Do you commute for work? How public transport can be a game changer??

Top of mind for public transport – efficiency, comfort, affordability

If you are like me, a regular user of public transport, you’ll know how it goes.

#publictransport is a great conversation starter; just ask any commuter what they most like/dislike in their daily commute??.

Its unsurprising that in the majority of cities, people are often dissatisfied either by the current situation nor by changes made. Public transits are high frequency, intensive networks. The opportunity remains,

How do we get high-quality service at low cost? And in addition, how can we create dense, efficient yet comfortable public transport networks and keep it affordable without heavy subsidies?

Travel patterns have shifted fundamentally post-2020

Needless to say, public transit travel patterns have changed. Nonetheless, it remains an important part of daily consumer lives.

According to Euromonitor International’s Mobility Survey 2020, 52% of global respondents commute five or more days per week. Around 63% of respondents also indicated they spend on average 15-60 minutes on commuting daily.         

At the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, health concerns impacted public transport providers as commuters shifted towards personal mobility like cars, rentals, bike-sharing schemes.

Consumer movements in 2020 showed a decline in public transport usage across global public transport networks.

Unsurprisingly, these have yet to recover back to normal levels.

Cities increasingly appreciate that 'transport-for-rent' can also step up to take the place of public transport where necessary. (Take the recent example on bike-sharing ridership in car-intensive America, in the light of public transportation disruptions.)

Global Developments in Public Transit Networks ??

Covid-19 has created a working-from-home or at least a hybrid environment globally. How does this impact public networks globally?

• In Norway, Oslo is leading the way in sustainable transportation with the world’s first zero-emissions public transport network ??
• In Singapore, the Public Transport Council (PTC) is reviewing the formula and mechanism for adjusting public transport fares by 1H 2023
• This is also part of Singapore's Land Transport Masterplan 2040 to provide an 'inclusive land transport system with more barrier-free journeys' ??
• In China, as Shanghai emerges from a 2 month-long lockdown, it continues to be a showcase of China's public transportation development - over 14 million passengers used public transport in the city daily in 2021 ??
• In the United States, changing its car culture will take generational mindset shifts; read why America can do better on its public transport network ??

How to make it better? ?

Lastly, here’s some suggestions to make public transport better for commuters.

1. Keep it Safe - Coming from Singapore, we tend to take the safety of our public transport network for granted. Keeping public transport safe is a huge start towards increasing riderships.
2. Keep it Clean - The pandemic heightened the importance of social responsibility. Keeping our trains clean helps make public transport a preferred transportation choice.
3. Keep it Accessible - It's not just the network but the common, shared facilities and keeping it #inclusive. I shared an example in a recent post.
4. Make it Consistent - Downtimes and disruptions are unavoidable - but these should be minimized. This speaks to the 'maintenance' component of public infrastructure and regular servicing and fault-rectification regimes.

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