14 new bus routes slated for September

Minister Lui Tuck Yew said this will improve service levels for at least one in three existing buses routes.

Some 250 buses will be added over the next year under the Bus Services Enhancement Programme (BSEP), which will roughly be a 6.25% increase from the existing 4,000 buses in Singapore public bus fleet,

"The new routes will be implemented progressively, and as far as possible, geographically distributed to various parts of the island as needed. The implementation of new routes will be paced with improvements to existing services," said Minister Lui Tuck Yew in an address to parliament.

Mr Lui Tuck Yew said that to execute the BSEP, Singapore had earmarked $1.1 billion in a special purpose Bus Services Enhancement Fund (BSEF), which would cover the net costs of purchasing and running 550 buses for 10 years under the BSEP. Under the BSEP, 550 buses will be added to the existing bus fleet. The Public Transport Operators (PTOs) will fund, at their own cost, another 250 buses. Together, this will expand the bus fleet from 4,000 to 4,800 buses, or a 20% increase.

"As these buses are progressively added, commuters can expect more frequent, more reliable and less crowded bus services. In addition, we will improve overall bus connectivity, by adding about 40 new bus routes under the BSEP. This represents a 15% increase in the number of bus services. A small number of the new bus routes will run parallel to stretches of the existing MRT network," added the minister.

"To support the roll-out of the BSEP, both PTOs have recently enhanced salaries for bus drivers to attract more Singaporean drivers, and together, the PTOs expect to hire about 360 new bus drivers from now until the end of the year," he said further.