The grassroots organizations behind the free shuttle bus service in the Marine Parade area have announced that the service contract will not be renewed. The final day will be November 20.
The organizations shared the news on Monday, explaining that after reviewing recent feedback and other factors, they decided to let the contract expire. They stated that the resources currently used for the bus routes will be redirected “in a more targeted manner.”
The organizers are aware that this will impact people who rely on the service to get around. They said they are “mindful of how this may affect residents who are currently using the service.”
To address this, they plan to reach out to the residents soon to explain their decision and share their future plans. They added that they will “soon be engaging affected residents and also share more about our next steps going forward.”
A Look Back at the Pilot
The free shuttle bus service was originally launched as a one-year pilot program in July 2024. It was set up to serve residents in the then-Marine Parade Group Representation Constituency, as well as the MacPherson and Mountbatten Single Member Constituencies.
The then-Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth, Alvin Tan, confirmed that the service cost about S$1 million to operate. Of that amount, S$200,000 came from a seed grant provided by the South East Community Development Council, with the remaining funds coming from various donations and other sources.
The grassroots groups mentioned that adjustments were made to the service earlier this year, in January, and the contract had been extended beyond its original pilot date.
Although the service is ending, the grassroots organizations shared positive feedback stating they are “heartened that since launch, residents who used the service found it useful in the last mile connection between their residential neighbourhood and community nodes during off-peak hours.”
However, an earlier check by reporters showed that the usage varied quite a bit across the different routes. Reporters took four of the seven routes offered over two weeks and found “starkly different levels of ridership.” While some routes barely had any passengers at certain times, others were quite popular, sometimes carrying over 20 people.
The organizers said they have been keeping a close eye on this data and listening to residents. They explained that they have “also been observing the ridership patterns and regularly soliciting feedback from residents, including those who enjoy the service and those who have not tried it, to see how we can better serve our community.“
