More competition needed in public transport: NSP
The National Solidarity Party (NSP) says more competition is needed in Singapore's public transportation system.
In a statement released Wednesday, the NSP's secretary-general Hazel Poa shared the party's views on public transport in Singapore.
She said, "Theoretically, we have two companies "competing" against each other in bus and MRT services. However, since there is no duplication in their area of service, commuters have no real alternatives. Thus we effectively have two monopolies."
Poa also explained why the People's Action Party (PAP) and Workers' Party (WP) positions fell short of commuters' needs.
"The Workers' Party proposes the nationalisation of public transport. The People's Action Party on the other hand advocates the status-quo. But it should be apparent that the status-quo is not working. The PAP needs to snap out of its complacency," she said.
She added that the WP's proposal to nationalise public transport however would not solve the problem of under-capacity.
It is unrealistic to expect state-run organisations, usually large and cumbersome, to be able to respond speedily to rapid changes in demand, noted Poa.
While explaining that it was not practical to expect full privatisation and competition in Mass Rapid Transit services due to the infrastructure and huge capital required, she called for partial competition to be introduced.
"The government can retain ownership of the major fixed assets — tracks, stations and trains - and sub-contract out the operations to private companies via tender," said Poa.
"SMRT and SBS Transit should not have certainty of operating rights, but rather would have to tender for the rights at regular intervals, in competition with each other and with other companies that may be set up by former employees or foreign operators," she added.
"This arrangement provides incentives for efficiency and cost control," Poa said, while acknowledging that the capacity of MRT trains cannot be increased fast enough to accommodate rising demand.
She also proposed that buses should be run by multiple private operators who will be able to respond more quickly to changes in demand by altering their supply accordingly.
"(These operators) are smaller, nimbler and profit-seeking, and will respond faster to changes in demand," said Poa. "If demand increases rapidly, profit-seeking entities will eagerly increase supply just as rapidly."
The party also suggested that bus routes should be managed by a central authority, and should be opened up to private operators, regardless of size, for licensing to run buses on any of them.
"Bus services may also duplicate MRT routes to provide indirect competition to MRT services, and to meet demand in excess of MRT capacity," Poa added.
In the statement, the party also mentioned the government's need to ensure that infrastructure and subsidies are in place to run non-profitable but essential routes, which it says can be funded by bus licensing fees.
In addition, it called on the government to continue to provide subsidies for lower-income commuters, full-time students, the elderly and the disabled.
