PASSENGER TOWN TERMINAL (Feasibility study)

Mr Teo Chong Tee asked the Minister for Communications whether his Ministry has made a feasibility study on the building of a Passenger Town Terminal for passengers' facilitation in conjunction with the development of Changi International Airport which is due to be operational by early 1981.

Mr Ong Teng Cheong: Mr Speaker, Sir, passenger terminals in town or "off-airport" terminals have been in operation for a number of years in some airports in the world with varying degrees of success.

Studies made by my officials have shown that for various reasons, such as higher costs of operation, higher security risks involved in the transporting of passengers and their baggage to the airport and declining popularity, some of these town terminals have now ceased to operate. For example, in Amsterdam, the town terminal is only acting as a staging point for a bus service and passengers no longer check-in at this terminal. Some of the air line town terminals serving airports in the London area have also been closed or are being considered for closure.

Unlike other airports having passenger terminals in town, Changi Airport is only about 12 miles away. This factor, together with the availability of fast and uninterrupted traffic flow along the new roads to the airport, and the low differential between the taxi and bus fares, reduce to some extent the need for a town terminal.

However, we have not written off the idea completely. As a variant to the passenger town terminal, my Ministry is looking into the desirability of having staging points in the major tourist areas to collect departing and distribute arriving passengers to and from the hotels in the vicinity. This system would reduce the strain of vehicular traffic on the roads, car parks and kerbside space at the airport.