Tan Kin Lian's Blog: Feeder Bus Service

Friday, December 28, 2007

Feeder Bus Service

Some commuters do not like the feeder bus system. They consider it a hassle to take a feeder bus, change to a train, and take another feeder bus. They prefer to have no transfer, if possible.

I find a feeder system to be acceptable, if:

1. Waiting time for the feeder bus is less than 5 minutes
2. Walking distance is short
3. The feeder bus goes directly to the destination, with minimal detour.

By accepting transfers, we can have a more efficient system, with better connections, less waiting time, and lower cost.

In 2000, I took the train in Switzerland from Zurich Airport to St Moritz in the mountains. The journey involved two transfers of train. I have to take the airport train to Zurich main station, change to another train to the foot of the mountain and make a further change to go up to the mountain.

All the transfers were done on the same platform of the station. I get down a train and wait less than 10 minutes for a connecting train. It was quite convenient and easy, although it was my first time to take the train in Switzerland.

The train journey cost about SGD 50. If I took a limousine, the fare would be more than SGD 1,000.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...: This should be ok for Singaporeans who are used to long queuing.One or two transfers should be no problem for us. We have been brought up this way.We queue for everything from freebies, 4-Ds or TOTO ,buying food to seeing a doctor at hospital.
Especially seeing a doctor at hospital, imagine them as transfers..#1.queue for registration aND QUEUE NUMBER.
#2. to wait for doctor #3.to pay for consultation #4.to submit the prescription to pharmacist #5. to wait for your medicine #5. to pay for your medicine. #6. if you are not driving, queue for taxi.
The whole process tkaes about 4 hrs depending on the day. The medical examination takes about 25 minutes.; December 28, 2007 10:29 AM
dsowerg said...: Multiple feeders are not so bad as long as people can plan their journey ahead of time, i.e. there's a fixed schedule so that commuters know when exactly the buses will arrive.

The problem with Singapore's bus system is there's no fixed schedule. So commuters have no choice but to wait at the bus stop.

Feeder buses can come at intervals of up to 10 minutes (sometimes 15 mins or more). If you need take 2 feeders, that's 20 minutes possibly wasted on waiting time.

Providing a fixed schedule can also result in a more even spread of commuter loads. Right now, commuters go to the bus stop with the thinking that the bus a) will be late, and/or b) will be crowded. And when the bus arrives, everybody tries to get onto it because nobody has any idea when the next one will arrive.

In Germany, the schedule of bus arrivals are fixed. I was waiting for a bus in Munich at an empty bus stop. 2 minutes before the scheduled arrival, at least 10 other commuters joined me. Despite Munich being a larger and busier city than Singapore is, the bus arrived on the dot. Many say you can even set your watch against the bus arrival. That's how accurate their buses are.

I've asked SBS several times for a schedule of the feeder bus serving my estate, but SBS has always failed to provide one. Maybe they don't want to give the schedule to commuters as they're worried that commuters will hold them accountable for shoddy bus service. Or maybe it will provide concrete proof of how pathetic the bus frequency actually is. (Right now all we have is anecdotal evidence.); December 28, 2007 10:14 PM