SINGAPORE’S TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM
INTRODUCTION
At Independence, Singapore’s infrastructure was totally dominated by overcrowding in the city, poor living conditions and obsolete technology. Today, it represents a vibrant city and an important global business hub, with high standards of living and clean and green environment. The transitions from the past, however, have not been without their challenges. The growing population and lack of available physical space have made traffic management increasingly problematic. By 2022, travel demand is expected to rise from 8.9 million journeys per day in 2017 to about 15.9 million. Singapore faces major constraints in space, with 12% of land already occupied by the 3,300 km-road network and another 15% devoted to housing. Expanding the road network is not seen as a sustainable option.
With a growing population, Singapore has anticipated the future transport challenges and through innovative use of technology and policy decisions has planned to ensure that the small city state meets the needs of the population and that the infrastructure is fit for purpose. The following data from a report in which urban transportation system of 24 cities using more than 80 indicators over five main dimensions( Availability, affordability, efficiency, convenience and sustainability) was assessed has been displayed:
Singapore secured the top spot for public transport affordability among several countries, and also got decent markings in transport efficiency and safety.
The Land Transport Authority (LTA) spearheads and manages the land transport developments in Singapore. LTA plans, designs, builds and maintains Singapore’s land transport infrastructure and systems.
AN INTELLIGENT TRANSPORT SYSTEM
The first Concept Plan was first developed in 1971 with the assistance of the United Nations. The main idea that was primarily focussed on was what became known as “A Ring Concept". This plan proposed a formulation of a circle of high-density satellite towns around the three sides of the central water catchment area. The principal areas of activities were interlinked by a network of expressways, along with a mass rapid transit system to serve the central business district.
Singapore has implemented an Intelligent Transport System (ITS), which uses data collection to keep road traffic running safely and smoothly. The city has pioneered the introduction of a variety of technologies including one of the world’s first Electronic Road Pricing systems (ERP). Road tolls vary according to traffic flows, and work as a congestion charge. The ERP uses a short-range radio communication system to deduct charges from smart cards inserted in the vehicles. Some of the other Intelligent elements include an Expressway Monitoring and Advisory System, which works by alerting motorists to traffic accidents on major roads and a GPS system installed on the city taxis, which helps and facilitates the monitoring and data collection on traffic conditions around the city.
All information from the systems was fed into the Intelligent Transport Systems Operations Control Centre, which helps in the consolidation of the data and provides real-time traffic information to the public.
CAR OWNERSHIP IN SINGAPORE
Only 15% of Singaporeans own a car due to the high expense of ownership in the country. The government has also introduced a system that puts a heavy premium on personal car ownership. Prospective owners need to bid for a Certificate of Entitlement before they can purchase a car and this CoE was kept very costly. This CoE only lasts for 10 years and every car on the island must be under 10 years old or it has to be scrapped or exported.
Singapore was the first ever country to use a recognition system like this. which links to individuals and sensors are set up across the country. This allows the government to control traffic flows by raising and lowering prices between routes. This portrays as a nationwide congestion charge that discourages drivers from driving through the busiest areas at peak times. The LRA has also regulated mandatory give-way to buses making it illegal not to allow a bus out of a bus stop. This helps reduce journey times by keeping the buses flowing.
USING TECHNOLOGY TO TRANSFORM COMMUTER’S JOURNEYS
New smartphone apps have given Singaporeans the ability to plan door-to-door journeys with the combination of transport modes that best meet their needs. To further improve their travel experience, LTA enhanced the MyTransport.SG app in 2018 to include a multi-modal journey planner that provides real-time, customised information about different transport modes. LTA will also continue to put real-time land transport-related datasets on our DataMall for enterprises, app developers and the public to promote and co-create innovative and inclusive transport solutions.
USING TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE JOBS AND RELIABILITY
- Rail Condition Monitoring: By equipping the new trains with condition monitoring tools, LTA will be able to collect more extensive data to track the health of our rail network in real-time.
- Automatic Track Inspection System: Imaging sensors and laser scanners will be installed below some train carriages to monitor track conditions in real-time, making it easier for the maintenance team to identify and rectify track defects quickly.
- Rail Enterprise Asset Management System (REAMS): By consolidating and integrating the information collected from all the trains and other mission critical systems, REAMS can better assess and predict the condition of the entire network and its components.
- Drones: In the future, drones will be used to inspect MRT tunnels more quickly and safely. Deploying them will also free up engineers’ time so that they can focus on analysing the collected data to identify and solve potential problems sooner.
AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES IN SINGAPORE – OVERCOMING MANPOWER AND LAND CONSTRAINTS
AV’s are particularly appealing to Singapore because of the country’s severe land and manpower constraints.
LTA has also signed agreements with companies to develop solutions for autonomous truck platooning to transport containers from one port terminal to another, as well as issued a Request for Information for the development of self-driving utility vehicles for waste collection and road sweeping.
ST Kinetics, a company in singapore will develop and integrate autonomous vehicle (AV) technologies onto two 40-seater electric buses. These buses will use a satellite-based Global Positioning System (GPS) and a suite of sensors to scan and determine their location and immediate surroundings. Radars and sonars will also detect other vehicles and pedestrians up to 200m ahead.
The three-and-a-half year project will also look into improving autonomous buses’ ability to navigate in heavier rain conditions, up from the current 10mm/h to 30mm/h.
The autonomous buses will be tested in various locations, scenarios and environments, which can potentially include Jurong Island and NUS campus.
LAND TRANSPORT MASTER PLAN 2040 – STEPPING INTO A NEW WORLD
The land transport Master Plan 2040 envisions a land transport system that is convenient, well connected and fast. It is characterized by a commuter experience that is both gracious and inclusive and contribute to better health and safe journeys for all.
The following points have been recommended:
20-minute Towns and a 45-minute city
. Reaching your nearest neighborhood center within 20 minutes using public,active and shared mode of transportation.
. Spending not more than 45 minutes to complete most peak-period journeys between your home and workplace.
Transport for all
Looking forward to an inclusive and land transport system with more barrier-free journeys. Nurturing a gracious and caring commuting culture. Providing infrastructure for better accessibility and barrier free travel
Healthier lives and safer journeys
Initiatives and improvements to our land transport system can also contribute to a safer, healthier and more liveable environment — one that is filled with vibrant community spaces
REINVIGORATING RAIL NETWORKS
Technology continues to play a vital role in transforming the rail networks. LTA’s relentless pursuit to enable a reliable, safe and efficient system is built on this. As the rail networks are renewed, trains are being equipped with real-time condition monitoring systems across our existing lines, so that faults can be detected and fixed in a timely manner. Trains are equipped with Automatic Track Inspection (ATI) systems, which continuously monitor track health through sensors and smart analytics. With the enhanced data collection, this paves the way to a new system of predictive maintenance where problems can be rectified before they occur. LTA’s local operations and maintenance (O&M) capabilities are also developed to maintain the performance of rail assets and keep our systems running robustly. With a stronger core of local rail engineers, the organization will be able to better maintain our expanding rail network and enhance reliability.
New Testing and Simulation facilities: The first facility has made breakthroughs on stabilising the NSEWL’s new signalling system through improved software testing, and the second facility is expected to make further inroads in testing and simulation. LTA plans to develop more facilities, with $100 million earmarked over the next five years.
Growing Local Engineering Expertise : As LTA expands the rail network, they continue to seek opportunities with local partners who will help the industry grow by improving our local rail maintenance and engineering capabilities. LTA has taken on the facilitator role to encourage closer cooperation between stakeholders in the rail industry. In June 2019, LTA brought SBS Transit, SMRT and ST Engineering together to synergise their knowledge and expertise for railway maintenance, for cost-effective development of engineering capabilities for rail O&M.
Integrated Train Testing Center(ITTC) : With the constant focus on maintaining rail reliability, LTA requires more facilities to increase their testing capacity outside limited engineering hours.
CONCLUSION
Singapore offers a highly integrated and sophisticated transport system that appears to achieve its purpose of providing an affordable, sustainable, and well organised mass transport system. Although highly regulated and controlled, it meets the needs of the population while ensuring opportunities for future growth.
Although some policies may not be popular for individuals such as the high cost of car ownership, the benefits of providing excellent public transport for the greater population are successful in reducing congestion and ensuring that the Singaporeans are able to navigate their city successfully.
Author: JATIN SINGH
