Y
Yip Hon
Guest
During the past 12 months . Diesel charges for Taxi has
gone up by at least 28 percent and the number of taxi on the
road has shot up also ( percent up i dont know but sure got up ) .
How come taxi uncles Not asking for fares Hike leh ???
But SBS and SMRT asking for increase leh ???
Can our resident taxi uncles and economists please help to
enlighten this observation. Is it taxi uncles job very good "cari
makan " / good livelihood to make a living ??? Taxi uncles
got no multi-million year end bonus and no annual leave and
no medical benefits but got alot of "feedbacks" on forum pages
by smart passengers ...
----------------------------------------------------------
Public outcry over Lui Tuck Yew’s support for impending fare hike
July 14th, 2011 | Author: Temasek Review
A massive outcry has erupted in cyberspace over Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew’s tacit support for the two public transport operators SBS and SMRT to raise their fares.
The two companies have submitted a proposal to the Public Transport Council to raise bus and train fares, citing increasing fuel and operating costs despite making obscene profits last year.
For the financial year 2011, SMRT’s after tax profit was a whooping S$161 million dollars of which 80 percent was distributed as dividends to shareholders. Temasek Holdings which owns 54.28 percent of SMRT reportedly collected S$70 million dollars.
In a posting on his Facebook yesterday, Mr Lui defended that it is not unreasonable for the two transport companies to earn fair returns:
“Some people have said that the PTOs should not be making so much profit, although we should also recognise that as public-listed companies, it is not unreasonable for the PTOs to earn fair returns from the sizeable capital investments required to sustain their operations and to invest in future public transport needs.”
He added that nationalizing public transport will lead inevitably to higher fare prices, which was disputed by the majority of netizens. In an online poll conducted on TR Facebook, 96 percent or 503 out of 523 respondents disagreed with Mr Lui.
Keith Ong wrote:
“I think public transport should be subsidised for those above certain age eg 55 especially when most can’t get their CPF at age of 55 due to some blood sucking policies made by some blood suckers. These are the people who need the most help. Otherwise, it may be good to let in some competition which will help in the cost reduction and hopefully lower or more stable fares for commuters.”
Yu Sarn Chiew added:
“Fares will only be higher if the Government wants to charge more. It is already the case anyway since both SBS and SMRT are effectively controlled by the government as their biggest shareholder. However, nationalising public transport will take away the excuse of “market forces” and make Government directly responsible for setting fares.”
A Facebook page “SMRT cannot increase fare till they solve overcrowding” has been set up to protest against the impending pay hike.
Netizens can take a snapshot of overcrowded buses, trains and stations and upload them to our Facebook album which will be compiled and sent to the Public Transport Council for deliberation.
We will also be discussing the matter during our Townhall meeting tonight.
---------------------------------------------------------
SBS Transit, SMRT ask to raise bus and train fare
By Asha Popatlal, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 01 August 2007 2215 hrs
SINGAPORE: Both SBS Transit and SMRT have applied to the Public Transport Council to raise bus and train fares.
The exact fare increment will be determined later, using a standard formula, in this annual fare revision exercise.
Energy costs have been a big drain on the two big public transport operators.
Both companies have quoted rises of between 20 and 26 percent in this area alone.
SBS Transit said manpower costs – its single largest cost component – have also increased by about S$12 million during the year, while SMRT said it would lose about S$11 million due to increases in GST and employer's CPF contributions.
In making their applications to the Public Transport Council, both companies said they would not touch concession fares.
SMRT added that it would be asking for small increases in EZ-Link fares for buses, adult train EZ-link fares and longer single-trip train journeys.
This year's increment formula, which is linked to the performance of Singapore's economy, is capped at 1.8 percent, slightly higher than last year's 1.7 percent.
The formula was devised to ensure that there are small and regular increases, instead of big jumps every few years.
Both transport operators said they are mindful of how fare increases affect the lower income, so they would be considering funding schemes to offset the impact on any hike.
Separately, the government has announced that S$10 million has been set aside over three years to help the needy cope with fare increases.
The fare changes, if accepted by the Public Transport Council, will be announced next month and will kick in by October.
- CNA/so
---------------------------------------------------------
gone up by at least 28 percent and the number of taxi on the
road has shot up also ( percent up i dont know but sure got up ) .
How come taxi uncles Not asking for fares Hike leh ???
But SBS and SMRT asking for increase leh ???
Can our resident taxi uncles and economists please help to
enlighten this observation. Is it taxi uncles job very good "cari
makan " / good livelihood to make a living ??? Taxi uncles
got no multi-million year end bonus and no annual leave and
no medical benefits but got alot of "feedbacks" on forum pages
by smart passengers ...
----------------------------------------------------------
Public outcry over Lui Tuck Yew’s support for impending fare hike
July 14th, 2011 | Author: Temasek Review
A massive outcry has erupted in cyberspace over Transport Minister Lui Tuck Yew’s tacit support for the two public transport operators SBS and SMRT to raise their fares.
The two companies have submitted a proposal to the Public Transport Council to raise bus and train fares, citing increasing fuel and operating costs despite making obscene profits last year.
For the financial year 2011, SMRT’s after tax profit was a whooping S$161 million dollars of which 80 percent was distributed as dividends to shareholders. Temasek Holdings which owns 54.28 percent of SMRT reportedly collected S$70 million dollars.
In a posting on his Facebook yesterday, Mr Lui defended that it is not unreasonable for the two transport companies to earn fair returns:
“Some people have said that the PTOs should not be making so much profit, although we should also recognise that as public-listed companies, it is not unreasonable for the PTOs to earn fair returns from the sizeable capital investments required to sustain their operations and to invest in future public transport needs.”
He added that nationalizing public transport will lead inevitably to higher fare prices, which was disputed by the majority of netizens. In an online poll conducted on TR Facebook, 96 percent or 503 out of 523 respondents disagreed with Mr Lui.
Keith Ong wrote:
“I think public transport should be subsidised for those above certain age eg 55 especially when most can’t get their CPF at age of 55 due to some blood sucking policies made by some blood suckers. These are the people who need the most help. Otherwise, it may be good to let in some competition which will help in the cost reduction and hopefully lower or more stable fares for commuters.”
Yu Sarn Chiew added:
“Fares will only be higher if the Government wants to charge more. It is already the case anyway since both SBS and SMRT are effectively controlled by the government as their biggest shareholder. However, nationalising public transport will take away the excuse of “market forces” and make Government directly responsible for setting fares.”
A Facebook page “SMRT cannot increase fare till they solve overcrowding” has been set up to protest against the impending pay hike.
Netizens can take a snapshot of overcrowded buses, trains and stations and upload them to our Facebook album which will be compiled and sent to the Public Transport Council for deliberation.
We will also be discussing the matter during our Townhall meeting tonight.
---------------------------------------------------------
SBS Transit, SMRT ask to raise bus and train fare
By Asha Popatlal, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 01 August 2007 2215 hrs
SINGAPORE: Both SBS Transit and SMRT have applied to the Public Transport Council to raise bus and train fares.
The exact fare increment will be determined later, using a standard formula, in this annual fare revision exercise.
Energy costs have been a big drain on the two big public transport operators.
Both companies have quoted rises of between 20 and 26 percent in this area alone.
SBS Transit said manpower costs – its single largest cost component – have also increased by about S$12 million during the year, while SMRT said it would lose about S$11 million due to increases in GST and employer's CPF contributions.
In making their applications to the Public Transport Council, both companies said they would not touch concession fares.
SMRT added that it would be asking for small increases in EZ-Link fares for buses, adult train EZ-link fares and longer single-trip train journeys.
This year's increment formula, which is linked to the performance of Singapore's economy, is capped at 1.8 percent, slightly higher than last year's 1.7 percent.
The formula was devised to ensure that there are small and regular increases, instead of big jumps every few years.
Both transport operators said they are mindful of how fare increases affect the lower income, so they would be considering funding schemes to offset the impact on any hike.
Separately, the government has announced that S$10 million has been set aside over three years to help the needy cope with fare increases.
The fare changes, if accepted by the Public Transport Council, will be announced next month and will kick in by October.
- CNA/so
---------------------------------------------------------
