Brief: Singapore seeks proposals for on-demand public bus services

Photo credit: Wikipedia Commons.

The news:

• Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) has called a tender yesterday seeking proposals from the industry to trial on-demand public bus services.
• This will allow commuters to request pick-ups and drop-offs at any bus stop within a defined area in the city-state, making commuting more seamless and convenient – with shorter waiting time.
• Three areas have been preliminarily identified for the trial: Joo Koon, Punggol North/West, and Shenton Way/Marina South.
• The tender consists of two phases. In the first phase, successful proponents will conduct modelling and simulation to test service quality and resource requirements. In the second, incumbent public bus operators will test and calibrate software and hardware solutions provided by the proponents, before trialling actual app in the second half of 2018.

Why it matters:

• Singapore is aiming to be the world’s first smart nation, an ambitious program to incorporate smart, digital solutions for urban issues.
• This app will be one of its attempts in making the journeys of commuters more enjoyable and efficient.