Right on the dot. Just after the General Elections. It always happens. Fares, fees, taxes and other payments will always rise right after the elections.
This is the problem with privatising essential services. Public transport, utilities and even healthcare should always remain a public service provided by the govt. That way, there won’t be private operators who will give excuses to raise fees and fares because “their profit has been hit”.
But then again, in Singapore, even if it is managed by the govt, it still will give excuses to raise fees and payments.
Transport operators seek fare increases
COMMUTERS should brace themselves for a possible hike in bus and train fares.
Public transport operators SBS Transit and SMRT Corp have both applied to the Public Transport Council (PTC) for a fare increase that will work out to a 2.8 per cent rise in total fares collected.
If the Government-appointed watchdog tasked with regulating public transport fares approves their request, it will be the single biggest fare hike to hit commuters in recent years.
Observers say it is difficult to quantify how much more a typical bus or train ride will cost, since the 2.8 per cent refers to the quantum rise in total fares collected.
For a fair idea, however, it can be noted that a 0.7 per cent rise in 2008 raised ez-link fares by four cents on average and cash fares by 10 cents; the year before, a 1.8 per cent rise raised bus fares by one to two cents, and cash fares held steady.
The transport operators arrived at the 2.8 per cent rise using a formula that factors in inflation, wage increases and their productivity, but PTC chairman Gerard Ee said the formula is just one thing the council weighs in its deliberations.
