LTA reverses cancellation of service 167; buses will run at 30-minute intervals

SINGAPORE: The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said on Tuesday (Nov 28) that bus service 167 will be retained, but will operate at 30-minute intervals, just days after announcing that the service would be cut due to falling ridership.

LTA had said on Nov 17 that several other bus services would also be changed, including shortening the routes of services 162 and 75.

In a statement on Tuesday, the LTA said that it "looked at the availability of alternative services" when reviewing the bus services and ensured that "most affected commuters" would still have both MRT and bus options after the adjustment.

"Nonetheless, we understand that some commuters may need more time to adjust, and to try out the new travel routes. This is especially so for Service 167, where the change is more extensive.

"Hence, LTA will retain Service 167 for now and operate it at 30-minute intervals throughout the day," LTA said.

This will be implemented from Dec 17, alongside the other adjustments that had been initially scheduled to start on Dec 10.

"We seek commuters’ understanding that it is not always possible to preserve direct bus connections for every journey," said LTA, adding: "This is not the best use of our limited resources."

"As new transport options such as the TEL and other MRT lines become available, and when Singaporeans move into new estates and workplaces, new bus services will be required for these new routes."

The authority said that it will continue to review its bus network and reallocate their resources "as required".

Bus service 167 connects areas such as Sembawang, Upper Thomson, Novena, Orchard, the central business district and Bukit Merah.

The LTA on Tuesday said that when reviewing services 75, 162/M and 167, they had considered the Thomson-East Coast Line (TEL), which "offers a faster travel option for many commuters, after accounting for waiting times and time taken for transfers", saving about 15 minutes of travel time for commuters on long journeys to the city.

"Since the opening of TEL, we have seen more commuters shifting their travel to the MRT, while ridership for parallel bus services has dropped significantly."

Alternatives also remain available, said LTA.

Segments of affected routes with stronger demand or unique connectivity are also retained, such as service 859 being amended to ply Canberra Link and Sembawang Road in place of service 167 and service 121 now linking Cantonment Road with Outram Park MRT Station in lieu of service 75.

LTA said on Nov 17 that it had consulted community leaders and "taken on board their feedback and suggestions before finalising the changes".

The TEL is Singapore's sixth MRT line and will connect the eastern and northern parts of Singapore once it is fully completed in 2025.

Singapore’s MRT network will have eight rail lines when Phase 1 of the Cross Island Line opens in 2030.