Geography Timeline by le yi

Buses in 1965:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 07:38:42 UTC

In 1965, buses were the primary public transportation in Singapore. The buses were operated by Singapore Traction Company as known as ( STC ).

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 07:39:19 UTC

Buses in 1973:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 08:36:30 UTC

In 1973, there was competition, lack of standardisation and duplication of route services, afterwards, three other smaller companies also was there and when STC shut down, the smaller companies merged together to form Singapore Bus Service, which is SBS Transit now. This caused the public bus services to become more streamlined and improved passengers’ services.

Buses in 1979:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 08:41:03 UTC

In 1979, the government withdrew its team of 38 officers seconded to the company, and SBS continues to operate as SBS limited as we see now. The nationalisation of the services was a key factor which played a crucial role in our public transport.

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 08:42:01 UTC

Buses in 2000:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 08:53:14 UTC

In 2000, the public bus system in Singapore saw a shift in ridership, with more and more people choosing the MRT, with the expansion of the MRT network. So, the numbers of bus usage decreased. During this time, passengers had to pay by using coins or TransitLink cards and manually select fares.

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 08:58:17 UTC

Buses in 2012:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:01:59 UTC

In 2012, Singapore saw major Bus Service Enchantment Programme as known as ( BSEP ), which provided 1000 new buses, this improved bus service frequency and capacity.

Buses now ( 2025 ):

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:06:15 UTC

In 2025, SBS is implementing new bus services and upgrades as part of the Bus connectivity Enchantment Programme ( BCEP ), new services such as bus 299 and 21X are being introduced in April and will have more services for launch in June.

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:06:35 UTC

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:09:06 UTC

Singapore’s bus services has indeed improved and expanded a lot, coming from the difficulties faced and solved. Buses in Singapore has played a crucial role of helping people to get place to place, and here is the full timeline of Buses in SG.

Information taken from Wikipedia and NLB.

https://biblioasia.nlb.gov.sg/vol-13/issue-3/oct-dec-2017/roadtonationalisation

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_buses_of_Singapore

Pictures from: https://www.volvobuses.com/sg/news/2020/feb/40-successful-years-of-volvo-bus-in-singapore.html

MRT in 1960s:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:23:17 UTC

The idea of a rail-based public transport system was first mooted in the late 1960s.

MRT in 1980s:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:32:27 UTC

In 1980, construction started. With the first MRT lines opening in 1987, before it Singapore only relied primarily on buses, taxis and trishaws for public transportation. The idea of building an MRT system faced opposition and debate.

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:34:40 UTC

Buses in 1990s:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:46:15 UTC

In 1990s, the initial Singapore MRT system was nearing completion. By July 6th 1990, all 42 stations across the 67km route were open to the public. This included the completion of the Branch line, which linked Jurong East to Choa Chu Kang and the final station of Boon Lay marking the initial network’s finish.

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:47:40 UTC

MRT in 2000s:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:56:35 UTC

In 2000s, the MRT system consisted of the North-South Line ( NSL ) and the East-West Line ( EWL ), with a total of 42 stations. Also, the year 2000 marked the privatisation of the MRTC, leading to the formation of SMRT Corporation and SBS Transit, which would later operate different lines.

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 09:57:50 UTC

MRT in 2012:

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 10:02:51 UTC

In 2012, it comprised four main lines, North-South, East-West, North-East and circle lines. The network now consists of 99 stations and spanned approximately 149 km.

MRT now ( 2025 ):

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 10:12:26 UTC

In 2025, Singapore’s MRT network is experiencing growth and upgrades, Hume Station on the Downtown Line ( DTL ) opened for passenger service on February 28 2025. Also, the Cross Island Line ( CRL ) Phrase 2 is expected to break ground in the first half of 2025.

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 10:13:08 UTC

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-12 10:27:43 UTC

Singapore’s MRT services has become so much faster and better than what was before. MRT also had provided a crucial role to ensure people get place to place.

Information taken from Wikipedia and NLB.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_Rapid_Transit_(Singapore)

https://www.nlb.gov.sg/main/article-detail?cmsuuid=319cadae-e684-41bc-b7b6-3bd4b06437d2

Pictures from: citytransport.info

Fun Fact!

leong_le_yi — 2025-04-27 08:43:53 UTC

Did you know? There’s actually no bus service 1 in Singapore? It was discontinued 1989! In was started way back in 1979.