Raymond Lim Siang Keat
Singapore
“Mr Chairman, Sir, we launched a slew of measures over the past three years to effect a major transformation to our land transport system. These cover not just big projects like our $60 billion investment to double our rail network but also smaller and equally important things like bus route information at every bus stop and parking guidan…”
“I think the better approach to help Singaporeans cope with the cost-of-living pressures is that which has been outlined by the Finance Minister. That is, instead of trying to bring specific costs down, it is better to give help on the income front.”
“From the experiences of these ongoing public education initiatives, CFC is in the midst of developing a set of guidelines on proper cycling behaviour on dedicated cycling paths. Apart from these efforts, TP has been giving customised talks in schools and at community-level events to provide tips on safe cycling.”
“Er Lee Bee Wah: Sir, I would like to thank the Minister for the comprehensive answer. I have four supplementary questions. Since the announcement of the NSE, I have been receiving overwhelming feedback from my residents from three condominium developments.”
“The Member's second question refers to the noise mitigation measures. LTA actually has considerable experience in doing these. This is not the first time that LTA, because of the compact nature of Singapore, has had to build a major road in close proximity to residential areas.”
“Yes, on a weekly basis. The second question is how much have been claimed to date. We started this on 18th December 2010. As at the end of last year 28th December, we have a total of about 169,000 transactions. We have refunded about $46,000. There was $300,000 overcharged and $46,000 refunded.”
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“Third, the building of new flats must be in line with the net household formation rate, which takes into account the number of new households formed as well as the disbanding of households due to deaths, changes in marital status and other factors. If HDB were to provide every young couple with a new flat, while we will make the young couples happy today, we are creating a big problem for the same young couples in their later years. The same couples, in their perhaps not-so-young days, will have difficulties selling their flats later when they need to. We must not forget that a flat buyer today may be a flat seller later. In other words, if we over-provide for the young couples, we will inevitably affect the older couples who are thinking of monetising their HDB flats, or the couples who aspire to upgrade to a private property. HDB, therefore, needs to calibrate the supply of new flats to ensure a healthy resale market where both buyers and sellers can meet their needs. The Member has also asked MND/HDB to consider granting newlyweds priority under HDB's bi-monthly sales exercises for unsold flats. I wish to clarify that HDB has already been giving priority to first-timers (which includes newlyweds and those applying under the Fiance-Fiancee scheme) when they apply for new HDB flats under the Build-to-Order and Balloting Exercises. This is in recognition of the more urgent needs of this group of flat buyers who are seeking a home to settle down and start a family. In the HDB Heartware Forum project which I have recently completed, we have taken note of the desire of the young couples to stay near their parents and have made recommendation to HDB to improve the priority scheme accordingly.”
“Much as we empathise with young couples, especially those who want to be located near their parents, there is simply not enough land in the mature towns to meet every need. From time to time, HDB identifies a site in a mature estate for redevelopment, and is able to offer a small number of new HDB flats for sale to the public after re-housing SERS residents. Dawson Estate, which was mentioned by PM in his National Day Rally speech, is one such example of HDB's effort to rejuvenate the mature estates. However, this supply is small. It takes time for HDB to collect sufficient land parcels, and it is not enough to meet all the demand for new flats in mature towns. Where possible, HDB will do what it can to rejuvenate old estates, intensify the use of land, and introduce new HDB flats for sale to the public. However, given the land constraints, the majority of new flat supply will be located in the newer towns. It is not possible for HDB to provide a new flat to every young couple who wishes to stay near their parents. Therefore, first-timers who wish to buy a flat in a mature estate should consider the option of buying a resale flat. First-timers who buy resale flats can enjoy a HDB Housing Grant of $30,000, while those who live near their parents enjoy a higher tier grant of $40,000. To help the lower income group in buying their first flat, the Additional Housing Grant has been enhanced recently. For those whose monthly household income is below $4,000, they will also enjoy an Additional Housing Grant of up to $30,000. Therefore, first-timers can enjoy up to $70,000 in housing grant or about 40% of the price of a three-room resale flat.”
“The Minister of State for National Development (Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien) (for the Minister for National Development): Sir, from January 2004 to June 2007, HDB offered for sale more than 31,000 new HDB flats under various sales exercises. HDB plans to offer another 5,000-6,000 new flats in the second half of 2007. In total, that will bring the number of new flats offered in 2007 to 10,000 units. It will also continue to monitor the market closely, and make appropriate adjustments to the new flat supply, if necessary. Mr Chiam asked whether there is enough supply of new HDB flats for newlyweds so that they do not have to buy a resale flat. I would like to clarify that the demand for housing from first-timers is met through new flats as well as resale flats. There are three reasons for that. First, new and resale flats have different attributes and their own attractions to flat buyers. While new flats come with more modern designs, they tend to be in newer towns which are less centrally located and may not be ready for immediate occupation. On the other hand, resale flats, whilst older, tend to be situated in more established towns with a wider range of facilities and are ready for immediate occupation. Resale flats are a good option for newlyweds who wish to live near their parents or are planning to get married soon. With the large stock of more than 800,000 flats in Singapore, resale flats come in a wide variety of sizes, locations and prices to meet different housing needs and budgets. Second, a large number of first-timers are really asking for new flats in mature estates. Some of them wish to stay near their parents, while others like the location and seemingly better resale value.”
“Three persons in the vicinity, ie, an off-duty Home Team officer, Sgt Andrew Lee, and two members of the public, Mr Syed Ahmad and Mr Fang Sian Piaw who are trained in CPR, immediately helped the victim out of the car and took turns to perform CPR. They resuscitated the victim before the arrival of the emergency ambulance. A life was saved due to their timely intervention. Another example which I think Members would also recall, which was reported in the media, was how Ms Esther Tan, a junior college student, helped to save a life in February last year, when she applied CPR for six minutes until SCDF paramedics arrived. As to protocols to ensure the activation of emergency services in a timely fashion, stringent operational Key Performance Indicators are already in place and regularly reviewed to ensure the timely response of the emergency ambulance service following the receipt of a 995 call. Over the past three years, the SCDF emergency ambulance service has consistently met its target of reaching its destination within 11 minutes more than 80% of the time. NEW HDB FLATS (Adequacy of supply for newlyweds) 11. Mr Chiam See Tong asked the Minister for National Development (a) whether the Ministry can provide figures of new HDB flats in the market for the last three years; (b) whether there is enough supply of HDB flats for newlyweds to purchase from HDB instead of having to go to the resale market; (c) will the Ministry consider giving priority to newlyweds under the Fiance/Fiancee Scheme during the bi-monthly sales exercise; and (d) will the Ministry consider holding a dialogue with couples who have registered for marriage to hear their plight in such purchases.”
“Dr Fatimah Lateef asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs in view of the recent cases of cardiac arrest and medical emergencies happening at multiple front line and public areas (a) what steps are being taken to ensure that front line officers, such as counter staff at the immigration office, checkpoints and airports, are trained in initial response/cardiopulmonary resuscitation and first aid; and (b) whether there are specific protocols to ensure the activation of emergency services in a timely fashion. Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee (for the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs): Sir, Home Team officers, including frontline officers at the checkpoints, must first and foremost be trained in their professional core competencies and functions. New officers training at the Home Team Academy receive basic training in first aid and CPR, in addition to their professional training. Serving officers may also be trained in basic first aid and CPR when practicable. But, Sir, I should emphasise that it is not just Home Team frontline officers who should be trained in first aid and CPR. A medical emergency can happen anytime, anywhere to anyone. Since 2003, SCDF has been providing training on lifesaving skills under the Community Emergency Preparedness Programme (CEPP). This programme is provided free-of-charge at the four SCDF Division Headquarters, seven days a week. Members of the public are encouraged to go for this training. Once trained, they can help make a difference by applying first aid or CPR in an emergency situation before the emergency response team arrives. Sir, let me cite a couple of examples. In July this year, a road traffic accident at Choa Chu Kang caused the driver to experience a cardiac arrest.”
“Sir, as a first step, in the information package recently developed by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) for foreigners and PRs to encourage them to naturalise, ICA has set out some of the benefits enjoyed by PRs and Singapore Citizens, such as educational subsidies, healthcare financing schemes and eligibility to purchase properties. As for specific information on National Service (NS) liability for male PRs, this is made explicit to the applicants at the various stages of the application process. For example, at the pre-application stage, when a foreigner checks ICA's website for information on applying for PR, the requirement for all male Singapore Citizens and PRs, including male children who are granted PR status under their parents' sponsorship, to serve NS is clearly spelt out. It is also clearly stated in the website that, should NS-liable PRs renounce or lose their PR status without serving or completing full-time NS, there would be an adverse impact on any application by them to work or study in Singapore. Should he decide to apply for PR status, he will find the same information on NS liability stated in the explanatory notes that accompany the PR application form. If his PR application is successful, he will receive an approval letter from ICA notifying him as to the administrative details for completing his PR formalities. In the approval letter, information on NS liability for male PRs is once again mentioned. In short, Sir, information on the NS liability for male PRs is made explicit to all foreigners applying for PR, at various stages of the PR application process. CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION AND FIRST AID (Training for frontline officers) 10.”
“As I said, Mr Speaker, Sir, it is really too early to prejudge this. They have just started discussing. Whether it will be the Universal Declaration of Human Rights or the International Covenant on Political and Civil Rights, or economic, social and cultural rights, all these are quite early stages. We will take it a step at a time. SINGAPORE PERMANENT RESIDENTS (Rights and obligations) 9. Mr Gautam Banerjee asked the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs whether the rights and obligations that come with becoming a permanent resident of Singapore are clearly communicated to foreigners when they are conferred permanent residence status in Singapore and whether National Service obligations for all male minors and future male offsprings of Singapore permanent residents are made explicit to all foreigners before they accept Singapore permanent residence. The Senior Minister of State for Home Affairs (Assoc. Prof. Ho Peng Kee) (for the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs): Mr Speaker, Sir, I agree that information on the rights and obligations that come with becoming a Singapore Permanent Resident (PR) should be communicated clearly to potential applicants, to allow them to make an informed decision before they take up PR status. Currently, those who want to have more information on how the various Government policies may apply to them can access the Government information portal at www.ecitizen.gov.sg. As the eCitizen information portal is not a website specifically designed for PRs and new citizens, we are exploring how we can consolidate relevant information on the rights and obligations of PRs and citizens and make them available to applicants for PR and citizenship to assist them in their decision-making process.”
“Sir, as I said, it is premature right now to prejudge what is the outcome of this human rights body. We are just at the early stages. Discussions are just starting. So we need to see exactly how it goes. But what is important, like what the Member has said, are the standards and whether individuals have rights. Here, we need to take into account quite critically what are the history, realities and cultures of all the 10 ASEAN member states. This is to ensure that what we have is meaningful and have the full support of all the ASEAN member states.”
“We work with many other agencies. For example, the Traffic Police is one agency that we work with. For instance, you see advertisements every now and then on our TV or in our cinemas, eg, "If you drink, don't drive", some very graphic, some very good, to drive home this particular message. So, as I said, we work with many agencies, and it is an on-going process, and we need everybody to chip in, including everyone in this House. EXTENDED MATERNITY LEAVE SCHEME (Complaints about unfair job termination) 16. Mr Christopher de Souza asked the Minister for Manpower (a) what is the number of complaints received from pregnant women about unfair job termination since the third month paid maternity leave scheme was introduced in 2004 for the years 2005, 2006 and the first five months of 2007; and (b) whether the number of such complaints has risen year on year, compared to the number of complaints received prior to the introduction of the scheme.”
“Sir, this is what we are doing. LTA is doing a review and this is something that we have to constantly look at, on a risk-based approach, of course, in the areas where there is greater risk, to see what more we can do to mitigate that risk and to protect our commuters. Mdm Ho Geok Choo (West Coast): Sir, I just want to ask the Minister what other approaches is the Ministry taking with regard to the educational, punitive and culture-building aspects of inculcating considerate driving and discipline among drivers as well as other road users.”
“We will look into this. I think we need to have a sense of perspective on this. In the last five years, we have seven cases. We have over 4,000 bus stops in Singapore. We have seven cases where there has been an accident at the bus stop, just to give Members a sense of perspective. But in response to the Member's question whether we can try to do this faster, as I have said, we are doing as fast as we can. But we will look into his suggestion and see what more we can do.”
“Cost is not a factor in terms of whether we are speeding it up or not. As I have said, we have called a tender. The original estimate, before we called the tender, was in mid-2008. After the tender was called, working with the contractors, they had brought it forward. The contractors said they can do this. So it is now six months earlier. So cost is not a factor. The resources have already been allocated. In terms of the actual cost itself, it will cost $860,000 for the extra bollards for the 400 additional bus stops where we are going to put the bollards in.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, safety bollards are installed at bus stops based on the Land Transport Authority's (LTA) assessment of the risks associated with the location of the bus stops. They are currently provided at bus stops (a) located at bends, (b) facing turning traffic from side roads, or (c) along roads where the speed limit is at least 60 kph. Based on these criteria, bollards have been installed at 1,500 bus stops since 1999. LTA will be installing bollards at another 400 bus stops along roads where the speed limits have been raised, in accordance with its existing criteria. The tender was called early this year and the contract has been awarded on 14th June 2007. The LTA will complete this project by early 2008. The LTA regularly reviews its safety criteria to take into account changing circumstances and road conditions. However, ensuring safety is a shared responsibility. No measure will be sufficient to protect us from reckless and irresponsible road users. So we urge all road users to use our roads safely and responsibly.”
“I think this is an on-going process. It is not so much as an end date. It is something that we have to continually do. If we take, for instance, the wheelchair-accessible buses that we have started, I think within five years, one out of two buses will be wheelchair-accessible. So it is an on-going thing. SAFETY FEATURES AT BUS STOPS (Review) 15. Mr Seah Kian Peng asked the Minister for Transport (a) whether the Land Transport Authority will review the safety criteria, specifically the installation of safety bollards or other safety features at bus stops; and (b) whether the current schedule for the installation of safety bollards at 400 identified bus stops can be accelerated.”
“Like in all these things, it is a matter of balance. So where there is a special need or a need to cater to specific people with difficulties, we will do so. If you look at, say, what the National Council for Social Services is doing, for instance, they provide various forms of assistance in terms of transport, eg, subsidies for contract buses to take care of some of these people. So it is a balance. For the general public transport, we need to ensure that it is also accessible for those with mobility difficulties. For those whose needs are greater, then a more dedicated approach, as the Member has suggested.”
“It is not a financial constraint. As I have said, approval has been given and the resources have been allocated and we are already proceeding. Did we plan it in advance? The answer is yes. The idea of a DTL was mooted in the late 1990s and we have been studying the feasibility of this project. This is an expensive project, and we must have a certain discipline in the whole process of approving such huge undertakings. It costs us about $11 billion to build. If we look at our present rail network, as a proxy, the capacity situation in terms of our MRT trains when they run during peak hours, on average, they are about 70%-80% full. So the capacity is still there. When we build the DTL, we are building, exactly as what the Member said, in anticipation, because of the residential population growth in the north western area and also in the eastern area. This is what we are doing. The key issue here is to ensure that it is timely. CPF EDUCATION SCHEME (Extension) 7. Mr Zaqy Mohamad asked the Minister for Manpower whether the Ministry will consider extending the CPF Education Scheme to full-time undergraduate and diploma courses at private and foreign institutions in Singapore and recognised or accredited foreign institutions abroad.”
“Let me answer the second question first. The answer is yes. This is what we will do. We will ensure that the DTL connects with the Compass line, which is the present, East-West and the North-South lines and also the Circle Line that we are building. We will ensure that this is the case and, where possible, like she has said, with bus interchanges. Her first question was: can we hasten it and bring it forward? We will do this as expeditiously as possible. As I have said, preparatory work has already started. Once the approval has been given by Cabinet, we have moved. So preliminary engineering works are done. But the scale and complexity is something that I think Members understand. This is the longest underground line that we are building. So, it is time-intensive. Even as we want to do it as fast as possible, because it goes through built-up areas, we have to minimise disruptions to traffic, and, over and above that, we have to ensure that we do it safely. So we are on the same page. We like to do it as fast as possible but we have to take into account these considerations.”
“Sir, my Ministry, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and the Public Transport Council (PTC), on an on-going basis, monitors the traffic conditions in our public transport system, in terms of crowding and capacity. Where necessary, the PTC and the LTA will work closely with the public transport operators to increase bus capacity. The Member pointed out that it takes up to 2018 to build a rail line, so what happens in the meantime. So where necessary, in a particular area, where it is getting very congested, we look towards increasing bus capacity. This could be in terms of increasing bus service frequencies or new bus routes, ie, new buses coming on stream. Mdm Halimah Yacob (Jurong): Sir, we heard the Minister's explanation that it depends on scale, complexity and various other reasons in determining the schedule. But I think the Minister has still not directly answered the question why the building of the line cannot be hastened. I hope the Minister will answer that question. My second point is whether the Ministry will also take into account when it constructs the MRT line, how to also ensure connectivity to the other transport contact points, ie, the buses and other public transport amenities, because this is always a perennial problem, that the lines are built but there is not much connection to the other public transport systems. Will that also be taken into account?”
“LTA is still in the process of finalising the details of station locations.”
“Sir, the Government is committed to ensuring the timely completion of the Downtown Line (DTL). The DTL is a 40-kilometres rail line that will connect the north-western and eastern areas of the island to the CBD and the Marina Bay area. It will be built in three stages. The first stage, or DTL 1, which serves the new developments in the Marina Bay, such as the Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort and the new Marina Bay Financial Centre, is targeted for completion in 2013. The second stage, serving the Bukit Timah corridor and Bukit Panjang area, is scheduled for completion in 2015. The final stage, which serves areas such as Bedok Reservoir and Tampines, is expected to be completed in 2018. By implementing the project in phases, commuters can enjoy the benefits of the DTL even before the entire line is completed. In working out the implementation schedule, LTA took into account the need to meet strategic transport needs and demand as well as economic and financial viability considerations. The scheduling of the project also took into account the scale and complexity of the project as well as the resources required to manage and execute the project safely. The DTL is the longest underground rail project to date and runs through built-up corridors. LTA has already started preparatory work for the first two stages of DTL. As to how the locations of the stations are determined, LTA takes into consideration the need to maximise the stations' accessibility and connectivity to population and employment centres. Where feasible, interchanges will be built to link the DTL with existing RTS lines, to connect the DTL to the rest of the RTS network. Engineering requirements and site conditions also affect station locations.”
“Sir, with your permission, can I take Question Nos. 5 and 6 together as they are related?”
“Vehicle ownership in the North East (comprising Ang Mo Kio, Serangoon, Hougang, Sengkang, Punggol and Seletar) and North West (comprising Choa Chu Kang, Bukit Panjang, Bukit Batok and Tengah) regions of Singapore both have grown by 23% since 2001, consistent with the development of HDB estates in the two regions. The overall vehicular growth was 16% in the same period. Since 2001, 204 and 51 lane-km have been added to the North East and North West regions respectively. The rates of growth of roads in these two regions were 26% and 15% respectively, as compared to 8% for the whole of Singapore in the same period. APPENDICES”
“Mr Mah Bow Tan: The Indonesian ban on export of sand in February 2007 has not caused any shortage of concreting sand in Singapore. The Government released sand from the national stockpile, and Singapore sand importers began procuring concreting sand from various other sources in the region. The construction industry also increased the use of suitable substitutes for sand in concrete production. The supplies of both concreting sand and substitutes are adequate to meet the needs of the construction industry. The various sand exporting countries have their own licensing regimes to regulate sand mining activities, and enforcement systems to ensure the sustainability of sand mining. We respect them and our importers would need to observe the local regulations. At our end, importers are required to obtain the necessary export clearances from the relevant authorities of the exporting countries when importing sand into Singapore. We do not see the need, nor would it be appropriate, for us to prescribe requirements on the exporters in exporting countries. The exporters do not mine solely for export to Singapore. SEASON PARKING LOTS AT HDB CAR PARKS 56. Mr Baey Yam Keng asked the Minister for National Development in light of the grouping of HDB car parks for season parking (a) what constitutes a reasonable walking distance; and (b) if his Ministry will consider allowing HDB to lease vacant or under-utilised parking lots from other Ministries or Government agencies for the purpose of increasing the number of more conveniently located parking lots for residents.”
“The Land Transport Authority (LTA), in consultation with the Traffic Police, regularly reviews vehicle speed limits taking into consideration advancement in vehicle technology, road design, and the prevailing traffic conditions including accident trends. In March 2005, the LTA raised the speed limit for light commercial vehicles (LCVs), comprising light goods vehicles and small buses with seating capacity of up to 15 passengers, from 60 kilometres per hour (km/h) to 70km/h. The revision in speed limit serves to improve traffic flow on our expressways. Traffic accident statistics showed that the annual average accident rate of LCVs on expressways during the two years before and after the change in speed limit have remained the same, at about 12 accidents per 10,000 vehicles. For accident cases involving fatalities and serious injuries, the statistics showed a slight drop after the change in speed limit, from 0.32 and 0.16 per 10,000 vehicles respectively, to 0.31 and 0.10 per 10,000 vehicles. Drivers have to play their part in ensuring safety by driving carefully at a safe speed. The LTA and the Traffic Police will continue to monitor the situation on the roads closely and if necessary, step up enforcement against vehicles that exceed the speed limit. SUPPLY OF CONSTRUCTION SAND TO SINGAPORE 55. Mr Edwin Khew Teck Fook asked the Minister for National Development (a) what is the current situation on the supply of construction sand to Singapore; (b) in light of the Indonesian Government's reason to ban the export of sand to Singapore, whether the Ministry will consider including a clause into tenders for the supply of sand to Singapore, that sand be mined sustainably and suppliers furnish an Environmental Impact Assessment report to substantiate this fact.”
“Concessionary travel for senior citizens is granted by the public transport operators. The operators have been extending the concession hours for senior citizens over the years. For example, in 2005, the concession period was extended such that senior citizens could enjoy concession fares an hour earlier on weekdays, starting from 9 am instead of 10 am. Full day concessions currently apply for weekends and public holidays. The cost of such concessions is borne by the operators and ultimately cross- subsidised by other full-fare paying adults. Hence, the operators have to take this into consideration when extending concessions. Nonetheless, my Ministry will continue to monitor this issue and work with the public transport operators to review the concession hours. Whatever the concessionary hours, some senior citizens would need more targeted help. Under our 'Many Helping Hands' approach, needy senior citizens can get help from the ComCare Fund and other community assistance schemes. The Government will also commit $10 million to a Public Transport Fund in October 2007 to be given out over three years to provide additional help to lower-income households. MYOPIA (Preventive measures) 51. Mr Zainudin Nordin asked the Minister for Health (a) whether myopia is on the rise among young and adult Singaporeans; (b) if so, what are his Ministry's plans to address this; and (c) whether his Ministry will consider working with childcare and pre-school providers to introduce preventive measures.”
“I believe that there is tremendous potential for more air links between our two countries and offering travellers more destinations and carriers to choose from would generate wider economic benefits for both countries. I believe that Malaysia also recognises the potential benefits and desires to improve the air connectivity between our two countries. My Ministry will continue to engage our Malaysian counterparts to expand our ASA and hopes to work towards more liberalised arrangements for mutual benefit. OUTBREAKS OF HAND, FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE 29. Mdm Cynthia Phua asked the Minister for Health in light of the outbreaks of the Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease (a) whether there is an increase in the number of cases and frequency of an outbreak within this calendar year; and (b) what preventive measures can be taken to reduce the incidence of an outbreak.”
“Liberalisation of air services arrangements in ASEAN is integral to ASEAN's economic integration efforts. It will facilitate more air services to grow the flow of people, trade and services, and support our vision of a highly-connected and integrated ASEAN Community. In 2004, ASEAN members agreed to a roadmap that aims to free up air freight services fully within ASEAN and passenger services between ASEAN capital cities by December 2008, paving the way for open skies in the longer term. When the ASEAN Transport Ministers met in January this year, it was agreed that our officials should step up consultations and target for the agreement to be signed by year-end, in time for the implementation of the roadmap's first major milestone of December 2008. I am pleased to inform the House that ASEAN transport officials are making good progress to finalise the agreement to implement the roadmap in time for the first milestone to be implemented. With regard to the air links between Singapore and Malaysia, Singapore has always been prepared to review our Air Services Agreement (ASA) with Malaysia and to liberalise air travel between the two countries. However, any liberalisation would require the agreement of the Malaysians as well. Senior officials of both countries held an informal meeting on 8th May to have preliminary discussions on the matter. Both sides agreed in-principle to work towards expanding connectivity between the two countries and to meet for formal consultations soon. As we had mentioned before, a review is long overdue, as the ASA was last reviewed more than 25 years ago in 1980.”
“An ever-expanding job scope! This is something that we will take note.”
“Yes, we have this KPI. We set it at 95% of the expressways which must be above 45 km/h to 65 km/h. We have met that target at about 96%-plus.”
“Let me explain again why I used the cinema example, because the demand for cinema tickets would vary according to different times and different days. The matinee ticket will cost you cheaper. Why is that the case? It is differential pricing, and you are trying to price it, so as to balance off the supply and demand. That is the basis for the example. I think differential pricing is important. Mr Sim Kee Boon, who was very intimately involved with Changi Airport - I think the success of Changi Airport has got a lot to do with him - was sharing with me that they had a problem at first of not enough taxis at Changi Airport. They thought of various solutions, such as administrative solutions of why not do this and why not force them there. Then, someone came up with a bright idea and said, "differential pricing". Impose a surcharge at Changi Airport and the market solved the problem. Mr Ang Mong Seng: Mr Chairman, I think the Ministry has set the KPI of 45 km/h to 65 km/h for the expressways. I want to ask the Minister whether the target has been met for AYE and CTE.”
“If you look at the price, it is a flat rate. If you talk to the PTOs, they would prefer that the feeder service be distance-based so that they can charge more if the commuters travel longer distances to the MRT stations. Again, with all these things, we have got to balance it off. We have gone for a flat rate. I do not think that the rate has gone out of line with the increase of other fares. It has not escalated, like he has said, but is in line with the rest.”
“Mr Cedric Foo would be pleased to know that, if we look at the numbers, between Singapore and, say, the Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and Hong Kong International Airport, we are very competitive.”
“I think the complaint was that it is complicated enough as it is. ERP is already differential pricing. If you want to use a particular expressway at a particular time, you pay a price for it. That has already been practised.”
“I agree with the Member. But they have just started and their aim is to do exactly that, ie, to bring in the train operators.”
“We just started this, so we wanted to see how it works. LTA has been working with them to do the bus first. If it works, then we will extend to the trains.”
“As I mentioned earlier in my speech, this is something that we are working on. If there is a fare increase in October this year, part of the funds will be used to help commuters who are adversely affected by the fare increase to soften it.”
“This is somewhat a tall order! I would suggest that he tells the children to bring along some form of identification.”
“We have just taken the first step, which is to put it on the bus-stops. Let them go through this first, and we will see how demand is like for that.”
“The answer is yes, we already have that review. SBST team has rolled out this "iris Next Bus" system where you can get it on your mobile phones or the website.”
“Sir, I do not want to go into circles on this. As I have said, we will study this particular matter.”
“Mr Chairman, Sir, I fondly remember when I was seated in the House some time back, Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng said that the Minister is not an encyclopedia. So I am afraid I am not, and I do not really know what is the amount for the ez-link card that the Member said. But if the Member would file a Question for Oral Answer, I would answer the question. Mr Seah Kian Peng: Mr Chairman, I just want to ask the Minister, for the Circle Line, I raised this because in my constituency, I have three stations. The good news is that they will be completed by 2008, which is next year. For the residents, they will be ready end of next year, which is good, except that they will remain there and for the next two years, they will just be observing. I sincerely hope that the Minister could find ways to make it possible. 5.30 pm”
“As I mentioned earlier in my speech and later on, I took on the point the Member made, that it is important to do advance planning - I think that was the word the Member used - and I agree with him. And that is what we have been doing, forward planning. So when you have town developments, commercial and industrial developments, you look at it holistically and you ask what sort of transport infrastructure you need. So you need to plan ahead. One of the hallmarks of this Government is that we are perpetual worriers, so that whatever we do, we ask, "What is next?" Always thinking, always anticipating. Economy can do 7%-8%, you ask, "What about next year?" Similarly, when it comes to planning, when we have what we have, nobody says, "Well, it is good enough." We are constantly looking ahead, asking "What is coming in the future? What sort of transport infrastructure do we need to put in place?"”
“All things can be considered in the focus group discussions.”
“Sir, a few years ago, when I was in the Ministry of Trade and Industry, a big concern was we thought that we would not be getting enough Malaysian visitors coming in and how we can facilitate them into Singapore. But the basic principle that we had was that they should also be subject to the same sort of pricing mechanism, such as our ERP, in Singapore. In terms of percentage, I do not have the exact figure, but the last time I looked at it, it was not a significant number, in terms of the total vehicle population in Singapore.”
“It is all a matter of trade-offs. So we need to know exactly what particular roads that Mr Teo Ser Luck is mentioning, because traffic, eg, cars, buses, etc, has to flow through that. If he has some particular roads in mind that he thinks is under-utilised and that can be used for cyclists, why not let us know, and we can study it to see whether indeed it is feasible.”
“The Member has really expanded the scope of my remit as the Minister for Transport! To understand the psychological profile of why someone would commit suicide at the MRT and why the person would choose the MRT is really not quite within my remit. But the precise question that he asked about, whether the media has a role, when they publicise it, would you have copycats, this is something that we were concerned about and we have actually spoken to the media on this. I think it is to their credit that they have taken note of this and have tried not to publicise it. In fact, in many countries, eg, in London, there is an implicit understanding with the media that when you have an incident at the Underground, you do not play it up, because then you get more copycats.”
“On affordability, the Public Transport Council monitors this. Basically, if you look at our public transport users, they come in the first 60th percentile. So they take the median of that, ie, between the 20th to 40th percentile, and they monitor that and look at the trends to see how much they are spending on public transport as a percentage of their household income. And this has basically helped them to effect a slight improvement in the last few years. As for reversible lanes, this is something that LTA will look into. In order to have reversible lanes, you must have a difference between the peak and off-peak periods in both directions. Otherwise, you cannot really reverse it, because then there is no improvement. But this is something that we are studying.”
“I thank Mr Cedric Foo. I am really cheered. As I said, we need to keep the larger picture in mind when talking about our transport system, whether air, sea or land, in particular, land, that we do have a good transport system. Of course, there is room for improvement, and this is what we will do. On the Downtown Line, the feasibility studies are still ongoing and we will announce it at the appropriate time.”
“I think this was something that I was looking through. You are really suggesting that, instead of having an interchange, we change it to a super bus-stop, that the buses are not there but are actually located outside of the interchange. One of the problems that you will be faced with is that the bus would then have to travel from where the bus depot is into the super bus-stop. If you look at the numbers, in order to maintain the same frequency into the super bus-stop like what an interchange would have, the operational cost would go up. So these were some of the considerations that were taken into account when we were planning the interchange.”
“By enhancing the scheme, we hope to attract more aviation leasing and financing activities in Singapore to tap into Asia's rapidly expanding aviation sector. Sir, the aviation sector is an important pillar of the Singapore economy. The increasingly competitive and dynamic operating environment presents new challenges and many exciting opportunities. We have been successful in making Changi a leading aviation hub and establishing a vibrant aviation cluster in Singapore. We will build on this foundation and spare no effort to sharpen Changi's competitiveness and build an even more vibrant aviation sector.”