Stick-Andcarrot Approach To Optimising Traffic Flow

The way we encourage public transport operators to maintain service quality should be applied to the quality of our roads.

SINGAPORE has a clear and structured penalty framework for public transport.

If a rail operator fails to meet certain reliability standards, it can be fined – heavily. For serious breakdowns, the latest penalty can be equivalent to 10% of an affected line’s annual revenue.

Likewise, if a bus operator fails to meet service quality standards, it is penalised. And in the current bus contracting model, the operator’s contract can even be terminated. But if a bus company meets or exceeds prescribed standards, it is given merit bonuses.

Such a framework is easy to understand because it is equitable and it helps to keep our buses and trains running as smoothly and as predictably as possible.

So, why is there no such framework for private transport? Why are there no standards for traffic flow on our road network?

While the Land Transport Authority (LTA) publishes average speeds on our main roads and expressways, it is not quite the same, is it?

First of all, the authority is in charge of building and maintaining our roads; and it is also regulator. By publishing average speed data itself, the authority is akin to a school pupil grading his own exam paper.

That is not quite right. But let us assume the LTA is fair-minded and scrupulously vigilant – even for performance standards pertaining to itself.