Work of Bus Safety Tripartite Taskforce and Stakeholder Engagement Efforts to Enhance Bus and Commuter Safety

1 Mr Saktiandi Supaat asked the Minister for Transport (a) whether an update can be provided on the work of the recently announced Bus Safety Tripartite Taskforce; (b) what are the key areas of focus of the Taskforce; and (c) to what extent has the Taskforce engaged different stakeholders to enhance bus and commuter safety.

The Minister of State for Transport (Mr Murali Pillai) (for the Minister for Transport): Sir, the Bus Safety Tripartite Taskforce was formed on 1 July 2024 to review how road safety may be enhanced for bus commuters, bus captains and other road users in their interactions with public buses. The review builds on the safety initiatives and practices that the Land Transport Authority, the public transport operators and workers have put in place over the years. It aims to identify ways to make further improvements in areas such as safety protocols and procedures, staffing levels and work conditions, design of road infrastructure and the usage of technology.

Between July 2024 and October 2024, the Taskforce engaged stakeholders such as commuters, road users, bus captains and other public transport workers, to obtain their feedback on how to improve bus safety. This includes a one-month long public survey which gathered over 2,300 responses, a survey for our bus captains which garnered over 3,400 responses, as well as in-person focus group discussions with around 160 commuters and road users. The Taskforce also visited all four bus operators to understand their safety practices. During the visits, Taskforce members also had the opportunity to engage face-to-face with bus captains to understand their concerns and challenges. To learn from stakeholders outside the bus sector, the Taskforce engaged the Singapore Armed Forces' (SAF’s) Transport Command to learn about safety initiatives for transport operators in the SAF.

The Taskforce conveys its thanks to all participants of its surveys, focus group discussions and visits. It is reviewing the feedback and learning points from the numerous engagements.

In the coming months, the Taskforce will be engaging international experts, overseas regulators and operators to identify suitable best practices that the local public bus sector can adopt. The Taskforce aims to complete its review by the first half of 2025.

Mr Speaker: Mr Saktiandi Supaat.

Mr Saktiandi Supaat (Bishan-Toa Payoh): Thank you, Mr Speaker. I would like to thank the Minister of State for his answers. I am particularly interested in this Parliamentary Question (PQ) because of the bus safety issues, following the previous PQs I had asked before, especially the ones a few years ago on the accident near the bus interchange.

May I ask the Minister of State whether he can share any preliminary findings from whatever has been achieved so far since October, since the last round of consultations? And what other new consultations or engagements does he plan to make over the next few months, before the findings are released next year?

Mr Murali Pillai: Mr Speaker, Sir, I understand the concern expressed by the hon Member Mr Saktiandi. May I just assure him that the number of serious collision accidents annually involving public buses has remained stable in the past few years. This remains the case since the announcement by Minister Chee Hong Tat on the formation of the Taskforce in July 2024.

As to the preliminary findings, the surveys and engagements that the Taskforce had so far showed that commuters generally feel that the safety standards onboard buses are good. But of course, there are always areas that we can look at to enhance these standards.

As to what further steps we will be taking to get the inputs necessary, as I mentioned in my speech, we will be engaging international experts, overseas regulators as well as operators to identify best practices that we can adopt in the local public bus sector.

Mr Speaker: Dr Tan.

Dr Tan Wu Meng (Jurong): Mr Speaker, I thank the Minister of State for his answer. I have Clementi residents who are ageing and so are understandably giving much attention to whether our bus services, our bus infrastructure continue to be accommodating of the elderly.

Can I ask the Minister of State, in the stakeholder consultations, will there be attention given to engaging healthcare professionals who work with the elderly and may have insights into the challenges faced by the elderly? Professionals such as geriatricians, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and other allied health professionals with relevant experience.

Mr Murali Pillai: Mr Speaker, in response to the hon Member Dr Tan Wu Meng's question, so far, indeed, we have engaged seniors who are commuters and also received responses from bus captains who have been engaging with the seniors as well. In particular, one area of concern is how they would be dealing with situations where the bus had to decelerate quickly as that may cause problems for our seniors. This is one area we are trying to see how best we can progress.

The other area is also, sometimes, to dissuade seniors who have mobility issues from going to the upper deck in double-deck buses, but instead, to remain in the lower deck of the buses so that they do not take any chances while climbing up to the upper deck. That requires some level of education.

I thank Dr Tan for his suggestion for the Taskforce to engage the healthcare professionals. This is something that we could look at to see how we can bolster the safety for seniors while they travel in our buses.