SMRT

[CY09]

SBS transit 3rd quarter result,

9mth results
Staff cost - $251 million
Operating profit - $20 million

So, at the most, SBS transit can only offer 5-10% salary increase for bus driver while maintaining same bus fares.
If we want our bus drivers to have higher pay, we need to accept higher bus fare.

Anyway, if we look at current bus operation results, SBS transit is making a loss. If we combine both advertisement and bus together, they only make S$8 million.

So for our bus drivers to have a decent salary, we probably will need a 20% increase in bus fares.

Singapore bus fare (average fare per boarding) vs similar operators in the region, by taking SMRT fare as 100%

- SMRT - 100%
- Sydney Bus - 135%
- KMB-HK - 178%

So 20% does not seem unreasonable...

Even we do accept the fact that bus fares do need to be raised by 20%, the problem is getting Singapore's society to accept the fact of a fare hike. I feel many people will still grumble on such a spike in bus fares even if rational premises and figures are used like above. It is common for most people to not want their cost of living to rise.