With the easing of COVID restrictions starting from 1 January 2022, where 50% of the workforce are allowed to return to their workplace instead of working from home, and the re-openings of school today (4 Jan), the Land Transport Authority (LTA) are expecting that public transport services might need to be adjusted back to pre-pandemic levels.
If this news is any indication, we might be experiencing what it feels like to be squeezed like packed sardines and flattened like a roti prata once more, after a long hiatus.
Current Travelling Conditions
In the interviews that CNA conducted with some commuters on 3 Jan, most of them have stated that the trains and buses were still modestly packed and there were still seat vacancies, even despite the lower frequency of public transport rides.
However, others have also noted that some workers might not have been called back into the workplace due to the extended New Year breaks, and schools were only re-opening the day after, which is bound to cause another surge in human traffic during peak periods.
More adolescents and gangly teenagers? Well, I can’t say they were particularly missed…
Nevertheless, LTA states that it is closely monitoring the situation and adjusting to the demands of its travellers, especially bus and train services that see more traffic to ensure that the gradual transition of opening up of restrictions will go smoothly.
Private Hires are Hopeful for More Business
Naturally, taxi drivers and private hire drivers are among the many who are pleased with the easing of COVID restrictions because it signifies that there will be more business for them now that more people need to travel.
Last year, the Singapore government had implemented the COVID-19 Driver Relief Fund (CDRF), where each vehicle would receive $10 per day on Oct 2021, and $5 per day for the 30 days after, further extending and repeating CDRF in the months of November and December.
While it has eased a bit of financial strain for these taxi drivers and private hires, the relief fund was probably just a small plaster to a larger wound; barely mitigating the symptoms to the underlying cause.
They believe that their income will increase slightly, and the economy and market will improve.
Of course, let’s not forget to mention one of the biggest winners in the entire pandemic thus far: Grab.
A business which has quickly adapted and manoeuvred around the restrictions by extending their transport services to food and supermarket deliveries alike, thus grabbing hold of a big slice of that particular cake.
Its success can’t be better defined than the S$181-million-dollar headquarters it has set up in Singapore, all sleek designs and glassy windows, framed in silver and grey panes. Seriously, the two connected tall buildings are basically screaming MONEY out loud for anyone driving by Queenstown.
Its business shareholders are surely salivating at the notion of increased transport business.
In a nutshell, to the readers who regularly take the public transport, prepare for a larger influx of equally eagle-eyed passengers who will be grabbing your seats at any given chance.
Make sure to stay safe on your rides, and I hope that there will only be smooth journeys ahead.
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Featured Image: Twitter (@Eddy1983)
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