wrong charges: LTA

LTA now working with SBS, SMRT to check data

Today Exclusive

Neo Chai Chin

chaichin@mediacorp.com.sg

SINGAPORE

Mr Dennis Puk Leung Kong had spotted that the distance in opposite directions between two bus-stops on North Buona Vista Road and Commonwealth Avenue differed on the public transport fare calculator website.

On the eve of distance-based fares kicking in, he wrote in to highlight the “inconsistency”.

MediaCorp posed the question to the authorities on July 6 and, yesterday, the Land Transport Authority confirmed there was indeed an error. The distance between the bus stops opposite Block 43, Commonwealth Avenue, and opposite Buona Vista MRT Station should be 0.3 kilometres, and not 0.6 km as originally computed.

The error has been rectified, said an LTA spokeswoman. “This was due to a dataset error, where the additional distance from an earlier temporary local route diversion was not reversed after the diversion was over,” she said.

The number of commuters affected by this error is “likely to be small”, she said, without giving an estimate. The LTA is now working with public transport operators SBS Transit and SMRT to confirm that there are no similar errors elsewhere.

The spokeswoman added that commuters affected between July 3 — when distance based fares kicked in — and July 9 can make their claims via Transitlink’s website (

Commuters at Buona Vista last night were forgiving of the error. “The area has been under construction for some time, so it can be quite messy,” said undergraduate Ooi Shan Chin, 21. He will not be checking if he is eligible for any refund, as “it’s too tedious for a few cents”.

Another commuter, programmer Mr Kim, 39, said the error was acceptable as long as the authorities allowed for claims, and added that he would check.

MediaCorp was unable to reach Mr Puk by press time last night but, in his initial email, the National University of Singapore systems engineer noted that the “crux of distance fares lies in the distance dataset used to calculate the fares”.

He added: “If the accuracy of the dataset is questionable, commuters may find themselves incorrectly charged ... Multiply this across a number of stops travelled and one could be unknowingly over-paying for distance not travelled.”

Adult ez-link bus fares for air-con services increase by 1 to 10 cents between the different distance bands.

LTA said it is “carefully looking out for such teething issues” in the initial phase of the new fare system, and would be doing “immediate rectification whenever necessary”.

“We apologise for any inconvenience caused,” said its spokeswoman.— If not for an alert Today reader, bus commuters travelling along a stretch at Buona Vista may well still be over-charged for their rides. And the question now is if the error he uncovered is happening elsewhere.www. transitlink.com.sg), at its ticket offices or can call its hotline at 1800 225 5663. The bus services plying the two stops are 74, 91, 95, 191, 196, 198 and 200. All are SBS services.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY ALICIA WONG

from  CHiNA to SiNGAPORE

PRO-gressing

from Singapore to China

DE-gressing . . . .

DiS-gressing . . . .

By 2014, the towns of Changi-Simei and Bedok will join five others — Yishun, Tampines, Taman Jurong, Pasir Ris and Sembawang — with dedicated cycling paths.

The two-wheeler push

New cycling towns, paths to come; safety issues to be tackled

Leong Wee Keat

weekeat@mediacorp.com.sg

SINGAPORE

This route is part of an extensive network of cycling paths the Land Transport Authority (LTA) will roll out in the area, which will see 16 kilometres of dedicated tracks by 2014.

Then, the towns of Changi-Simei and Bedok will join five others — Yishun, Tampines, Taman Jurong, Pasir Ris and Sembawang — with dedicated cycling paths linking transport nodes and key local amenities. Works in these five cycling towns are expected to be completed by 2012, and the first 1.2km stretch in Tampines will open on Sunday.

These initiatives, Senior Parliamentary Secretary (Transport) Teo Ser Luck said yesterday, mark a “milestone for cycling” here as it is accepted as a “more environmentally friendly, cost-effective and healthier” intra-town transport mode.

The seven cycling towns were chosen because they have strong support for cycling and have land available for such tracks.

For Marina Bay, Mr Teo said the area is in the “beginning stage of development”, which makes it the “best time to start planning” for cycling tracks before other land use considerations kick into gear.

“If you look at Shenton Way or Orchard Road, you look at the space we have, it’s not going to be easy (building cycling paths). Nevertheless, it may evolve. We have to look at it, and it takes a longer time to plan in these areas due to the land and space constraints,” he added.

Work in Marina Bay will begin this year, and Mr Teo said “an integrated approach” is needed to make cycling a travel mode.

Besides building the tracks, the authorities are looking at ensuring sufficient amenities for both the bicycle and the cyclist, such as parking facilities and shower rooms. A sum of $26 million has been set aside for the Marina Bay cycling initiative.

When asked about the cost benefit analysis, the Ministry of Transport’s Permanent Secretary Choi Shing Kwok said the initiative is “a long-term investment”, similar to the ministry’s approach toward building roads that last for “80, 100 years”. He added: “On a long-term basis, it’s not really that expensive. It’s pretty comparable with sidewalks for pedestrians.”

Mr Teo also said the cycling paths are not built “for just two, three years”, and the authorities will monitor their use as the Marina Bay area develops.— By the end of next year, cyclists could ride around the Marina Bay area, say, from One Raffles Quay, along Marina Bay Sands, to Marina Centre.

JACK  CHEW  understOOd  bOth  the  prOblem  and  sOlutiOn

mInIster  sEEms  tOtally  ignOrant  and  OFF-guardIng  Over  SENiOR  CiTiZENS

JACK  CHEW  wOuld  be  a BETTER  TRANSPORT  MiNiSTER  iN cOnteXt

frOm the PEOPLE

fOr the PEOPLE

wIth the PEOPLE

SENIOR citizens will spurn transfers

Letter from Jack Chew

I REFER to the report on the new public transport fate formula, “Flexibility and choice are the aims” (July 12).

One problem that hasn’t been mentioned is that most of us senior citizens avoid complicated transfers, preferring to stick to one service all the way — even if it takes longer, as we have all the time in the world, but not necessarily the energy to handle the transfers.

Such transfers also increase the chance of tripping and hurting oneself climbing up and down vehicles.

Also, for those active enough to enjoy regular outings for meals or window shopping — all part of active ageing, which we are encouraged to do — the NEW Time Limit for TRANSFERS is a DETERRENT.

Second Minister for Transport and Finance Lim Hwee Hua suggests that the improved public transport grid will offer shorter journeys due to improved access in the future — so WHY not implement the new fares when this is in place?

When you dream 2nd time again, let us know,  i want to dream,   i confirm will want to dump my money in MRT, its our future.  :)

The next big thing lined up in Singapore, from what i see, would be the -- the growth of Singapore chemical industry with the 2nd Jurong Island opened last year ...

..........." By 2015, Asia would account for 50% of global demand for commodity chemicals, and Singapore is in a good position to benefit from this. As Singapore moves up the value chain from commodities to specialties, we gain an edge over regional competitors, and this leaves us well poised to benefit from the growing worldwide demand for petrochemicals.

8Shell and ExxonMobil are two companies who see a bright future at Jurong Island, and they have signalled their confidence by investing in mega-projects. Shell’s single largest ever petrochemicals investment—the Shell Eastern Petrochemicals Complex—will partly be located here on Jurong Island. When completed next year, the island will contain one of the largest mono-ethylene glycol plants in the world. In 2011, ExxonMobil will also be adding a second large-scale steam cracker to the existing Singapore Refinery and Singapore Chemical Plant. This will make Jurong Island home to Exxon Mobil’s largest owned and operated petrochemical complex, as well as the largest integrated chemical and refining site in the world."

Mr Tay said using solar energy will help to offset energy consumption in the common areas and that will save money for the town councils, which will eventually translate to savings for the residents as well.

Surekha A Yadav

gradually go up

Lynda Hong

lyndahong@mediacorp.com.sg

SINGAPORE

And it may mean that COE prices will rise at a more gradual pace.

After the first full half-yearly COE supply was announced yesterday, following the change in the quota formula in April, motor dealers said it was largely within expectations.

Between August and next January, the number of COEs available for bidding will drop by about 9 per cent per month — compared to a 30-per-cent drop when the April to- July quota this year was announced.

The new quota — which is based on actual vehicle deregistrations in the preceding period rather than LTA’s projections — will be 3,844 per month, which is about 400 fewer COEs than the current monthly quota.

Mr Ron Lim, general manager of sales and marketing at Tan Cheong Motors, said the new formula has become “more transparent”, making it easier to forecast deregistration numbers.

And after more than a year of shrinking COE supply, the quota cuts — which include LTA’s adjustments for its over-projections — are not as steep as before. Still, the new six-month total of 23,063 COEs is the lowest in 15 years, according to Mr Lim.

While one Japanese car dealer whom MediaCorp spoke to expects prices to hit as much as $60,000 in the category for bigger cars, with Open category premiums following suit, Hybrid Motors CEO Eddie Lo is more optimistic.— The number of Certificates of Entitlement is set to continue falling, but the jolts to the system now seem to be a thing of the past.

“(We will) now have more capacity because more trains are available ... I’d like to assure you that we are trying to approach the issue from many fronts, and adding on a lot more capacity as well.”

When the new system started, commuters complained about the quantum of increase in their daily fares.— It may not seem like it now, but the new distance-based fare system will also eventually benefit those who make single and shorter trips, says Mrs Lim Hwee Hua, Second Minister for Transport and Finance.

Last wEEk,

SMRT CEO  tOld the  PUBLiC and ALL  cOmmuters that  the SiNGAPORE  MRT SYSTEM  reached its CAPACITY LiMiTs and it is CONTRAiNED by the system CAPACiTY.

Today is Monday, SecOnd Minister in Transport  says there is no Capacity Constraints ? ? ? ?

WHY Last wEEk, 1st Minister in Transport  cOuld nOt  clarify the  System Constraints ? ? ? ?

Here,  WHO is the Real EXPERT in  TRANSPORT ? ? ? ?

Please  dOn't  just TRY  TRY  AGAiN  AGAiN

cOmmuters  are  SCARED  of  OFF-guarding  in  System Capacity and System Constrains  tOO 

HONESTLY  with  INTERITY,

Is there  a TRANSPORT EXPERT iN  sIngapore at ALL ? ? ? ?

One  WHOM  ALL  cOmmuters  ACCEPT as EXPERT,

nOt  the SELF-prOclaiMED  One

PLEASE  LAH . . . .

(We will) now have capacity because more trains are available ... I’d like to assure you that we are trying to approach the issue from many fronts, and adding on a lot more capacity as well.

Mrs Lim Hwee Hua, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office and Second Minister for Transport and Finance