Jurong East, Bukit Batok first to experience bus contracting model

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http://www.todayonline.com/singapore/jurong-east-bukit-batok-first-benefit-bus-contracting-model?singlepage=true

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Commuters in Jurong East and Bukit Batok will be the first to experience higher public bus service standards expected under the new government contracting model that starts in slightly more than two years’ time.

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) announced yesterday that 24 existing bus services originating from the Jurong East, Bukit Batok and Clementi bus interchanges fall under the first package of routes that will be up for bidding by private operators in the second half of this year.

Details of the tender requirements, such as the frequency standards expected, were not disclosed.

But the operator who wins the contract will run the routes with about 380 buses starting from the second half of 2016, said the LTA. These buses will berth at the new Bulim bus depot located off Jurong West Avenue 2, which is to open next year.

By 2021, the fleet will grow to about 500, in tandem with the growth in ridership and the coming new towns in Tengah and Bukit Batok West, the regulator added.

Under the new bus contracting model announced last week, the Government will own, provide and fund all bus operating assets and infrastructure such as buses, depots, interchanges, bus monitoring and operations systems, and fare systems.