PM Lee Hsien Loong pledges that the gov't will improve transport services. (Yahoo! photo)
PM Lee Hsien Loong pledges that the gov't will improve transport services. (Yahoo! photo)While the government ensures any transport fare hikes are reasonable, justifiable and not excessive, it will also improve public transport services year by year, said Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on Saturday night.Speaking at a National Day celebration in his Teck Ghee Ward, he told residents that "from time to time, fare increases cannot be helped," reported The Sunday Times (ST).
But those in need can tap on various schemes designed to help them, he said.
Public transport operators SMRT and SBS Transit recently called for fare increases that would work out to a 2.8 per cent rise in total fare collected. The Public Transport Council (PTC) is reviewing their request and will decide by early September at the earliest.
Responding to those unhappy that operators want to raise fares even as problems such as over-crowding and long waiting times remain, PM Lee said, "We will raise service standards and progressively improve them year by year... whether it's waiting times, crowding, frequency of the train services, particularly at peak hours, this is something which we will see to and improve."
People are also unhappy that operators SMRT and SBS Transit want to raise fares in spite of earning good profits. The former had net earnings of $161.1 million for the year up to March and the latter posted a net profit of $54.3 million for the year ending last December.
To this, PM Lee assured there is no reason for the government to help transport operators make big profits.
"The government's interest it to make sure we have a good public transport system for Singaporeans: something you can afford, something which gives you good service," he was quoted as saying.
"But we have to allow the transport companies to break even and to make reasonable profits," he noted. This would then ensure they provide good service to commuters, he said.
The PTC, a government-appointed watchdog which has to approve fare hikes, will decide what is deemed "reasonable profit", said PM Lee.
Speaking in Mandarin, he called for Singaporeans to come on board to tackle long-term challenges, while the government seeks to solve short-term issues such as public transport and housing.
Both the Workers' Party and Presidential hopeful Tan Kin Lian have offered their views on the fare hikes, with the latter calling for fee increases to be delayed until there are service improvements.
The WP wanted to nationalise public transport but Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew said it would lead to higher costs and lower services.
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