SMRT, SBS Transit to discontinue night bus services amid low demand, to 'free up finite resources'

SINGAPORE — SMRT and SBS Transit said on Thursday (June 16) that they will be discontinuing their late-night bus services, which have been suspended since 2020, starting from June 30.

In response to TODAY's queries, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) said: "The decision to withdraw these bus services comes after carefully evaluating factors such as ridership, availability of alternatives, financial prudency and freeing up finite resources. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the demand for these bus services has been low and there are alternatives available to commuters."

SMRT will be discontinuing its Night Rider services and two other bus services, Service 188R and Service 926.

Commuters travelling from Chua Chu Kang and Bukit Batok to Resorts World Sentosa with Service 188R may instead take Service 188 to HarbourFront MRT Station and connect to the Sentosa Express Monorail or RWS8 shuttle service. 

Alternatively, commuters may also take the MRT and connect to Service 123 at Tiong Bahru MRT Station. 

Commuters travelling from Woodlands to Singapore Zoo with Service 926 may instead take Service 138 from Ang Mo Kio and Springleaf MRT stations, or Service 927 from Choa Chu Kang MRT Station or Mandai Khatib Shuttle from Khatib MRT Station to Singapore Zoo. 

SBS Transit will be discontinuing its Nite Owl services and two others, CT8 and CT18, which takes commuters to Chinatown.

As an alternative to CT8, commuters may take the MRT or services 166, 851 or 851e, SBS Transit said. And instead of CT18, they may take the MRT or bus service 2.

TODAY spoke to several late-shift workers who said that they would not miss the late-night bus services when they are discontinued. The workers are not affected by the move because their companies offer transportation options. 

While in operation, both the Nite Owl and Night Rider services were available only on Fridays, Saturdays and the eve of public holidays, and ended operations at 2am.

A chef, who wanted to be known only as Mr Lee, 34, said: "My company provides transport because we end work at about 2am, since we need open till quite late." 

TODAY also spoke to several young people, aged 21 to 28, and found that most were not aware that these Night Rider services were available before the pandemic. 

Ms Sarah Lee, 25, an undergraduate, said: “I took the bus once in 2018 because I was heading home after some drinks and decided to try it. I didn’t really take it again because I'd rather just pool and take a taxi with my friends. It was just slightly more expensive to do so but at least I can get home directly.”

LTA said that it "will closely monitor the ridership of the alternatives and make adjustments where necessary to ensure that there is sufficient capacity for commuters".