly, I would like to suggest that the Public Service, which employs about 130,000 public officers, consider encouraging their staff to continue to work from home one to two days a week or to allow the staff to come to work after morning peak hours. If there is a need to have an early meeting at 8.00 am, perhaps we can allow some of them to join the meeting virtually. The unions can also chip in to encourage similar practices in the private sector.

Secondly, at the next review of public transport fares, perhaps the Public Transport Council, or PTC, can take the opportunity to encourage less travelling during peak hours.

In London, some national rail services do not stop at the busiest interchanges at peak times in a deliberate attempt to discourage travelling during peak hours. But I do not suggest that Singapore do the same. It might be better for PTC to amend the fare structure to give a significant discount during the off-peak travel period.

However, providing monetary incentives alone will not shift the travel pattern significantly.

In 2013 to 2014, many of you would remember that commuters were offered free pre-peak travel if they exited certain MRT stations before 7.45 am. What was the result? There was only a sustained decrease of about 7% of commuters exiting the 16 participating MRT stations during the peak period between 8.00 am and 9.00 am. This means that there needs to be a combination of people working from home, staggered working hours and financial incentives for off-peak travelling to result in a significant and sustained impact.

After going through the pandemic, I hope MOT can work with the various stakeholders to cement the change. This will also mean a more pleasant ride on our trains and buses.

If we manage to flatten the curve of peak-hour travelling, should we allow or should we slow down the construction of MRT lines? I hope MOT will reply with a firm "no".

After the construction of the North-East Line, when the ridership was much lower than what LTA had anticipated, the construction of the Circle Line and Downtown Line was delayed. That resulted in overcrowding in the oldest North-South and East-West lines. We should not create the same kind of situation again. We should still build train lines ahead of demand.

I trust that MOT will continue with its plan for the Jurong Regional Line and Cross Island Line. However, we can consider reducing the number of trains deployed to save on the operating, maintenance and fixed asset costs, like rolling stock, if we are successful in flattening the peak-hour travel demand.

Next, I would like to move on to the topic of cycling. The pandemic has made cycling more popular for leisure and for commuting. As what Minister S Iswaran had said, commuting by bicycle does not emit any carbon dioxide. So, it is good that Singapore is expanding its current 440-kilometre network of cycling paths to 800 kilometres by 2023 and to 1,320 kilometres by 2030.

However, these paths and the park connector network, or PCN, are getting crowded as more Singaporeans are using them. I, myself, have been cycling. I have come across instances where the entire shared path was blocked by families holding hands and walking in a row side-by-side. On other occasions, I had also seen three bicycles cycling in parallel, blocking the entire PCN. To keep everyone safe, I suggest that there should be dedicated cycling and pedestrian paths as far as possible.

East Coast Park is one of those parks which have dedicated cycling and pedestrian paths and we need to extend this to more places, such as the PCNs in Marina Bay, Alexandra or the Sengkang/Punggol PCN and more.

In order to create separate paths, the entire path needs to be widened to include the space on either side. Hence, the agencies need to be bold to take back the land or to repurpose the land which may now comprise part of a road or a grass verge to expand the PCN.

COVID-19 might have slowed down our pursuit of new technologies in transport, such as autonomous vehicle or AVs. The use of AVs is an important technological milestone that we cannot miss. In 2020, Singapore was named as the world's top country for autonomous driving due to the expansion of our testing areas and training of bus drivers to operate AVs. In fact, there was an earlier announcement that three new towns would be served by driverless buses by 2022. Can MOT update on the progress of AV trials at Jurong Innovation District, Tengah and Punggol?

Meanwhile, two air taxi pioneers had recently announced their ambition to launch commercial air taxi services in Singapore by 2024. Could MOT provide us an update on the regulatory framework and safety standard for air taxis in Singapore?

Alongside pandemic-induced changes in the way we travel, new transport technologies like AVs and air taxis would be an important part of our transport strategy for the future to reduce traffic congestion and free up land for other uses.

The Chairman: Mr Gan Thiam Poh, you can take your two cuts together.

Maintaining Changi as Aviation Hub

Mr Gan Thiam Poh (Ang Mo Kio): Thank you, Chairman. The aviation sector has been badly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. As the travel sector gradually recovers, how fast can Changi Airport open up to more Vaccinated Travel Lanes (VTLs)? How will the Government support our airport to recover its role as an aviation hub safely? In the longer term, how will the airport continue to remain competitive and provide good jobs for Singaporeans?

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More Flights to Changi Airport

As almost all Singaporeans and residents complete their vaccinations and boosters or acquire immunity, it will become safer for our travel sector to resume. Can the Minister provide an update on the upcoming plans to reopen our borders and attract more flights to Changi Airport? Would the Ministry share its outlook for the aviation sector for 2022?

Reviving the Aviation Sector

Mr Raj Joshua Thomas (Nominated Member): Sir, Singapore's tourism sector has been hit hard by the disruption of travel into Singapore. On the home side, Singaporeans have become a little stir-crazy from restricted travel overseas for leisure, and business persons are also looking for easier travel procedures to places they need to be at.

In this regard, I would like to ask the Minister about MOT's plans to recover air passenger travel and revive the aviation sector. On a related note, I would also like to ask if there are plans to ultimately drop the VTL system and to introduce quarantine-free travel for vaccinated travellers from all destinations, perhaps starting with vaccinated Singaporeans.

Ms Poh Li San (Sembawang): Mr Chairman, may I take my two cuts together?

The Chairman: Yes, please.

Recovery of Aviation Sector

Ms Poh Li San: Thank you. Mr Chairman, I would like to first declare my interest as an Executive in the Changi Airport Group.

The aviation sector has been one of the hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the spread of the Omicron variant has been a drag on the recovery of the sector, there was still cautious optimism at the beginning of this year that global air travel demand will pick up over the course of 2022.

Unfortunately, the war in Ukraine has now cast a shadow over the much-anticipated recovery of this sector. As Russia accounts for about 10% of the world's supply of crude oil, there will be serious disruptions due to the sanctions against Russia by the international community. Not only will oil prices jump, there will also be an impact on the supplies of jet fuel and, in turn, an upward pressure on the price of plane tickets. Flights over Europe may also need to be rerouted due to the war.

Would the Ministry share its views on these events and their impact and its outlook for the aviation sector? What is our strategy going forward to minimise the impact of the pandemic and the war on our aviation sector?

Despite these challenges, we should try to proceed to open our borders safely. Will the Ministry provide an update on the upcoming plans to reopen our borders? With different countries issuing different travel regulations in their attempts to control the pandemic, air travel has become challenging and fraught with confusion. There should be better coordination amongst countries. A uniform set of travel regulations would be more helpful to rejuvenate air travel. What is the Ministry's view on this and what can Singapore do to contribute to improve cooperation with our partner countries, especially those with the most traffic with Singapore?

Mr Chairman, the aviation sector is a manpower-intensive one, with more than 50,000 workers working in Changi Airport pre-COVID-19. After more than two years of the pandemic, how many workers were still employed at the end of 2021? With the gradual resumption of travel, how can the Government ensure that there are sufficient workers to cope with the border reopening? What are the measures to increase the automation of labour-intensive jobs? In the longer term, how can we ensure that the aviation sector remains attractive and provides good jobs? How will the Government continue to support the sector to scale up its capacity and capabilities?

Sustainability in Aviation Sector

Last month, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore convened the inaugural meeting of the International Advisory Panel on Sustainable Air Hub to develop a blueprint for Singapore to become a sustainable aviation hub. Would the Ministry share more about its plans under the blueprint?

Companies in the aviation sector are trying to keep afloat amidst a very difficult environment caused by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and, now, the war in Ukraine, which will lead to higher oil prices. What will the Government do to help the aviation sector cope with increased carbon taxes in addition to the other cost pressures?

What grants and funds are available for the aviation industry to invest in new technology and equipment that will reduce carbon emissions and boost energy efficiency?

The Chairman: Mr Dennis Tan, you can take your two cuts together.

Challenges in the Aviation Industry

Mr Dennis Tan Lip Fong (Hougang): Thank you, Chairman. In the last few months, there appears to be some lamentation over the slow recovery of the Asia Pacific aviation industry from the pandemic amidst government restrictions.

According to figures released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) for October last year, travel in the Asia Pacific was down 92.8% in October 2021, compared to October 2019. According to IATA, the region is the only part of the world to see practically no improvement in air travel during the past year. A few months on, as countries battled their way out of the Omicron threat, I wonder whether there is any sign of recovery for the aviation industry in the Asia Pacific and, indeed, for Singapore this year.

At last year's Committee of Supply (COS), Minister Ong Ye Kung told the House not to expect a V-shaped recovery. That was before the start of the VTLs for Singapore and many other countries. Many countries have relaxed travel restrictions in the last few months. Nearer home, Singapore continues to increase its VTL locations. Australia recently opened its borders to visitors again.

As more countries start to open up and increase flights to other countries and with some relaxing COVID-19 test requirements, will the Minister update the House on his expectations for growth of air travel in the coming year and its implications for Singapore as a major air hub and for our aviation industry?

I would also like to ask the Minister whether we will see the start of recovery for the aerospace sector. This sector is significant to Singapore and includes maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), avionics and aircraft component production and repair. As we head towards a post-pandemic world, may I also take the opportunity to ask the Minister whether he can update the House on MOT's review of its plans for Terminal 5?

Maritime Decarbonisation and Bunkering

Mr Chairman, I declare my interest as a maritime lawyer.

In August 2021, the Global Centre for Maritime Decarbonisation (GCMD) was set up by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and six partner maritime organisations and companies to, I quote, "Support decarbonisation of the maritime industry to meet or exceed the International Maritime Organisation (IMO)'s goals for 2030 and 2050."

Its stated goals were, among other things, and I quote again, "Lower the adoption barriers for low zero carbon fuels and technologies by closing the gaps in infrastructure, safety operations and financing, and to accelerate the deployment of scalable low-carbon technologies."

The opening of the Centre and the Centre's aims are, indeed, befitting of our port as a leading bunkering port in the world as well as one of the busiest ports in the world and one of the major world maritime hubs. Singapore should aim to take the lead to hasten the development and adoption of low- or zero-carbon fuels for commercial shipping at this critical time.

The International Advisory Panel on Maritime Decarbonisation had earlier proposed the establishment of this Global Maritime/Decarbonisation Centre in Singapore to coordinate, drive and catalyse maritime decarbonisation solutions. MPA has recently reported that in 2021, Singapore has kept its position as the top bunkering port, registering total bunker sales volume of 50.04 million tonnes in 2021. Of this, the bulk of the sales volume, 49.99 million tonnes to be exact, were conventional bunker sales, while only 0.5 million tonnes were in LNG bunker sales.

It was reported that Singapore commenced regular ship-to-ship LNG bunkering operations from March last year and that Singapore will continue to diversify our fuel offerings in line with our push for maritime decarbonisation. Indeed, LNG itself may not even be a long-term solution. The industry may have to push on to better low, if not zero, carbon fuels. There is not much time for all stakeholders in the maritime industry in the world to achieve the goals set by IMO to halve greenhouse emissions from 2008 levels by 2050. There is much to do in our search for affordable zero-carbon fuels. I hope GCMD will enable Singapore to spearhead the push among leading maritime nations.

Will the Minister share with this House his hopes for GCMD and also his expectation of what Singapore hopes to achieve for its bunker sales in terms of lower carbon offerings in the coming five, 10 and perhaps 20 years?

Public Transport

Mr Lim Biow Chuan (Mountbatten): Sir, in a recent public transport survey, it was reported that overall satisfaction with public transport in Singapore in 2021 dipped to its lowest level since 2015.

Public transport remains the main mode of commute for the majority of Singaporeans and LTA needs to ensure that our public transport remains, safe, reliable, accessible and comfortable. And, yet, at the same time, I urge the Ministry to ensure that public transport remains affordable, as it is a public service available to all Singaporeans.

So, may I ask the Minister whether there is any assessment or evaluation as to the reasons for the drop in commuter satisfaction? What are the steps taken by public transport operators to improve on their performance? Would a report be issued by the public transport operators on their remedial action? May I also ask the Minister whether he can provide the House with an update on the plans to expand the MRT network and how to make public transport more accessible to Singaporeans?

May I also ask the Minister for an update to the public transport fare review formula, which is due by next year?

Thirdly, may I ask the Minister whether the construction of the Thomson-East Coast Line is on track to be fully operational by 2024? Here, I declare my interest in this Thomson-East Line as there will be four MRT stations located in my constituency.

Debate in Committee of Supply resumed.

Head W (cont) –

MRT Coverage

Mr Gan Thiam Poh: Chairman, what has been the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our plan to grow the MRT network from 230 kilometres to 360 kilometres in the early 2030s? Would the Ministry share what is the progress of the feasibility study of the new lines, including the possibility to have a line to serve the residents in Buangkok, Yio Chu Kang, Fernvale and Punggol?

Bus Services Rationalisation

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song (Aljunied): The Public Transport Council (PTC)'s latest customer satisfaction survey found that satisfaction with public transport services has fallen to its lowest level in six years. The survey showed that discontent with public bus services was a factor with many commuters, notably expressing dissatisfaction with bus waiting times. These sentiments are similarly expressed by many of my residents living along Bedok Reservoir Road where four bus services were recently cut or re-routed last December. This has resulted in my residents having to put up with longer waiting times, crowded buses and losing direct routes to their destinations.

Before removing or re-routing bus services, LTA should conduct public consultations with affected residents. If bus services are being rationalised due to low ridership, I would like to suggest that LTA first consider switching to smaller buses or extending their headways. If bus services must be removed, the frequency of the remaining feeder services to bus interchanges or MRT stations should be increased to make up for them. Commuters should not have to wait more than five minutes during peak hours or 10 minutes during off-peak hours for feeder buses. LTA should strive to retain trunk bus services. These serve many elderly and disabled residents who have trouble walking between bus stops or transferring from bus to MRT. Many of them do not mind longer bus routes or bus rides if that allows them to walk less.

While LTA and public transport operators strive towards efficiency, they must pay closer attention to the comfort and convenience of commuters. LTA should proactively monitor public feedback and be open to bringing back bus services if there is strong commuter demand.

Let Them Ride Free

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim (Sengkang): Chairman, I wish to share with this House a proposal that seniors and those with disabilities be furnished with a concession card that will allow them to ride public transportation free of charge.

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On its face, this sounds like a preposterous and profligate idea. Preposterous, because, surely, removing charges would invite overuse and abuse. Profligate, because even when they are made free of charge, these services are, certainly, not free of cost and must be funded by some source – in this case, the Government.

But before we jump to instinctive judgement, it is worth noting that free ridership already exists in some form or another. In Singapore, there are free transport shuttles for patrons of Turf City, for tourists seeking a city tour during a stopover and for students connecting to campus from nearby MRT stations. Other countries have gone even further. Some municipalities from smaller ones, such as Hoeselt in Belgium and Obare in France, to larger cities, such as Prague in the Czech Republic and Washington DC in the United States, run selected free bus and tram services. Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia, recently converted its entire public transportation network to a zero-fare system. Around two years ago, Luxembourg became the first nation in the world to make all public transportation modes free within the country.

As our society ages, but many elderly remain mobile and healthy, some may wish to continue to pursue employment opportunities. Such positions, typically on a part-time basis, do not pay very much and public transportation would very quickly gobble up a sufficiently large share of the pay cheque, so as to make the entire enterprise no longer worthwhile. Free transport for seniors will allow those who wish to remain productive and engage in employment to do so. Our labour force participation has already trended down since 2015 and while this is natural and normal in an ageing society, the scheme will help mitigate the rate of decline and allow our economy time to adjust.

Even in the absence of work, free transport will encourage the elderly to be out and about, engaging in social interactions that can promote their physical and mental well-being. This can help manage the rising incidence of dementia, which already one in every 10 seniors faces.

This initiative also dovetails nicely with our nation's effort to promote environmental sustainability. An important cornerstone of the Singapore Green Plan 2030 is to encourage green commutes, with a target of 75% mass public transportation usage. Providing incentives for our elderly and disabled to rely more heavily on public transport, since trips will be free, will contribute toward this goal, especially since riders are least likely to be using green forms of transportation, such as bicycles, in any case.

An initiative, such as this, will entail trade-offs, of course. Our existing pricing structure is, to be fair, relatively affordable by global standards. Moreover, seniors and the disabled already pay concessionary rates on existing tariffs. The Government has also invested heavily in the transportation infrastructure on which the public transportation system relies on, thereby providing an indirect subsidy.

But to the extent that fares are used to offset operational costs, with profits subject to corporate taxation and dividends returned to majority shareholders, such as Temasek, the Government is able to recoup much of its initial outlay. Seniors and the disabled are only a comparatively small fraction of public transportation ridership. The financial impact would, therefore, correspondingly be much more limited. Our estimates, which are, admittedly, conservative, suggest added expenditures of between $0.3 billion and $0.4 billion a year, or an increase of 3% to 4% of the Ministry's current budget.

Even if we are uncomfortable with completely unrestricted free usage, one reasonable accommodation would be to allow such free transport during off-peak hours, where there is, typically, some spare capacity in our bus and train systems in any case. If so, the opportunity cost of not implementing such a free transportation scheme may well exceed the cost of doing so.

Mr Chairman, LTA has declared that it seeks, and I quote: "inclusive public transportation system", one that ensures barrier-free access for wheelchairs and strollers, providing priority boarding lines and reserved seats for elderly and disabled commuters and creating bus-stop seats that are more elderly-friendly.

While these multidimensional aspects of inclusivity exist, we have neglected inclusion of the most fundamental form – ensuring free access to public transport for those who can least afford it. Some have gone as far as to argue that urban transit is a human right, akin to why we do not pay to ride elevators. Even if we do not wish to push the argument that far, I believe we can all agree that the least an inclusive and caring society can do for our seniors and disabled is to afford them the dignity to move around our beautiful city, free of charge. Let them ride free.

The Chairman: Order. I propose to take a break now.

Thereupon Mr Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the House.

Mr Speaker: Order. I propose to take a break now. I suspend the Sitting and will take the Chair at 7.55 pm.

Sitting accordingly suspended

at 7.36 pm until 7.55 pm.

Sitting resumed at 7.55 pm.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

COMMITTEE OF SUPPLY – HEAD W (MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT)

(Creating an inclusive and sustainable home)

Debate in Committee of Supply resumed.

[Mr Speaker in the Chair]

Head W (cont) –

7.58 pm

Lorry Transportation

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: Mr Chairman, I have raised on multiple occasions in this House about the importance of ensuring that our workers travel to and from work safely every day.

The Government had said that it was reviewing how to enhance the safety of workers ferried in the rear decks of lorries after a spate of traffic accidents last year.

I would like to ask whether the Government is considering a ban on the transportation of workers in the rear decks of lorries. Can the Ministry provide an update on this as well as to my earlier suggestions to install speed limiters and seat belts, as interim measures, on lorries used to ferry workers to enhance safety? Sir, we should do all we can to improve the safety of our workers' transport.

The Chairman: Deputy Leader. Would you like to adjourn the debate?