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Pay more for SMRT's late night bus services
By Goh Chin Lian
PUBLIC transport operator SMRT has raised the fare of all seven of its special late night bus services from $3.50 to $4.
The increase, which took effect last Wednesday, put the fare on a par with that of the six late night bus services run by the other public transport operator, SBS Transit.
The fare increase follows the Public Transport Council's announcement last month that the annual public transport fare adjustment will be deferred from mid-year to until after the last two stretches of the MRT Circle Line open in the fourth quarter of this year.
That fare review covers feeder, trunk and express bus services, as well as MRT and LRT trains, but excludes special late night bus services.
Some analysts say raising the fare of special late night bus services could be a way for transport companies to meet rising operating costs before the annual fare adjustment is approved, in addition to increasing rental rates for shop space in MRT stations.
An SMRT spokesman told The Straits Times yesterday: 'While we continue to manage our operating costs, we have adjusted fares for NightRider services from $3.50 to $4 in view of an inflationary and higher operating cost environment, which includes higher energy prices.'
It last raised the fare from $3 to $3.50 on May 16, 2008.
The affected services - NR1, NR2, NR3, NR5, NR6, NR7 and NR8 - run on Fridays, Saturdays and the eve of public holidays from 11.30pm to 4.30am. They take passengers from downtown to housing estates across the island such as Jurong East, Woodlands and Tampines.
SMRT would not reveal the ridership on the services. It said: 'Our seven NightRider services have been popular as they give passengers an affordable and safe option to travel home after a night out.'
SBS Transit declined to say if it will follow suit, but The Straits Times understands the operator has no plans to do so.
Industry watchers expect both companies to apply for fare increases for other services this year. SMRT reported last month a 9.6 per cent growth in net earnings to $43 million for the third quarter of its financial year ended Dec 31 last year.
But it had said it expected the outlook for the next quarter and this year to remain challenging, with continued losses from the Circle Line and volatility in diesel and electricity prices.
Mr John Rachmat, a transport analyst at Royal Bank of Scotland Asia Securities, reckons that fuel costs could go up by at least 15 per cent, year on year, in the new financial year up to March next year.
He said transport companies also face higher staff costs due to the end of the Jobs Credit Scheme last year, where businesses received a cash grant from the Government based on Central Provident Fund contributions for their employees.
'The main fares they cannot raise by themselves because they are decided by the Public Transport Council. It has said (the adjustments) would be delayed,' he said.
Raising the fares of the NightRider services, he added, 'would be a way of trying to recoup some of the cost increases'.
Undergraduate Chan Wei Jie said he would still take the NightRider bus from downtown to his home in Hougang when he is out after midnight even with the fare increase.
Said the second-year accountancy student at Nanyang Technological University: 'The fare is still much lower than my next best alternative, the taxi.'
STILL CHEAPER
'The fare is still much lower than my next best alternative, the taxi.'
Undergraduate Chan Wei Jie
By Goh Chin Lian
PUBLIC transport operator SMRT has raised the fare of all seven of its special late night bus services from $3.50 to $4.
The increase, which took effect last Wednesday, put the fare on a par with that of the six late night bus services run by the other public transport operator, SBS Transit.
The fare increase follows the Public Transport Council's announcement last month that the annual public transport fare adjustment will be deferred from mid-year to until after the last two stretches of the MRT Circle Line open in the fourth quarter of this year.
That fare review covers feeder, trunk and express bus services, as well as MRT and LRT trains, but excludes special late night bus services.
Some analysts say raising the fare of special late night bus services could be a way for transport companies to meet rising operating costs before the annual fare adjustment is approved, in addition to increasing rental rates for shop space in MRT stations.
An SMRT spokesman told The Straits Times yesterday: 'While we continue to manage our operating costs, we have adjusted fares for NightRider services from $3.50 to $4 in view of an inflationary and higher operating cost environment, which includes higher energy prices.'
It last raised the fare from $3 to $3.50 on May 16, 2008.
The affected services - NR1, NR2, NR3, NR5, NR6, NR7 and NR8 - run on Fridays, Saturdays and the eve of public holidays from 11.30pm to 4.30am. They take passengers from downtown to housing estates across the island such as Jurong East, Woodlands and Tampines.
SMRT would not reveal the ridership on the services. It said: 'Our seven NightRider services have been popular as they give passengers an affordable and safe option to travel home after a night out.'
SBS Transit declined to say if it will follow suit, but The Straits Times understands the operator has no plans to do so.
Industry watchers expect both companies to apply for fare increases for other services this year. SMRT reported last month a 9.6 per cent growth in net earnings to $43 million for the third quarter of its financial year ended Dec 31 last year.
But it had said it expected the outlook for the next quarter and this year to remain challenging, with continued losses from the Circle Line and volatility in diesel and electricity prices.
Mr John Rachmat, a transport analyst at Royal Bank of Scotland Asia Securities, reckons that fuel costs could go up by at least 15 per cent, year on year, in the new financial year up to March next year.
He said transport companies also face higher staff costs due to the end of the Jobs Credit Scheme last year, where businesses received a cash grant from the Government based on Central Provident Fund contributions for their employees.
'The main fares they cannot raise by themselves because they are decided by the Public Transport Council. It has said (the adjustments) would be delayed,' he said.
Raising the fares of the NightRider services, he added, 'would be a way of trying to recoup some of the cost increases'.
Undergraduate Chan Wei Jie said he would still take the NightRider bus from downtown to his home in Hougang when he is out after midnight even with the fare increase.
Said the second-year accountancy student at Nanyang Technological University: 'The fare is still much lower than my next best alternative, the taxi.'
STILL CHEAPER
'The fare is still much lower than my next best alternative, the taxi.'
Undergraduate Chan Wei Jie
