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SINGAPORE : Even though ridership has doubled within a year, the night-bus scene is set for a shake-up from Friday.
SBS Transit will be withdrawing two night bus services, 7N and 8N, which run from the city to Pasir Ris and Jurong West respectively. The operator’s four remaining Nite Owl services will see amendments to their routes.
Fares will also go up: From S$2.50 and S$3 by Ez-link and cash, respectively, to a flat S$4 for travel between HDB towns. The S$1.50 fare for travelling within an HDB town remains unchanged.
Operating hours will also be reduced to just two hours, between midnight and 2am, instead of midnight to 4am. Night buses operate on Fridays, Saturdays and the eve of public holidays.
The Public Transport Council (PTC) has approved the route and fare changes. When asked about the rationale for these changes, SBS Transit spokeswoman Tammy Tan said: "There has been an increase in costs experienced on all fronts. For instance, the GST increase to 7 per cent - which we have been absorbing since the tax was introduced - and this has cost us more than S$240 million to date.
"Staff cost has also gone up. And we have started buying new buses to replace the older ones. The change in the Nite Owl operating hours is to cater to changing demands."
SBS Transit had said earlier this year that the Nite Owl Services "are increasingly popular with commuters and ridership is rising every month". Ridership also doubled from about a year ago, to about 1,000 each night, added the operator.
The other night bus operator, SMRT, has seven NiteRider services which run from 11.30pm to 4.30am on Fridays, Saturdays and eve of public holidays. In May, SMRT increased fares on the seven services by 50 cents to S$3.50. The fare adjustment was due to increased operating costs, an SMRT spokesperson said then.
While SBS Transit cuts the two services to the two corners of the island, commuters still have the option of two SMRT NiteRider services which run from the city to Pasir Ris and Jurong West.
Night buses are classified by the PTC as "Basic-Bus Plus services". However, as they run outside non-operational hours of basic bus services, private bus operators can apply to run such services, said the PTC.
Private bus operators, however, are not too keen to offer night services. Bus Hub, which runs two premium bus services, cited a shortage of drivers. "With better staffing in the future, we will explore running night buses," said director V Anilan. - TODAY/ra
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