Transport fares are going up, as sure as the sun will rise. This law is more permanent and unyielding than the law of gravity. So what can the Singaporeans do? KPKB is one thing. The next logical thing in the daft Singaporean mind is to say, fare goes up we want to see improvement in services. If no improvement, cannot.
So they are willing to concede to have more fare hikes if there is improvement in services. And they are still complaining that the service quality is bad. Now what does this mean? After 10 or 20 fare hikes, the same daft Singaporeans demanding that service quality be improved and the promises that fare hikes would lead to improvements, and what is the situation now?
Was there any improvement in the service quality after every fare hike? Or would this call for improvement be just a lip service that the daft Singaporeans sought to appease themselves, that there is nothing else they could do? If I were the operator, I will simply say the fare hike will improve the service quality.
Come next year, ask for fare hike to improve quality again. Imagine if there were 20 fare hikes and really 20 times improvement in quality, our transport services must be the best in the world. What or where were the improvements after every fare hike?
But of course, this time the call for fare hike is not to improve service quality but due to higher cost, petrol, manpower and also new buses. Ok, the later could be related to better services, with new and more comfortable buses. But the main part is higher cost. So what is this call about improving services?
Efficiency has a finite ceiling for improvement.
ReplyDeleteCapacity & Infrastructure are the main problems, and these are affected by Loads (aka FTs, Commuters, Tourists, Population Planning).
As long as our problem solving attempts are constrained by what we have now, without looking at the bigger picture or cause, we are doomed to paying ever higher fares.
If the GDP growth resulting from bringing more people into Singapore has benefitted Singapore, and the Capacity & Infrastructure cannot cope, then the Government (Not only Ministry) is obliged to intervene to correct or alleviate the situation.
Otherwise the Commuters using Public Transport and Roads will surely slowly be boiled to death (like frogs).
Watched the Talking Point Programme by CNA and cannot helped myself from been very impressed with THE WAY GERARD EE EVADED the Last Suggestion made by a participant for transport companies to use their profits to help commuters instead of paying them as dividends to shareholders.
ReplyDeleteThe PTC is headed by a master tactician.
But seriously, is there a need for PTC ?