Perhaps it is best to re-look at our spending in these pessimistic times and be more frugal. Switching to public transport could help to save more in the long run, even if it is more inconvenient with the longer travel time, although to be honest, driving a car in peak hour traffic do not always guarantee getting to your destinations faster. Public transport in Singapore is quite convenient to say the least and still cheap relative to those of in other countries, even if the operators seek to increase fare prices every year. I have heard increasing complaints from locals and also expatriates who find the long travel times a pain but when I press further, they are finding things to pick at with average travel times of 30 to 45 minutes per trip. If you can wake up half an hour earlier, it can result in possible savings of a few dollars so why not do that.

Back to the upcoming shake-up of the Singapore public transport system. In future, bus routes will be open for bidding in order to promote better route operation and to the most efficient operator. However, I am not entirely convinced that this would promise lower fares as operators might transfer the cost to commuters. Even so, I believe the Singapore government will do its best to ensure commuters are not taxed too heavily otherwise they will face even more complaints.

If you think about it, taking public transport in Singapore, while providing cost savings for your living budget, might actually increase the quality of your life. You do not have to deal with driving in a traffic jam yourself and the accompanying stress. You do not have to wait in the office for anticipated traffic jams to dissipate (yes, I know colleagues and people who do that), so you get home relatively earlier and spend more quality time with yourself or family. I guess it is all to do with how positively you take the changes and work them to your advantage.

Unfortunately, despite residents concern and some who have voiced it to the mainstream media, the authorities do not seem to take them to heart and continue to iterate the same reasons given – that the gantry will not be switched on unless traffic along the route fell between 20 – 30 km/hr. Given the number of people who have to use it anyway since ERP gantries were set up along the BKE, most expect the gantry to be used soon. Residents around this area now have to pay just to get out of their house to go to work in the morning.

There are some alternate routes to explore, but you would need to get up earlier to make up for the time required to make these extra turns. One way would be to enter Hillview and exit at the old firestation junction further up after the gantry, or to head straight for the junction at Beauty World and the PIE, also via Hillview. However, you can be sure that additional ERP gantries will be erected at these points in the near future as we endure more impractical attempts to curb growing traffic.