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11 bus operators bid for routes, several others make a U-turn

SINGAPORE — The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has received 11 bids from bus operators here and overseas by today's (Jan 19) deadline for the first package of routes under the new bus contracting model — with several companies dropping their interest despite attending an LTA briefing on the tender last month.

SINGAPORE — The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has received 11 bids from bus operators here and overseas by today's (Jan 19) deadline for the first package of routes under the new bus contracting model — with several companies dropping their interest despite attending an LTA briefing on the tender last month. 

In all, 12 companies have submitted bids, including one joint bid by China’s Jiaoyun Group and Singapore bus operator Travel GSH. 

Excluding the joint bid, six foreign operators — Australia’s Busways Group, French companies Keolis and RATP Dev Transdev Asia (RDTA), the United Kingdom’s Tower Transit and Go-Ahead, and Jinan Public Transportation Corporation from China — are vying for the tender, along with four Singapore operators: SMRT, SBS Transit, Woodlands Transport and Aedge Holdings.  

The closing date of the tender had been pushed back by two weeks at the request of potential bidders who wanted more time. Last month, the Straits Times reported that 22 companies had turned up at the briefing conducted by LTA. 

The package - containing 26 routes with services from the Bukit Batok, Clementi and Jurong East interchanges - was put up for tender in October last year. German-owned Arriva was one of the companies which pulled out of the race. Its spokesperson would only say that the timing was “not right”. 

Singapore bus operator Tong Tar had previously indicated that it would not join in the fray, after its representatives had attended the briefing. Its General Manager Phillip Peh reiterated yesterday: “The main reason is that we did not have enough time to look into the contract, to work on it, to have a good proposal.”  He also cited the requirement of having a proven track record of operating a fleet of at least 250 buses, which his company would not meet as it currently operates 100 buses. 

The tender is expected to be awarded in the second quarter of this year, and the services under the package are expected to start from June next year. An LTA spokesperson said: “All bidders will be evaluated based on the same set of criteria, such as quality factors and price, which will allow us to enhance the service levels of our bus industry and get the best value for money.”

SIM University (UniSIM) transport analyst Dr Park Byung Joon was unsurprised that several operators did not follow through with their initial interest, after they had assessed their abilities to take on the contract. 

The final number of bids was “not bad”, he said, although he had thought there could be one or two more foreign operators throwing their hats into the ring. Still, he was impressed by the seriousness of the foreign operators which submitted bids. “What they put (up) can be a good benchmark,” he noted. 

The Singapore operators whom TODAY spoke to were confident of holding their own against the keen competition. 

Woodlands Transport General Manager Roger Wong said: “Regardless of how many bids were made, we are confident that we have submitted a competitive, convincing and sustainable proposal for LTA’s consideration.”
Mr Chai Yin, who owns Travel GSH which operates a fleet of 40 buses, said his company will be working closely with the Shanghai-based Jiaoyun Group should their joint bid be successful. “We will consider Singaporean drivers first, but if there are not enough drivers, we will be able to provide the most outstanding drivers in China,” he said.

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