More Bus Services for Residents of New BTOs at Nee Soon Link Spring and for Service 804 to Stop in Front of Yishun MRT Station
Ministry of TransportSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns Mr Derrick Goh’s inquiry about increasing bus services for Nee Soon Link BTO residents and rerouting Service 804 to stop at Yishun MRT Station. Acting Minister for Transport Chee Hong Tat explained that capacity has been increased for existing services, with further improvements planned for Services 801 and 117/M by late 2023. He stated that Service 804 cannot call at the Yishun MRT bus stop due to physical constraints and heavy traffic involving up to 95 buses per hour. Consequently, the Land Transport Authority will study alternative ways to address the transport accessibility concerns raised on behalf of residents. These adjustments aim to balance the transport needs of new housing precincts with the operational limits of existing bus infrastructure.
Transcript
33 Mr Derrick Goh asked the Minister for Transport whether Bus Service 804 can call at the bus stop in front of Yishun MRT so that residents living in the inner parts of Nee Soon neighbourhoods, such as Nee Soon Link which now includes the six new BTOs, can have better access to public transport without the need to walk into the bus interchange.
34 Mr Derrick Goh asked the Minister for Transport whether more bus services can be considered for residents who have moved into the new BTOs at Nee Soon Link Spring to improve public transport access as the bus stops in the area generally have only one bus service catering to six new BTO precincts.
Mr Chee Hong Tat (for the Minister for Transport): Residents from the new Nee Soon Link BTO precincts are currently served by Services 801 and 806 along Yishun Avenue 6 and Yishun Street 42, as well as Services 103, 117/M and 801 along Yishun Avenue 1. These bus services connect residents to amenities and transport nodes at Yishun and Khatib, where they can access other bus services and the MRT.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has been making service adjustments to serve the increased demand from the new BTO precincts. Service 801 was introduced in January 2022. Over 2023, LTA has been monitoring the situation and had increased the capacity of Services 801 as well as 103 by adding trips or using more double-deck buses. LTA has plans to further improve Services 801 and 117/M by end-2023.
LTA has reviewed the Member’s suggestion to adjust Service 804. The bus stop in front of Yishun MRT Station is heavily utilised, with up to 90 to 95 buses from six bus services in the heaviest peak hour. As site constraints prevent further expansion of the bus stop, increasing the number of buses calling at this stop could result in long tailback of buses, which will impact other commuters. As such, we are unable to adjust Service 804 to call at that bus stop. Instead, we will study other ways to address the concerns that Mr Derrick Goh has raised on behalf of his residents.