Yeo Cheow Tong
Singapore
“Mdm Ho Geok Choo asked the Minister for Health in light of the recent report on fungal corneal infections (a) whether those who contracted the contact lens related fungal corneal infections will suffer permanent damage to their eyes; and (b) how long will his Ministry take to conclude its investigations into the causes of these contact le…”
“My Ministry performs a regulatory role and what we do is that we try to ensure that we have a conducive regulatory environment for the growth of this industry in Singapore. Let me tell him what we are doing in some areas.”
“Sir, on her two questions, whether we are satisfied that the school buses are collecting fares during the school holidays, as I mentioned just now, the school bus service is a contractual service between the parents and the service provider. It is therefore up to them to work out the terms and to abide by the terms.”
“Sir, on the first question, whether there is any abuse by owners of buses while using the 50% rebate, the answer is no, because LTA monitors very closely.”
“Sir, I have to repeat my answer. We are not responsible for regulating school buses and therefore will not be involved. SCHOOL BUSES (Installation of seat belts) 5. Assoc. Prof.”
“Ong Soh Khim asked the Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports (a) if his Ministry will increase the cap of $10,000 per disabled person over their lifetime for the Assistive Technology Fund scheme; and (b) if not, whether there will be a flexibility to adjust the funding cap for this scheme based on the applicant's need, as j…”
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“Ong Soh Khim: Sir, I refer to the Minister's reply earlier. He said that the Ministry did not verify the $9 million loss in revenue due to fare evasion. And the Minister also said that it does not matter whether it is $9 million, $7 million, $5 million or even $1 million. I would like to say that it does matter as it determines how much will be spent to prevent fare evasion, because we should not be wasting unnecessary money and effort to carry out all these penalty and criminal procedures and charges if the fare evasion is not serious. Sir, in Chinese, it is called yong niu dao sha ji. We need to know whether it is a niu or a ji. We should not be using a knife to kill a chicken. Mr Yeo Cheow Tong: Sir, I am sorry I cannot match Prof. Ong on her Chinese quotations. All I can tell her is that if she had been listening properly, she should have heard me say repeatedly, including in my reply just now, that the Public Transport Officials to be appointed are going to be the existing employees of the public transport companies and, therefore, we do not see any additional expense being incurred in enforcement because the ticket inspectors are the ones who are enforcing against fare evaders at the present moment. The same group will now be called Public Transport Officials and be given authority to impose a penalty fee. She asked whether we have verified. The PTOs gave us the data, and we have checked the data. Based on the data, the figure of $8.5 million in fare evasion is correct. Did they go out and verify each time a ticket inspector is out inspecting? The answer is no. But we have looked at the figures, and we have checked the figures, the figures do amount to $8.5 million. As you know, ticket inspectors only do a sample check.”
“Sir, on his first point about giving the wrong impression that he objects to the concessions being given to the elderly, I think that was the impression given to me. If it was not his intention, then, of course, I accept his explanation. Sir, on the $1,000 and $2,000 penalty to be imposed by the court for first time offender and second time offender respectively, as I mentioned just now, that really is the last step available should a fare evader refuse to pay the penalty fee. If he refuses, he has the ability to appeal to the PTC or to the PTO. If he appeals to the PTC, the PTC will review. And if the PTC finds that the penalty fee which was imposed has been imposed correctly, PTC will then require the fare evader to pay up. If he still does not pay, then PTC is able to offer a composition fine. And if he still refuses to pay, then the matter will be brought to court, and it will be for the fare evader to explain to the court why he evaded the fare, or maybe that he did not, that he made a mistake. But it would be up to the court to decide. So, it is something which we have not resorted to previously and, as I said, we do not have to resort to this clause. Mr Chiam linked that $2,000 fine and six months' jail to the criteria disqualifying candidates from running for election. So I told him that was not the intention. Just as we do not expect potential candidates for Parliament to evade fares, we do not expect Mr Chiam to also evade fares. I am stating a very clear statement that I do not expect him to do so. It is not that I said that I am expecting him to do so, just as I do not expect any of our colleagues here to do so. So he should not worry about that penalty of $2,000, as provided for in this Bill. Assoc. Prof.”
“Sir, the penalty fee, for the time being, is going to the public transport operators to help offset the cost of training all these people, as well as the cost of employing them. However, as the numbers caught are so small, I do not think we are going to get much penalty fees. What we are looking for is a deterrent effect, to reduce the number of fare evaders, rather than looking at collecting the penalty fees. Mdm Ho also asked a legal point, ie, whether the word "honesty" should be inserted into the relevant clause in the Bill. I am not a lawyer, and we have left it to the AG's Chambers to draft the Bill. I am sure they have taken all the factors into consideration and they do not require "dishonesty" to be put in. In any case, if a person goes in a taxi and jumps out without paying, I do not think we need to worry whether the person has been dishonest or not. The fact is that he has taken a ride and he has refused to pay. I think that, by itself, is a telling point already.”
“It has to be a very, very drastic fare evader for any of the PTOs or the PTC to want to send him to court, because we have had this provision since 1987, ie, 18 years already, and we never once had to resort to bringing anybody to court. So, I do not see this provision as being one that is going to be used frequently. In fact, I hope we have it in the books but it is something which we will not have to use. But Prof. Ong made the interesting suggestion that we should adopt a graduated penalty fee system of perhaps $150, $200 or $250. Sir, definitely, we will keep that in mind when we review the penalty fee quantum in the future. Mdm Ho Geok Choo asked about the Fuel Equalisation Fund, how it works and what the criteria for contributions are. Sir, I have explained part of that already in terms of the criteria for contribution and what it is used for. Mdm Ho asked what is the quantum now. SBST (Bus) today has an FEF balance of $34 million. SBST (Train) has zero. SMRT Bus has a fund of $8.4 million, and SMRT Train $10.3 million. Will the public bear the cost of contribution? Sir, this comes from the savings, because the fuel price is lower than the reference fuel price. So, actually, they save on the fuel. Therefore, the public is not made to bear any part of that cost. Mdm Ho also asked about the Public Transport Officials, whether there is going to be a new body for this group of PTOs. Sir, there is not going to be a new body for them. Who are going to be the PTOs? They are going to be the existing staff of the public transport operators. So, we do not see any fresh funds being expended either by PTC or by the transport operators on this new group of PTOs. Mdm Ho asked where the penalty fee would go to.”
“They spot-check buses in the midst of a journey. From the bus load of passengers, they know how many people are on the bus. If any cheats are found, they will know how many people cheated and, therefore, over time, we compile the figures: how many people were inspected and, of that group of people who were inspected, say, 10,000 or 20,000, how many turned out to have evaded fares. So, that is how the data was obtained. Have we verified it? No, because, as Members have mentioned, we should not be wasting money doing things which are unnecessary. Sir, our aim is to reduce the number of fare cheats. Even with the system of penalty fees, I am afraid we will still have fare cheats, because the chances of being on the same bus as a bus inspector, or what we call a public transport official now, are extremely slim, as any bus commuter will tell you. So, despite the $20 penalty fee, I think we will still have fare cheats. It is our hope that, instead of 1.8%, it will decline to a much smaller number. At the end of the day, can we completely eradicate this problem? The answer is no. And this is the same situation that happens all around the world. There are always some fare cheats. But let us keep the number as low as possible. Sir, it was only at the end of Prof. Ong's speech that I realised why she was so worked up by the amendment, ie, because she saw the court-imposed penalty of $1,000 for the first offence and $2,000 for the second offence, as part of a graduated penalty fee system. The fines imposed by the court are not part of the graduated scheme of penalty fees.”
“What has happened is that there are people who are deliberately cheating the system, by tapping out before they even intend to get out, and by underpaying, because many people are still paying by cash. So, instead of paying for the whole journey, they pay for perhaps two fare stages, when they are going all the way to the end. So, these are things that a fare system can never catch. At the MRT station, even if a person gets through, he is still supposed to tap. Tapping is a deliberate action. The fact that he sneaks past means that, if he gets to the other end, he also has to sneak past another person. So, it is also a deliberate attempt. Again, it is a balance, ie, how fast do you want the gate to close, because you may end up closing onto an elderly person who is walking slowly through the fare gate, if it closes too fast. So, we have to draw a balance between how fast to have the gate closing versus disallowing cheats from sneaking through quickly. Sir, Ms Eunice Olsen also called for the buses to be provided with greater accessibility. As I have mentioned, this is indeed what we are doing and I am sure, in the years ahead, she should be a lot happier with the state of our buses. Sir, let me now go on to Prof. Ong Soh Khim, who made a long speech on the penalty fee system and asked whether the $9 million figure is correct or incorrect and whether we should audit it. The fact is that, as long as there are cheats, we should not worry whether it is a $9 million or $7 million loss. So what if it is a $7 million loss? It is still a lot of people who are cheating the system. That is what counts. Prof. Ong asked how the data was obtained and whether MOT has verified it. Sir, first, the data was obtained by the bus companies using ticket inspectors.”
“So, for the elderly who are afraid of the speed of the escalators, I would recommend that they take the lifts. Of course, if they are around the stations where the lifts are not yet ready, then they will have to be a little patient with us for another few more months while the lifts are being installed. Sir, Mdm Phua also asked that small operators be allowed to run feeder services, especially on routes where the PTOs are not operating. We do allow that. In fact, many condominiums have arranged for shuttle bus services from their condominium to run to a few condominiums, enroute to an MRT station, and we have allowed that. So, if Mdm Phua has any case of that nature, please do let us know. Mdm Phua also mentioned that she is disappointed that the ez-link and cash cards are not the same and, therefore, for a person who takes public transport and who drives a car, he would need two different cards. Unfortunately, the technology is different. We have gone onto the ez-link card, which is a contactless smart card because of the speed of transactions. You just tap and, within a second or two, you can already go on, whereas, with a cash card, you have to slot it in. It takes a bit longer. And for a mass transport system, every second counts. So, we have had to go to the latest card that is available, which is the ez-link card. But that is not to say that the ERP system, ie, the in-vehicle unit, may not in the future evolve to one that also uses a contactless smart card. I will not discount that. Regarding fare evasion, Mdm Phua said that the system is not robust and that is why wrongdoing can take place. As I have mentioned just now, the cases of genuine mistakes are quite easy to sort out.”
“What takes place in this case is that we take the previous five years' average fuel price as the reference price for fuel. If the actual price of fuel is below that reference price, that means the PTOs will have savings. Those savings will then be paid into the Fuel Equalisation Fund so that, when the prices spike, the PTOs can then request for part of their funds to be drawn out to pay for the increase in fuel price. So, it is to act as a cushion against fuel price fluctuations. We, therefore, do not need to have very skilled people calculating what should be the strike price on a daily basis. Sir, Mdm Cynthia Phua commented that a good bus service should be convenient, affordable and accessible. I agree. Mdm Phua also stated that having the same operator operate both the train and bus is not the best solution and quoted the case of Sengkang. I can assure the Member that there is nothing wrong with having the same operator operating the train and the bus, because SMRT also operates the North-South and the East-West train lines as well as their bus company, and it has not resulted in a conflict of interest between the bus and train operations. That is because the arbiter, at the end of the day, is PTC. It is not the individual operator who says, "I am going to run that service and nobody can force me to do otherwise." It is the PTC that determines where the bus services should be. Sir, Mdm Phua also asked that we improve accessibility, given that 42% of Singaporeans are over 40 years of age and, therefore, we must make sure that our public transport systems are accessible. Sir, as I mentioned just now, the buses are becoming increasingly so. For the trains, we are already putting the lifts in place.”
“On fare adjustment, she asked whether the public can ask for fare reduction, and whether a committee could be set up to review such requests and recommend them to the PTC. Sir, we should not be in a habit of setting up committees to advise committees. Can the public ask for a reduction? Yes, the public can ask for a reduction. They can always make a request to PTC and PTC can take a look. If there are good reasons, PTC would do a proper study. But as we all know, labour costs tend to go up. When times are bad, labour costs do go down. But even in bad years, the labour costs for many people were still going up. Spare parts keep on getting more expensive. Now, the fuel price is double what the bus companies were paying two years ago. I think the chances of the fares going up are there. When the fare adjustment formula calls for a fare reduction, the PTC will not hesitate to enforce one. Sir, Mr Andy Gan spoke on a number of issues, some of which I have already replied to. He said that the new legislation will result in more constraints for new public transport operators. I do not think that is the aim. The aim is to use the new legislation to regulate the two existing public transport operators. The smaller operators who are running Scheme B, etc, will still be left as they are. They will not be involved at all. Mr Gan also talked about the Fuel Equalisation Fund. He stated that it requires skilled people to determine what should be the strike price. We do not intend the Fuel Equalisation Fund to be rocket science. This Fund has already been in existence since 1992 and the basis for the Fund is a very straightforward one. We compute what is the reference price for fuel.”
“Because this is a very serious step and one which has been used as a last resort, the PTOs and the PTC have not been bringing anybody to court. They will continue with this practice of using this as a last resort to persuade fare evaders to pay up. She asked about overcharging due to the system faults. She asked if 0.006% is really acceptable. I think anyone who is operating a system, especially a large system that handles millions of transactions everyday and is subject to the rough and tumble movements of buses driven on roads will know that 0.006% in fact is a remarkable achievement. Nonetheless, as I have said just now, LTA would continue working with TransitLink to see whether we can improve it even further. The vehicle location system works by determining the location of the bus and once that is determined and the system detects that a change in fare stage is required, a signal will be sent to update the fare stage on board the bus computer. Sometimes, as we all know, even those of us using mobile phones, from time to time, we do get a failure in the signal communication. When that happens, you may get an error message going through and therefore the fare stage may not be updated. So if it is not updated, some people who get up at the failure point would be recorded as having got up at the earlier fare stage and therefore would be charged more. But others who are getting down at the failure point would be charged based on the previous bus stop and that means such persons would actually be charged less. So it works both ways. What the experts tell me is that this signal failure is something which is not easy to overcome completely. But I think we have to still try.”
“For example, the elderly may tap twice at the same time, or they may forget to tap. That is something the bus inspectors have been trained to do. But before they are appointed as the public transport officials, PTC would be conducting a training course to make sure that they are properly trained to handle different situations and to be able to differentiate between those who make a genuine mistake, for example, an elderly who forgets or does not know how to tap versus someone who cheated. What I have been told is that the cases of cheating are quite straightforward. Why? One of the common ways is for a passenger to get on the bus, taps and goes to the backdoor and, when the bus arrives at the next stop, taps as if he is exiting, but in actual fact, after tapping, he just goes back to his seat and he rides from Changi all the way to Jurong for free almost. So those cases are quite easy to detect. The inspector checks the ez-link card which shows that he has already tapped out. If he has already tapped out, what is he doing in the bus? So it is an obvious case of cheating. He could not have tapped out by mistake. It is a deliberate effort. Other cases of cheating which are quite common are abuse of concession cards. They use a school boy's concession card instead of using an adult card and tap. So such cases are very straightforward. It is straightforward cheating and therefore I think the bus inspectors would have no trouble differentiating between those who make a genuine mistake versus those who deliberately cheat. She also urged that hauling offenders to court should be the last resort. That would indeed be so. In fact, it is already so because the provision of bringing fare evaders to court has already been in place since 1987.”
“If so, PTC would then work with the bus company to correct the situation. PTC would, every year, take 60 or so bus services that have attracted the most frequent complaints and re-audit them separately. This is to make sure that those complaints that were received in the past had been acted upon and that the bus operators had implemented the changes on a full-time basis, rather than just upgrade for one week and then go back to the poor service again. So PTC does have a system of checking up on public transport. She asked whether now that PTC has got more regulatory powers we can look into improving accessibility for the elderly and the less mobile. Sir, improving accessibility to our public transport system is an ongoing thing. Members here would know that there is an ongoing process now for installing lifts in all our MRT stations. I think as at today, the vast majority of MRT stations already have lifts installed. And it is only a small remaining number where works are being done, and we expect the works to be completed next year. But for buses, they have already been introducing the low-floor, no-step buses. In fact, I think SBS has in the region of about 80 buses to-date, SMRT has about 10-12 of them. What we are working with the bus company is that all the new buses that are being ordered would have this no-step, low-floor board. Over a period of time, as the older buses get renewed, we would see the fleet increasingly become low-floor, no-step fleet, and it would help the elderly and the less mobile. On fare evasion, Dr Amy Khor urged that PTC ensures that the bus inspectors or the public transport officials exercise their powers sensibly and flexibly because some people may actually be making genuine mistakes.”
“So I do not think people who are aspiring to come to Parliament are the type who are going to cheat on 20 cents bus fare. I am sure Mr Chiam does not do that too. Sir, Dr Amy Khor touched on quite a few issues too. She asked what are the benchmarks, whether the Bill provides teeth for PTC to impose quality of service standards, and, if the PTOs do not meet those standards, for the PTC to impose financial penalties for non-compliance. First, let me clarify that PTC has already imposed a set of quality of service standards on the PTOs. It has been doing so from day one and these standards have been evolving over time in line with rising expectations from the public, in line with the improvement in the fleet size, improvement in buses, and so on. What the Bill does now is to give legislative effect to those standards that have been applied, rather than for PTC to just administratively implement them. She asked what the benchmarks are, whether PTC would audit the standards and how often, whether public feedback would be taken in. Sir, PTC already has a procedure for auditing the bus service standards. Every year, PTC conducts an annual audit of 50% of the bus services. So each year, they will take out 50%, next year, they will do the other 50%. And when they do the audit, they will audit by checking the headway, the loading factor at peak hours, the cleanliness, and all the other issues. It also takes feedback from the public. So if there is repeated feedback about a particular service, PTC will then send people on the spot to check on the complaint. For example, the commuter may say, "Service 123 at bus stop along road X. When it gets there, it is always full and it will not stop." PTC would then send people there to check and make sure whether it is a true complaint.”
“How do they pay for their electricity bills? How do they pay for their water bills, their rental and, most importantly, the food that goes into the stomachs of the parents and children? That is why the Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports has come out with this huge network of "many helping hands" to help the poor. We have the ComCare Fund. We have NGOs and VWOs, and the public also donates money to the charitable organisations to help the poor. It is better that help for the poor be based on the present system of "many helping hands". In any case, when the bus companies enjoyed their last fare increase in July this year, they came out with a donation to help the poor through the setting up of a transport fund. I think every poor family that qualifies will be able to get a voucher of $50. So that went a very big way in helping them because the fare increase is only a maximum of 3 cents which means that if you take four rides a day, it is only 12 cents - 12 cents in a month is only $3.60, or if you work for 20 days, it is only $2.40. So that $50 transport voucher went a long way towards helping them. Mr Chiam is very worried that, under the Bill, we are also providing for the offender to be brought to court and he is worried that the maximum fine of $2,000 or a jail term of six months are also the disqualification criteria for a potential candidate in a GE. I hope a potential candidate does not get into the habit of evading fares. Because only if he does so and he does not pay the penalty fee and, when reminded, he does not pay the composition fee, would he be brought to court. Even then, to be fined $2,000, you have to be a second-time offender.”
“Sir, that was a point I had made repeatedly in the House before and, if Mr Chiam had been listening, he would have heard what I said previously, which is that part of the reason why fare increases have been low over the past years - not just the past seven years but over the past 20 years - is because, firstly, we have two operators who have made continual efforts to improve productivity in their operations, and this has helped to keep the cost increases down. The second factor, which is also a very important one, is that Government has chipped in whenever we can to help reduce operating cost for the operators. For example, what Mr Chiam mentioned, the increase in the life of the bus from 15 years to 17 years has helped to keep the depreciation down and helped the bus companies stretch out the use of their assets. Another area which we have liberalised is advertising. Why should LTA or PTC be the ones to determine how much advertising space the buses should be allowed? We should deregulate that, and I am glad that it was done. Mr Chiam took a fair bit of time to plead for help for the poor. He said that PTC has been helping the elderly, the senior citizens and the students by working with the PTOs to give them the concession cards and that perhaps we are helping the wrong people, and we should be ensuring that the help is more focused on the poor. Sir, I would think that the elderly and the students would be very upset if they know that Mr Chiam is calling for the concession cards to be withdrawn and the money to be used to help the poor. Sir, helping the poor is something which has to be taken up separately from bus fares. For those who are genuinely poor, it is not just about bus fares. It is the cost of daily living that imposes a burden on them.”
“Unfortunately, because the ez-link system is such a large scale system with very tight transaction times, you have to tap and within a few seconds the data has to be transferred. It is really not possible to make the system any more foolproof. To do so will make the system so cumbersome that it will not be able to operate as a mass transport system. Nonetheless, I think the penalty fee system would be a great improvement over the current process where the ticket inspector can only get the fare evader to pay up the correct fare. However, I am sure if this penalty fee is not adequate, in due course, PTC can review and, if necessary, allow for an increase in the penalty fee to make it more of a deterrent. Sir, Mr Ong also expressed concerns that having PTC appoint the public transport officials will result in PTC bearing the additional enforcement expenses. Let me clarify that the public transport officers to be appointed are likely to be the current ticket inspectors and some drivers belonging to the operators. So, therefore, it is not PTC's job to employ such public transport officers and PTC will not have to bear any cost. In fact, because these are going to be existing staff of the public transport operators (PTOs), it is unlikely that there will be any additional cost incurred by the transport operators as well. Sir, let me go on to Mr Chiam's points. Mr Chiam quoted the fact that for the past seven years, the fare increases have only averaged 0.7% a year versus 2.4% cap a year. I think he got the figures from the annual report of the PTC. Yes, he is correct. He has quoted the figures correctly for a change, and he felt that the low increase has been possible only because of the help given by the Government.”
“So we will refer his suggestion to the PTC and I will urge the PTC to give his suggestion due consideration. Sir, with regard to streamlining the annual fee review process further, I agree with him. Immediately after the last exercise, I told the PTC that they should take a look and see how they could streamline it further and reduce the review period. I think because of all the masses of data they have to go through, it takes the PTC about three weeks to actually analyse all the data. I have asked whether they can reduce that from three weeks to perhaps two weeks. That would help to reduce the time the issue is left hanging in the air. But having said that, I think that will still not prevent the press from going to town speculating what the increase will be, because the press normally starts their speculation well before the date for submission of the application for fare increase. I would therefore like to take this opportunity to urge the media to report responsibly on this issue and not create "unnecessary drama", as what Mr Ong said, amongst the commuters with speculative reporting. Sir, Mr Ong raised concerns whether the penalty fee system is a cost effective means of enforcement and whether it has sufficient deterrent effect. Mr Ong took the view that to deter any would-be offender from committing an offence, either the possibility of being detected must be very high, like in the case of an ERP offence, or the penalty must be high enough to dissuade potential fare evaders. Sir, I agree with him that the enforcement is actually very tough. It is like looking for a needle in a haystack, to quote Mr Ong.”
“Mr Ong also wanted the PTC to assure the public that the quantum of fare adjustment - one cent, two cent and three cent increase - which was levied this year and for future increases as well, is below the maximum allowed under the formula for fare adjustment. Sir, I think this is a challenge in the case of bus fares, which are unlike utility fees where the bill each month could be in the high tens or even a few hundred dollars, such that you can go down to one decimal point of increase. For the bus fares - 80 cents, 90 cents - it is very difficult to have the increase right down to the correct decimal point. I think what the PTC tries to do is to make sure that the increases are as close to the maximum as possible. So, on some of the bands, the increase may actually be a little bit higher than the maximum; on other bands, it will be below the maximum. So for a particular trip, a commuter may pay a little bit more or a little bit less, depending on where he goes. But over a period of one year, because the commuter would be taking buses almost everyday, on some trips he may pay a little bit more and on some trips he may pay a little bit less. Overall, the increase should be quite close to 2.4%. But, of course, as Mr Ong had also pointed out, for the company, whether the revenue is actually an increase of 2.4% for the year or not depends very much also on the ridership. So although we give them a 2.4% increase, if the economy is not doing well, the ridership may actually be lower and the company may actually end up getting less than 2.4% increase. Mr Ong has urged the PTC to enhance its communication process with the public. I agree with him. PTC over the years has been making more effort to communicate better and I think they can still do a lot better too.”
“Sir, let me thank all the Members who have spoken in support of the Bill. They have raised many questions which I will attempt to answer. [Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Chew Heng Ching) in the Chair] 5.03 pm Mr Ong Kian Min correctly pointed out that the PTC is faced with a very tough job of balancing the need to safeguard the interest of commuters on the one hand while also making sure that the PTOs remain viable. It is a very tough challenge which I think the PTC over these years has managed to discharge very, very well. Their decisions are not meant to please everyone. As he had mentioned, from time to time, whenever there is a fare increase, there is a big hue and cry and newspapers go to town with all the coverage. Therefore, Mr Ong also asked whether we could simplify and smoothen out the process so that it does not take so long, so that the period for all this hue and cry can be shortened as well. Sir, let me go on to the specific points he has made. Mr Ong also brought up the point that he does not agree with the new Chairman, Mr Gerard Ee, on the need for the fares to be adjusted automatically. Sir, when I spoke to the former Chairman, Mr Eric Gwee, he did assure me that the PTC will act with flexibility, taking into consideration the formula that the Fare Review Committee had recommended and which the Government accepted in March this year, and that the PTC will take into consideration all the prevailing circumstances and conditions. I think that is also what the committee had recommended, and I am sure that the PTC, under the chairmanship of Mr Gerard Ee, will also do likewise for future fare adjustments.”
“These amendments serve to update the procedural provisions covering the quorum of meetings and the term of office of PTC members. Sir, I beg to move. Question proposed. 3.18 pm”
“This is not a deliberate attempt by the operators to cheat commuters. In fact, depending on whether a commuter is boarding or alighting when the fault occurs, he could be overcharged or undercharged as a result. I can assure Members that the PTOs do not profit from such system faults. On the contrary, they are penalised, as they have to absorb the revenue losses from undercharging, whilst commuters who are overcharged can get a full fare refund or a voucher for a free bus ride. Let me highlight to Members that LTA and the PTOs have worked hard to refine the Vehicle Location System on buses. This is the system that automatically updates the fare stage in the computer onboard the bus. Their efforts have significantly reduced the instances of overcharging. Cases of wrongful deduction of bus fares have fallen drastically to only 0.006%. This is a remarkable and commendable achievement for a large-scale system. But with a total of two million trips a day on trunk bus routes, this still amounts to about 120 cases a day. As such, LTA and the transport operators will see if they can further reduce the number. Consequential and Technical Amendments Sir, clause 11 makes consequential and technical amendments incidental to the above amendments. The amendments cover provisions for the PTC to issue directions and codes of practice, as well as provisions for licensees of bus service operators and ticket payment services to appeal to the Minister against certain decisions by the PTC concerning bus service operator licensing, the licensing of ticketing payment services and the Fuel Equalisation Fund or the codes of practice. Other Amendments The remaining amendments proposed in the Bill are to refresh the PTC Act or to improve the PTC's operational and regulatory effectiveness.”
“Clause 14 inserts Part VA to empower PTC to set penalty fees and regulate the imposition and enforcement of penalty fees. The PTC, with the approval of the Minister, will appoint a select group of employees from the PTOs as Public Transport Officials to check for fare evasion, and to collect the penalty fees, if applicable. I would like to highlight that Part VA is formulated with a balanced and calibrated approach, and with appropriate safeguards to preserve the commuters' rights. Commuters will be able to appeal to the PTC if they feel that the penalty fee has been unjustly imposed. Fare evasion will constitute an offence only if a fare evader refuses to pay the penalty fee. Fare evaders who refuse to pay the penalty fee can be subject to a composition fine of up to $500 or ultimately face court action. Offenders convicted in court for the first time will be liable to pay a court fine not exceeding $1,000. Repeat and recal citrant offenders will be liable, upon conviction, for fines of up to $2,000 or up to six months' imprisonment or both. While the penalty fee system will be a new measure, as I had mentioned earlier, court fines and imprisonment for fare defaulters are not new, as they are already provided for in the current PTC Act. The PTC will work out the operational details of the penalty fee system, for implementation early next year. The public will be given ample notice prior to the implementation. The PTC will provide more details in due course. Sir, some members of the public have commented that since we are providing for penalties for fare evasion, penalties should also be imposed on the transport operators for over-charging. Sir, overcharging occurs when system faults on trunk bus services result in incorrect fare stages being updated.”
“With this amendment, the PTC will have powers to enforce annual contributions to the fund and impose financial penalties for non-compliance. A penalty fee system for failure to pay appropriate fares The Bill provides for the introduction of a penalty fee system for fare evasion on bus and rail services. The current Act provides for fare evaders to be charged in court. Upon conviction, offenders are liable to a fine of up to $1,000 or a jail term not exceeding six months, or both. So this is already existing. As it is a drastic step to bring an offender to court, the PTC and the PTOs have not resorted to this provision. As such, without a provision for a penalty fare, today, ticket inspectors can only require fare evaders, when caught, to pay the correct fare. This, coupled with the very low possibility of being caught, does not provide much deterrence against cheating. Even in the case of rail, where passengers have to enter and exit through fare gates, operators have also encountered cases of underpayment, non-payment and abuse of concessions. The two PTOs estimate that fare evasion on buses occurs on about 1.8% of passenger trips. Even though this figure may appear to be low, we should not condone fare evasion. Otherwise, the majority of commuters who pay the correct fares will be subsidising the small minority who abuse concession passes, avoid paying or intentionally underpay fares. Hence, to provide greater deterrence against fare evasion, the PTC will be introducing a penalty fee of $20 for the underpayment and non-payment of fares, and $50 for the abuse of fare concessions. Such a penalty fee system has already been implemented in cities, such as London and Sydney, where penalty fees of £20 and A$100 are imposed respectively.”
“Similar to the Bus Service Operator Licensing Regime, the PTC will be able to enforce regulatory compliance through financial penalties of up to $100,000 or by revoking the licence. To empower the PTC to effect fare adjustments The amendments will empower the PTC to effect fare adjustments, if necessary. Members will recall that the Government accepted the fare review framework proposed by the Committee on Fare Review Mechanism in March this year. Under this framework, the PTC may initiate and direct fare adjustments in accordance with the fare adjustment formula, instead of being limited to considering applications by public transport operators to adjust fares. For example, the PTC may consider a downward adjustment which could take the form of a fare rebate or a fare reduction when the formula calls for it. Clause 13 amends the Act to empower the PTC to do so, and to set and enforce conditions of approval for fare adjustments in accordance with the fare adjustment formula, as set out in the Third Schedule. To formalise the Fuel Equalisation Fund The Bill provides for the formalisation of the Fuel Equalisation Fund. This Fund was set up in 1992 as an administrative mechanism to soften the impact of volatile fuel price fluctuations. Public transport operators are required to make an annual contribution to their Fund accounts when fuel or electricity prices are lower than the reference price. They can apply to the PTC to draw down this account in periods of sharp and transient increases of fuel prices to cushion them against higher operating costs. To ensure that the PTOs continue to comply with the requirements on the Fuel Equalisation Fund, clause 11 inserts Part IVC to formalise the Fund.”
“The PTC already audits basic bus service operators on their service and performance standards, and will continue to review these standards, going forward. With the Bus Service Operator Licensing regime in place, PTC will be able to enforce such standards and licensing conditions by imposing financial penalties of up to $100,000 for any breach of conditions or standards and, in the extreme, by revoking the licence. The PTC will continue to regulate niche bus services, such as Scheme B and fare-charging condominium services, through the issuance of Bus Service Licences for individual routes. These provisions in the Bill will further enhance the PTC's effectiveness in ensuring the quality of public bus services and protecting the interests of commuters. However, in enhancing the PTC's regulatory effectiveness, I would also emphasise that the PTC would be mindful to avoid over-regulation and unnecessarily raising compliance costs for bus service operators. Regulatory regime for ticket payment service The Bill provides for the introduction of a regulatory regime for ticket payment services. The ez-link card system has become the predominant mode of payment for public transport since it was first introduced in 2002. To safeguard commuters' interests in areas, such as fees for usage of ez-link cards and service standards for sales, replacement, refund and top-up services, we will introduce a regulatory regime for ticket payment services. The PTC will, therefore, expand its scope to also regulate the two major providers of ticket payment services, ie, EZ-Link Pte Ltd and Transit Link. Clause 11 empowers the PTC to impose and enforce ticket payment service requirements and standards.”
“Sir, I beg to move, "That the Bill be now read a Second time." Sir, this Bill seeks to amend the Public Transport Council Act (Chapter 259B). The Public Transport Council (PTC) Act was first enacted in August 1987 to provide for the establishment of the Public Transport Council to license bus services and approve public transport fares. The PTC Act was last amended in 1999. The Ministry and the PTC have reviewed the PTC Act in the light of developments in the public transport industry. The Bill provides for the following key amendments which will improve the regulation of the public transport industry: (1) The introduction of a bus service operator licensing regime; (2) The introduction of a regulatory regime for ticket payment services; (3) The enhancement of the PTC's regulatory power to effect fare adjustments; (4) The formalisation of the Fuel Equalisation Fund; (5) The introduction of a penalty fee system to deter fare evasion; and (6) Other amendments to improve the PTC's operational and regulatory effectiveness. I will elaborate on these areas and highlight key provisions in the Bill. Bus service operator licensing regime Sir, the PTC Act will be amended to provide for the introduction of a Bus Service Operator Licensing regime to regulate providers of basic scheduled public bus services at both the operator and network levels. Currently, the Act only empowers the PTC to license individual bus routes although, in practice, the PTC has been administratively imposing requirements and performance standards at the operator or network level. Clause 11 empowers the PTC to license and regulate basic bus service operators, namely, SBS Transit and SMRT buses.”
“The Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE) runs between the Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and the Central Catchment Area. The BKE was planned and designed in the late 70s and construction was completed in 1985. Then, it was a deliberate decision to adopt this route after due consultations among the relevant agencies, including URA and the predecessors of NParks and LTA. There are currently no plans to restore the continuity between Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and the Central Catchment Area. My Ministry recognises that as our island becomes more built up, there is greater need to preserve our environment. However, in planning for road projects, the agencies involved have to balance the needs of preserving the environment and providing a comprehensive transport infrastructure to support our economic and social development, in the face of budgetary and space constraints. LTA will continue to work closely with URA and NParks as well as other stakeholders in the people, private and public sectors, to minimise any adverse impact on the environment when planning and undertaking transportation projects. IMPORT OF FRESH PORK FROM MALAYSIA 34. Dr Teo Ho Pin asked the Minister for National Development (a) when will Singapore allow the import of fresh pork from Malaysia; and (b) how much has the fresh pork price increased since 1995.”
“Today, roads occupy about 12% of our land area, almost the same proportion as housing, which currently stands at 13%. We have not set a target for the percentage of land to be occupied by roads in 2030. The Land Transport Authority projects our road development needs based on factors such as the projected population growth and the distribution of housing and employment patterns, and various assumptions about vehicle population growth, development of future rail lines, our tolerance for traffic congestion, and other transport strategies to manage congestion and usage such as the ERP. However, given our densely built-up environment and the many competing demands for land use, future road capacity expansion is likely to be limited. Where roads are required, due consideration will be given to limit the impact on the environment. Going forward, we have to focus more on improving public transport which is more efficient in moving large numbers of people. CONTINUITY BETWEEN BUKIT TIMAH NATURE RESERVE AND CENTRAL CATCHMENT AREA (Restoration) 31. Dr Geh Min asked the Minister for Transport whether the Land Transport Authority is considering restoring the continuity between Bukit Timah Nature Reserve and the Central Catchment Area and, if so, (i) how will this be effected; and (ii) will stakeholders be consulted at the conceptual and planning stage.”
“Sir, I had said that I had asked LTA to try and complete the study within one to two months. Unfortunately, LTA has come back to me and explained to me why they are unable to do it, and that it would take them a few months. We will leave it to LTA to make sure that it carries out the study in a proper manner. HIGH OIL PRICES (Impact) 6. Mdm Cynthia Phua asked the Minister for Trade and Industry in the light of the rapid rise in world oil prices raising alarms even in the US, (a) what is the impact of high oil prices on our economic development; (b) how has this affected job creation; (c) how will high oil prices affect the ordinary Singaporean especially in terms of food, transport and electricity costs; and (d) will the Minister consider additional utility rebates to help needy Singaporeans manage the high utility bills as a result of the high fuel costs.”
“Sir, if he had listened to my answer, I told him that LTA would complete the study in a few months' time.”
“The review will take into consideration the latest schedule on the completion of new residential developments around the station. LTA expects to complete its study in a few months' time.”
“Sir, the Buangkok station was not opened when the North East Line commenced operations in June 2003 because of a lack of developments around the station that would provide an adequate ridership to sustain the station's operations. Mr Chong would recall that at that time, the area within 400 metres of the station was practically vacant. Since 2003, HDB has been accelerating its housing developments around the Buangkok station. As at early this year, HDB has completed 960 housing units in the vicinity. Of these, about 390 units are within 400 metres from the station. Several other HDB Build-to-Order projects, such as the Coris, Atrina and Aspella, have also been launched, and are currently under construction. The Singapore Land Authority has also recently sold a site for the development of a private condominium south of the station. When completed, all these projects would add about 3,400 housing units to the area. Sir, the LTA had earlier assessed that there need to be about 2,000 to 3,000 completed dwelling units within 400 metres of the station to sustain operations. There are currently only about 500 housing units within this radius, and taken together with HDB's current construction programme, this critical mass would most likely be reached only some time in 2008. Therefore, using the current guideline, there is still insufficient residential support in the immediate vicinity of Buangkok station to sustain the station's opening. Nevertheless, I have noted the many appeals by Mr Chong and his residents for the station to be opened. I have therefore asked LTA to review and assess the potential ridership in the area and the likely patronage of Buangkok station if it were to open.”
“Sir, so far, the discussions with owners and occupants have indicated that they are all able to. In fact, the last owner has not been able to confirm because he is still engaged with the tenant on the compensation to be paid to the tenant. But we are quite confident that they will be able to come to a successful conclusion in due course, and within the deadline given by LTA. BUANGKOK MRT STATION (Opening) 5. Mr Charles Chong asked the Minister for Transport if the Land Transport Authority has completed its study on the feasibility of opening the Buangkok MRT station and, if so, can the Minister provide the date when the station will commence operations.”
“Sir, I can assure Mr Othman Haron Eusofe that LTA will indeed continue to work closely with the other Government agencies to assist the occupants and owners. Sir, the owners who are not satisfied with the compensation can appeal to the Appeals Board (Land Acquisition). The Appeals Board would then review the appeals and decide accordingly.”
“We appreciate that because of the short notice to move out, the occupants of Hock Kee House have been put to a fair amount of inconvenience. We sincerely apologise for this. We are very grateful that the occupants have cooperated with the different Government agencies so that Hock Kee House can be demolished, and the construction of the Circle Line can resume as soon as possible.”
“In short, it was not possible to strengthen Hock Kee House effectively. LTA then explored other possible solutions, eg, re-aligning the Circle Line, but found that these were also not feasible. Finally, after monitoring the situation and exploring alternatives for close to a year, the Government concluded that it had no choice but to acquire and demolish Hock Kee House. Acquisition is a last resort. Only when ground conditions and extensive studies showed conclusively that there were no alternative solutions did the Government finally decide to acquire and demolish Hock Kee House so that construction of the Circle Line could proceed safely. LTA had to strike a difficult balance between giving the occupants and owners adequate time to move out, and minimising further delays to the Circle Line works. LTA was mindful that the larger public interest was to bring the Circle Line into operation as soon as possible. It therefore decided to acquire the building sooner rather than later, and to give special assistance to the residents who would be inconvenienced by the short notice. LTA has put together a special financial assistance package over and above the normal compensation for land acquisition to assist owners and occupants in relocating quickly. Most of the owners have also been given ex-gratia compensation, on top of the statutory compensation. LTA has also worked with the HDB and the Singapore Land Authority to assist those who need alternative housing and business premises. To date, 34 out of 35 unit owners have indicated that they would move out by the deadline of 3rd October and, in fact, so far, occupants from 12 units have already moved out.”
“First, let me assure Members that the Government decided to acquire Hock Kee House in August this year after careful and extensive monitoring and review, and only after all other options were found to be not feasible. Let me explain why the decision to acquire Hock Kee House could not have been taken any earlier. I will also explain the reason for the short notice, namely, to minimise further delay to the construction of the Circle Line. LTA learnt in 2003 that Hock Kee House was built on footings and not on piles. The professional assessment then was that while the building would likely experience some cracks, its stability would not be affected and that the building could be preserved despite the deep excavation works. There was therefore no basis to acquire Hock Kee House in 2003. Instead, LTA closely monitored the situation and the condition of the building. It also strengthened the design of the temporary works for the Circle Line construction in order to reduce the settlement of the building during the excavation. In April last year, after the Nicoll Highway incident, excavation works next to Hock Kee House was temporarily suspended. Despite this, Hock Kee House continued to settle. By late last year, it had become clear to LTA that more had to be done to ensure that Hock Kee House could withstand the further ground movement that was likely to occur when deep excavation resumed. LTA then engaged two separate and independent engineering consultants to review the situation. The consultants in their reports of March 2005 and July 2005 respectively concluded that Hock Kee House would be unsafe once deep excavation works resumed. Moreover, any strengthening works, such as underpinning the building, may, on the contrary, de-stabilise it.”
“*These refer to using an OPC without displaying a valid day licence during its restricted hours or altering/tampering with the day licence with the intention to cheat. TUBERCULOSIS INFECTION IN CHILDREN AND TEENAGERS (Incidence and prevalence rates) 3. Dr Tan Sze Wee asked the Minister for Health, with respect to tuberculosis infection in children, and teenagers below the age of 18 years, what are the incidence rates and prevalence rates for each year in the last 10 years.”
“The Off-Peak Car (OPC) scheme was designed to provide car owners with the option of owning cars at significantly lower costs if they are prepared to use them sparingly. Under the scheme, OPC owners are given an upfront tax rebate of $17,000 and a flat $800 discount on road tax. In return, the use of OPCs is restricted to certain time periods. To ensure that the OPC scheme is not abused, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has been stepping up its enforcement efforts. The LTA took action against 244 cases of OPC violation* in 2004, compared to 48 in 2003. For 2005, up to the end of June, 268 cases of OPC violations have been booked. To deter OPC violations, the penalties are severe relative to OPC tax rebates and in comparison with the cost savings from not displaying valid day-licences. An offender can be fined up to $10,000 for using an OPC without displaying a valid day licence. For tampering with the day licence, the penalty is a fine not exceeding $20,000 or imprisonment not exceeding 12 months or both. The OPC scheme continues to serve its objectives and there are no plans to discontinue it. Since its introduction in September 1994, the total OPC population has been increasing steadily, from about 450 at the end of 1995 to about 9,000 today. As OPCs fall within the total vehicle population quota allocated under our Vehicle Quota System, having more OPCs does not increase the total car population. In fact, having more cars registered as OPCs implies that there should be fewer cars on the road during the restricted periods. The tax concessions provided to OPCs are tied to the restriction on usage, and is therefore the same regardless of the type or price of a car registered as an OPC. Hence, there is no need to adjust the tax rebates as car prices change.”
“In land scarce Singapore, road space is limited and should be used for the efficient movement of people and goods. Hence, my Ministry's focus is to promote and give priority to mass transport, such as the MRT and buses, as they are efficient in moving large numbers of commuters. Nonetheless, cyclists are not precluded from our roads, and it is not uncommon to see some cyclists at most times of the day. But we have to be realistic. Our hot weather, coupled with frequent rain showers, does not encourage many to cycle as part of their regular commute to work. Another reason is that there are bus stops or MRT stations within walking distance of the homes and workplaces of most people. Bus stops are generally located within 400 metres of a development, while MRT stations are usually located within the heart of housing estates or close to commercial centres. Having said that, we do make provision for those who use bicycles for short journeys, for example, to nearby MRT stations. Many MRT stations and some bus interchanges do provide bicycle stands for people who cycle there In addition, NParks is currently developing an island-wide network of park connectors which cyclists can use for both recreational and commuting purposes. I understand that various Town Councils are also working with URA to provide bicycle lanes in their estates. My Ministry supports these efforts, and the Land Transport Authority works with the NParks, Town Councils, and the Traffic Police to provide technical and traffic-related assistance to ensure that the bicycle lanes are safe for cyclists and pedestrians. APPENDICES”
“The special bonus ranged from $240 to $360 per driver, according to the number of years of service. SMRT Taxis had also recently given its drivers a $380 diesel relief bonus to offset the high cost of diesel. However, such help has only gone a small way to offset the huge increase in fuel costs. As taxi fares have remained largely unchanged for the past five years, in effect, the taxi drivers have had to absorb this large increase in fuel costs, instead of passing it on to the passengers. Three of the taxi companies have recently increased the telephone booking fee for peak hour bookings, but have left the taxi fares unchanged. This will help to increase the incomes of their drivers. But I am not sure if this will be enough to offset the increase in fuel costs. However, as the taxi industry is now fully deregulated, it is up to the companies to decide on what is the appropriate taxi fare level that will allow their drivers to earn a reasonable and competitive income and at the same time, attract enough customers. POLICE OPERATING PROCEDURES (Review in transportation of suspects) 13. Ms Indranee Rajah asked the Minister for Home Affairs what is the outcome of the police review of its operating procedures in relation to the transportation of suspects which was conducted after the escape from custody of the two suspects, Tok Poh Oon and Thangavelu Velu.”
“Mr Speaker, Sir, the taxi companies have confirmed with MOT that some of them have experienced a slight increase in the number of taxi drivers defaulting on the payment of rentals. However, the overall default rates are still fairly low, ie, less than 1% per month. I was also given similar feedback in my recent dialogue session with representatives of the taxi associations. They informed me that they now need to work harder to maintain their previous income levels. Sir, the data from the taxi companies has also showed that the average gross monthly income of taxi drivers has actually improved from $5,440 in 2002 to $5,780 this year for a single shift operation. For a two-shift operation, it has increased from $7,290 to $7,940. However, the average net monthly earnings over the same period have declined from $2,230 to $1,880 for a single shift, and from $3,800 to $3,580 for a two-shift operation. This is due largely to the cumulative 48% surge in diesel prices over the past two years. Diesel costs now account for 34% of total operating costs compared to only 25% in 2003. The taxi rental charge is the other major cost component for a taxi driver. However, we have checked and confirmed that taxi rental rates have remained fairly stable. Sir, taxi drivers operate as partners of taxi companies. As such, the taxi companies will need to ensure that their rentals and their drivers' income remain competitive. Only then can they recruit enough taxi drivers to ensure that their taxi fleets are well-utilised. In line with this, taxi companies have provided various financial incentives and reliefs to their drivers over the years. For example, Comfort, CityCab and Yellow Top Cab provided a special one-time bonus to their drivers early this year.”
“Prof. Ong Soh Khim asked for some information on the Off-Peak Car or OPC Scheme, and whether the scheme is still relevant today. The OPC scheme was designed to provide car owners with the option to own cars at significantly lower costs if they are prepared to use them sparingly. Under the scheme, OPC owners are given substantial upfront tax rebates and road tax discounts. In return, the use of OPCs is restricted to certain time periods. Since its introduction in September 1994, the total OPC population has been increasing steadily, from about 450 at the end of 1995 to about 8,300 today. OPCs currently make up about 1.9% of the total car population [or 1.1% of the total vehicle population]. The sale of day licences suggests that OPC owners are using their cars less frequently during the restricted periods. The number of day licences sold has been decreasing, from about 30 day licences per vehicle per year* in 2000 to about 13 last year. The increasing take-up of OPCs, coupled with the decrease in sale of day licences, shows that the scheme is popular and has met its intended objective of providing individuals the option of owning cars at a lower cost in exchange for lower usage. It continues to be relevant today, even with the expansion of ERP, because the coverage of ERP is still not island-wide yet. *The figure covers both Weekend cars and OPCs, which use the same day licence. WRITTEN ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS PERSONS IMPRISONED OR DETAINED (Annual statistics) 1. Prof. Ivan Png Paak Liang asked the Minister for Home Affairs if he will publish annual statistics on the number of persons imprisoned or detained, by type of institution, type of detention, gender, age group and nationality.”
“I agree with Dr Ong that it would be less confusing if the same concession restrictions or guidelines could be applied by both public transport operators. We will continue to encourage the operators to work together to harmonise their concession schemes for the benefit of their commuters. SINGAPOREAN PROFESSIONALS, MANAGERS AND EXECUTIVES (Unemployment) 30. Mdm Ho Geok Choo asked the Minister for Manpower if he will provide a status report on (a) how many unemployed Singaporean professionals, managers and executives (PMEs) are aged above 40; (b) what sectors do these unemployed PMEs come from; and (c) what special assistance programmes have been rendered to these PMEs aged above 40.”
“Dr Ong Seh Hong asked the Minister for Transport whether he will consider (i) extending simpler and broader-based concessions to senior citizens who use public transport such as MRT and buses; and (ii) urging transport operators to remove restrictions to which these concessions apply, specifically the time belts when these concessions kick in and, if not, whether the operators can adopt the same restrictions to avoid confusion for senior citizen commuters. Mr Yeo Cheow Tong: Travel concessions are granted by the public transport operators for senior citizens in Singapore to help lower the cost of travelling. These schemes do not need approval by the Public Transport Council (PTC), as PTC regulates only the standard or full fares. Any decision to improve on or to grant more concessions is therefore a matter for the transport operators to decide. Dr Ong has asked if the transport operators could extend broader-based concessions and relax their restrictions on concession hours for senior citizens. I will convey Dr Ong's suggestion to the PTOs. They would need to study the implications carefully, as further concessions for senior citizens would mean that they have to recover more from the full-fare paying passengers. Nevertheless, the transport operators have been extending the concessions for senior citizens over the years. For example, up to five years ago, the special fares for senior citizens on Saturdays started only from 2.30 pm. The operators then extended Saturday concession hours to begin earlier, at 10 am. And recently, both operators extended the Saturday concession to the whole day. This, together with the extension in concession hours during weekdays, will benefit about 140,000 senior citizens making trips on buses and trains each day.”
“The LTA has conducted comprehensive traffic studies on Orchard Road and implemented numerous improvement schemes over the years. These include making adjustments to the traffic lights at the junction of Orchard Road with Buyong Road and working with Centrepoint Development to ease localised congestion caused by taxis waiting at the Centrepoint taxi stand. More recently, the LTA widened a section of Grange Road and converted Orchard Link into a one-way street to improve traffic flow in the Orchard Link area. With the emphasis on making Orchard Road our premier shopping street, it is important to continually improve the transportation system in Orchard Road to make the travelling experience of shoppers more pleasant. As Orchard Road is a densely built-up area, it is not possible to rely solely on engineering initiatives or road expansion works to improve traffic flow. Hence, there is a need to complement traffic measures with ERP. The ERP strategy aims to reduce the overall traffic into Orchard Road by discouraging traffic that is just passing through Orchard Road into the CBD, as well as encouraging motorists to use public transport instead. The LTA expects the volume of through traffic to Orchard Road to fall by 30%, resulting in improved traffic flow. To make public transport more attractive, LTA will be implementing a full-day bus lane scheme along Orchard Road to improve the travel speeds of buses. And as Members are aware, the Orchard Road corridor is already well served by the MRT system. Going forward, the LTA will continue to review ways to improve traffic flow in the Orchard Road belt. PUBLIC TRANSPORT (Concessions to senior citizens) 20.”
“Sir, if I recall, the last time they contributed, it was partly given to the CDCs to distribute. So I am sure they will follow the same procedure. The grassroots organisations can appeal through the CCCs to the CDCs or directly to the CDCs. ELDERSHIELD SCHEME (Review) 6. Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Minister for Health whether the Ministry has any plans to review the ElderShield Scheme to make it a more effective disability insurance scheme. 7. Mdm Halimah Yacob asked the Minister for Health (a) how many Singaporeans are covered under the ElderShield scheme; (b) how many have benefited from this scheme since its inception; (c) why does it take three months to process a claim for payment under the scheme; and (d) what is the rationale for making an insured person pay for the fees of the doctor certifying the insured's eligibility for payment under the scheme.”
“Sir, as to whether the profits are excessive or whether the companies will be non-viable, that is something which the PTC will look into, and I am in no position to answer. In terms of the price of fuel, one should not look at the price of fuel last week compared to this week. One should look at the price of fuel at the time of the last increase, which was in 2002, when I think the price of fuel was probably in the region of US$20. Today, the price of fuel, as Mr Tan Soo Khoon has mentioned, is slightly below US$50.”
“Secondly, one of the reasons which the transport operators have given recently for their request for price increase is that the price of oil has been going up. In view of the fact that the world price of oil has come down since last week - it is now about US$48 per barrel, coming down from its peak - is this argument valid any more?”
“Sir, I do not think any public company is in the business of subsidising consumers. But what they are required to do is to make sure that measures are in place to ensure that they are efficient, they are providing a good level of services and that the fares that they are charging are reasonable. In fact, the fares in Singapore have been very reasonable. For example, the fares over the past 17 years have gone up by no more than 30-odd per cent, whereas labour costs have gone up by more than 130%. So I think the transport operators have been making all kinds of efforts to ensure that they are efficient and to continue to do so. Having said that, PTC will definitely be looking at the profitability of the operators, because that is part of the condition that is included in the Report set out by the Fare Review Committee earlier this year. So they will have to look at the Return on Total Assets, and to make sure that that return is not excessive. Mr Tan Soo Khoon (East Coast): Sir, I am glad that the Minister has remembered that in 2002 when the House debated on the question of public transport fare increases, we came to the conclusion that PTC should always be mindful that in considering future price increases, it should take into consideration the affordability of commuters as well as the viability of the transport operators. Can I ask the Minister whether the viability of the transport operators is under threat if they do not get the price increase that they are asking for this time, taking into consideration the fact that the transport operators have in fact been having bigger and bigger profits every year after the last price increase in 2002?”