Quote:
Originally Posted by Unregistered
Its not as easy & simple as you think. I use to work in a private bus charter before, many locals shun the job not because of pay, but they dun want to work at early/late hours & during weekends. We were offering 1.6k basic + allowance + OT most will hit 2.5k, yet the moment most locals hear the work shift they sian 50% and not interested.
Also SMRT / SBS bus operations are already deep in the red as it is and solely sustained by its commercial arm of advertising & store rents. It's easy for people outisde the industry to shout higher pay for the drivers & yet want lower fare for themselves. This will just bankrupt the company and the same people will ask government to bail out since it is for "greater good". |
Plublic transport system is essentially a monopoly/duopoly. Some operations are profitable while others are not. The system must be approached in a holistic manner. While bus operations in general may not be profitable, other operations like running the
MRT lines are profitable.
Perhaps we should consider nationalising the public transport system while ensuring that it is run professionally and in the best interest of the public. Just look at Changi Airport, it is corporatised but still running well and generates surpluses.
We should think of having stat boards running the public transport system but employ people with commercial skills to run in a manner that will be self sustianing in the long run.