PUBLIC transport operators make millions of dollars every year, but when their service standards drop, they get slapped with what appears to be pitiful fines.
It's no more than a slap on their wrists, some commuters complained.
Earlier this week, bus operator SMRT Buses was fined $100 by the Public Transport Council (PTC) for overcrowding on service 925.
The other operator, SBS Transit, was fined $4,500 because some of its buses were overcrowded while others did not arrive frequently enough.
This was the third time both operators had been fined by the PTC for not meeting service standards.
But they received lighter fines this time after improving their performances.
On paper, the fines seem insignificant when one takes into account the profitability of these two public-listed companies.
SBS Transit's net profit was $40.6 million for the financial year ending 2008. For SMRT Buses, it was $1.5 million for the same period.
Industry-watchers, though, said that the fines are not meant to be hard-hitting.
Dr Paul Barter, an urban transport policy expert from the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, agreed that these fines are inconsequential compared to the earnings of the operators.
But introducing punitive fines may worsen the situation, he said.
'Huge fines make it worse. These operators may not have enough money to employ more bus drivers or upgrade their infrastructure,' he added.
As a result, their service standards could get worse next year.
Dr Barter said: 'In this case, no one wins. Huge fines are not the right way because we want a viable industry and we want them (the operators) to do well.'
'Symbolic signal'
The fines are symbolic and the intention is not to drive the operators into the red but act as a signal for them to improve.
He said: 'This is a public punishment. Fining them is bad publicity (for the operators).
'There's a hidden message that it's not the punishment that hurts. The fine puts pressure on these operators to do well and to keep their franchise.'
In this case, the reputation of the company matters more than the fine.
'The operators need to be seen to be doing the right thing. But if they're not doing well enough, there's always the threat to yank the licence from them in the long run,' he added.
The current fines are the result of a review that took place from 1 Jun to 30 Nov last year. Reviews are done every six months.
SBS and SMRT were fined $9,300 and $1,000 respectively in the previous PTC review.
Dr Michael Li, a transport economist from Nanyang Technological University's business school, said that the fines serve as wake-up calls to the operators.
Though the fine may be as low as $100, it is still bad press for these operators.
He said: 'We shouldn't overreact to the fine, it shows that PTC is keeping a close eye on these operators. If we look at the number of trips the operators make, the number of breakdowns or overcrowding is small.
'It's a lapse in service and I am sure the operators don't want the fine, or the bad publicity.'
On the other hand, the fines imposed on SMRT and SBS Transit for lapses in their train services are more severe.
If they fail to meet the Land Transport Authority's (LTA) time intervals, they can be fined between $10,000 and $1 million.
The operators are required to consistently meet the minimum requirements of a set of Operating Performance Standards (OPS) set by LTA.
This means that operators have to run trains at the smallest possible intervals that the system will allow for during peak hours.
For example, between 7.45am and 8.30am, the wait should be between two and three minutes.
During the lunch-hour peak, commuters at Raffles Place should see a train pull up every three to four minutes.
LTA fined SMRT $387,176 over a seven-hour disruption to train service along the East-West line in January last year.
The fine - Singapore's largest ever for a rail-related incident - was imposed to reflect the seriousness of the incident, LTA said then.
Dr Li said that the fines may be heftier on rail operators for good reasons.
For starters, the train operation is almost predictable in terms of scheduling compared to buses.
He added: 'When one bus breaks down, you still can call for a back-up bus. But for trains, spare ones may not do because the track is already dedicated to that section.
'And the impact of a train delay or breakdown on commuters is many more times that of a bus. That's why the fines are higher.'
