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<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Why frequent fare reviews won't work
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->SHOULD fare revisions be carried out more frequently? This was among the questions fielded yesterday by members of the Public Transport Council headed by Mr Gerard Ee.
Electricity tariffs are reviewed quarterly. Can the same be done for public transport?
We're not on a cost-plus basis. So movements in (commodity) prices are not a factor that will come in. We allow for it to flow through the Consumer Price Index.
Even if it were possible...do you really want to see fares fluctuate? The commuters will be so confused and there will be a hidden cost associated with adjusting fares every three months because don't forget, adjusting fares in itself is a very complicated exercise. All the notice boards at all the 4,000 bus stops; the price changes have to be made on the posters. There is more to it than meets the eye.
Fares went up by four cents last October.Commuters who make only direct trips will still pay more after a two-cent cut this round. How do you address the disappointment of commuters who were hoping that the offset would be more?
Last year, there was an increase of four cents which included the one-third share of the transfer rebate borne by commuters.
So that was done and that is what commuters have been paying for the last five months and continue to pay today. Today, economic conditions have changed and operators are coming forward to say they want to give up some of their revenue.
Can we make life better for each commuter based on the fares they are paying? Now, the burden of each commuter is effectively reduced by at least two cents.
Cash-paying commuters do not get a fare cut. Why is this so?
Cash fares form about 6 per cent of all trips and there's always a lot of speculation as to who pays cash fares. There's a populist view that the poorest of the poor forms the portion of people who pay cash fare. That may not necessarily be true. The important thing is other assistance is available for the truly poor. Public assistance has gone up depending on the family size, from $30 to $120 per family. So there are other avenues to help the very poor.
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->SHOULD fare revisions be carried out more frequently? This was among the questions fielded yesterday by members of the Public Transport Council headed by Mr Gerard Ee.
Electricity tariffs are reviewed quarterly. Can the same be done for public transport?
We're not on a cost-plus basis. So movements in (commodity) prices are not a factor that will come in. We allow for it to flow through the Consumer Price Index.
Even if it were possible...do you really want to see fares fluctuate? The commuters will be so confused and there will be a hidden cost associated with adjusting fares every three months because don't forget, adjusting fares in itself is a very complicated exercise. All the notice boards at all the 4,000 bus stops; the price changes have to be made on the posters. There is more to it than meets the eye.
Fares went up by four cents last October.Commuters who make only direct trips will still pay more after a two-cent cut this round. How do you address the disappointment of commuters who were hoping that the offset would be more?
Last year, there was an increase of four cents which included the one-third share of the transfer rebate borne by commuters.
So that was done and that is what commuters have been paying for the last five months and continue to pay today. Today, economic conditions have changed and operators are coming forward to say they want to give up some of their revenue.
Can we make life better for each commuter based on the fares they are paying? Now, the burden of each commuter is effectively reduced by at least two cents.
Cash-paying commuters do not get a fare cut. Why is this so?
Cash fares form about 6 per cent of all trips and there's always a lot of speculation as to who pays cash fares. There's a populist view that the poorest of the poor forms the portion of people who pay cash fare. That may not necessarily be true. The important thing is other assistance is available for the truly poor. Public assistance has gone up depending on the family size, from $30 to $120 per family. So there are other avenues to help the very poor.
