Public Transport Network at Pasir Ris

Mr Zainal Sapari asked the Minister for Transport whether there are plans to enhance the public transport network in the Pasir Ris area given the projected increase in the number of households due to new condominium projects.

Mr Lui Tuck Yew: The Land Transport Authority (LTA) works closely with the relevant land-use planning agencies, such as the Housing Development Board and the Urban Redevelopment Authority, to put in place the necessary transport infrastructure in a timely manner to support projected population growth and future land use plans.

Today, Pasir Ris town is well-served by the East-West MRT Line and a comprehensive network of bus services. LTA has also been working with the operators to continuously improve public transport services to keep pace with ridership growth and changing travel needs.

On the rail side, more than 1,700 additional weekly train trips have been added onto the North-South and East-West Lines (NSEWL) since 2008. By early 2012, we would also have progressively added 22 new trains onto the NSEWL since the opening of the Jurong East Modification Project (JEMP) last year, increasing capacity by up to 15%.

On the bus side, LTA has also been working closely together with the bus operators as part of the quarterly bus review process to enhance bus service levels and ease crowding along sectors that consistently experience heavy ridership. Specific to Pasir Ris town, a total of 11 bus services have been improved since June 2010, with the addition of more weekly bus trips and the deployment of higher capacity buses. More recent examples since April 2011 include the deployment of higher capacity buses on Service 58, and the addition of trips and buses for Service 3 and Service 39 that serve the recently completed condominium development, The Livia, along Pasir Ris Drive 1.

To further raise service levels for the entire public bus network on the whole, LTA will also be putting in place a programme to partner the bus operators in ramping up bus capacity to reduce crowding and waiting time for commuters. More details will be announced sometime early this year.

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Moving forward, LTA will continue to work closely with the relevant land-use planning agencies to monitor the new areas of growth within Pasir Ris town, and work with the public transport operators to enhance the public transport services to serve these new developments.