Issue 4 May 2010 - LTA Academy

Issue 4 May 2010

JOURNEYS 

Publisher 

LTA Academy 

Land Transport Authority 

1 Hampshire Road 

Singapore 219428 

Editorial Team 

Naleeza Ebrahim 

Alison Tan 

George Sun 

Mageret Ely 

Foo Jong Ai 

All feedback, suggestions and contribution of papers for future issues are welcome. 

Please address all correspondence to: 

JOURNEYS 

LTA Academy 

Land Transport Authority 

1 Hampshire Road 

Singapore 219428 

Fax: 65 6396 1890 

Email: JOURNEYS@lta.gov.sg 

JOURNEYS is also available online at www.LTAacademy.gov.sg 

© 2010 LTA Academy, Land Transport Authority, Singapore 

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by 

any means without the prior written permission of the LTA Academy, Land Transport Authority, Singapore. 

The opinions and views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect 

the views of the LTA Academy or the Land Transport Authority, Singapore. 

ISSN: 1793-494X

Contents 

07. Proactive National Transport Strategy 

for Low Carbon and Green Growth 

in Korea 

HWANG Kee Yeon 

PARK Jin Young 

16. Urban Leaders Find Transportation 

Paths to Global Green Growth 

Michael REPLOGLE 

Michael KODRANSKY 

26. Practices and Policies of Green Urban 

Transport in China 

JIANG Yulin 

LI Zhenyu 

36. GIS@LTA – Bringing Maps to Life 

Rosina HOWE 

42. Urban Transportation Planning for a 

Vibrant and Distinctive Singapore 

Michael QUAH 

Dickson YEO 

52. Household Interview Survey 

from 1997 to 2008 – A Decade of 

Changing Travel Behaviours 

CHOI Chik Cheong 

Raymond TOH

Naleeza Ebrahim 

When we open our minds, the 

possibilities are great. As 

any philosopher would say, 

everything begins with a thought. Today, the 

world is thinking in eco-friendly terms, and 

‘green’ initiatives will follow suit. In this fourth 

issue of JOURNEYS, we are transported 

around the world – in the greenest possible 

way, our armchairs – to learn of green 

transport development. At the heart of these 

measures are people-centric values because 

transportation systems are there to serve 

people, not the other way around. 

Hwang Kee Yeon and Park Jin Young from 

the Korea Transport Institute not only share 

Korea’s efforts to green the country’s 

transportation system, but also propose 

pushing the envelope to execute ideas, 

such as, bicycle highways, and photovoltaic 

transport infrastructure. 

Michael Replogle and Michael Kodransky, 

of the Institute for Transportation and 

Development Policy (USA), give a stimulating 

Editor’s Note 

overview of how urban transport policy 

makers around the world, from Colombia 

to China, India to Ecuador, USA to UK, are 

putting people-centric schemes forward. 

The moniker for Ahmedabad, India’s, Bus 

Rapid Transit system, ‘Janmarg’ or ‘people’s 

way’, says it in a nutshell. 

China, the fastest growing economy 

in the world, which could become the 

biggest greenhouse gas emitter, aims to be 

equally fast in getting its urban transport 

standards to eco-friendly levels. Jiang Yulin 

and Li Zhenyu, at the China Academy of 

Transportation Sciences, describe the slew 

of successful measures that China has 

been effecting. 

Making changes in the virtual world 

can have real impact. Singapore’s Land 

Transport Authority (LTA) has developed a 

Geographic Information System (GIS), using 

digital maps to vastly improve land transport 

planning and public safety. This eco-friendly 

solution allows urban and transport plans 

and scenarios to be more extensively and 

rigorously tested on computers before they 

are finally executed, thus, saving precious 

physical resources. 

Michael Quah and Dickson Yeo from the 

National University of Singapore’s Energy 

Studies Institute give insights regarding 

current research and Singapore’s test 

JOURNEYS May 2010 5

6 

bedding of vehicle electrification, touted as 

the green solution by its proponents. 

In the final article, the findings of Singapore’s 

regular Household Interview Surveys (HITS) 

on travel behaviour patterns underscore the 

people-centric philosophy that must prevail 

in any kind of transport development. To 

ensure that the system serves the people, we 

must first understand what the people need. 

I thank the authors for contributing to an 

absorbing issue. Before you turn the pages 

and lose yourself in the fascinating global 

arena they have so ably assembled with 

their wealth of knowledge, I’d like to thank 

the outgoing editor of JOURNEYS, Alison 

Tan, who has nurtured it from its launch to 

JOURNEYS May 2010 

become a key resource for the LTA Academy 

to share policies, thinking and solutions with 

transport professionals around the world. 

We wish her the very best as she undertakes 

other roles and responsibilities within the 

LTA Academy.

Proactive National Transport Strategy for 

Low Carbon and Green Growth in Korea 

HWANG Kee Yeon and PARK Jin Young 

Abstract 

According to the IPCC, global warming is mostly attributable to greenhouse gas (GHG) 

emissions from fossil fuel combustion. The transportation sector accounts for about 20% 

of greenhouse gas emissions and is the second largest emitter in Korea, trailing only 

the industrial sector. Within the transportation sector, road transportation dominates 

with an emission share of over 80%. Therefore, reducing transportation’s impact on 

the environment should require transforming the current automobile-based transport 

system into a more energy efficient, low carbon and eco-friendly one. 

Greening of the current transportation system requires a long term vision and 

multifaceted approaches. Land use and urban design should reflect energy and 

environmental considerations. Technologies should also be promoted and economic 

incentive schemes should be provided not only for the technological developments 

but also for behavioural changes in transportation. Transforming our transportation 

system into an environmentally friendly one would provide many opportunities for 

green growth and also indispensable infrastructure for sustainable economic growth 

and prosperity. 

Introduction 

Green growth is defined as attaining 

economic growth while minimising the 

burden on the ecosystem. The concept of 

green growth is relatively recent but it has 

already received much attention. Traditional 

policies for sustainable transport include 

technological developments, economic 

incentives, environmental standards, and 

regulations. However, the implicit assumption 

is that there are trade-offs between attaining 

environmental sustainability and achieving 

higher economic growth. Green growth seeks 

Proactive National Transport Strategy for Low Carbon and Green Growth in Korea 

Green growth seeks the possibility of 

decoupling the inverse linkage 

between economic growth and 

environmental preservation. 

the possibility of decoupling the inverse linkage 

between economic growth and environmental 

preservation. President Lee Myung Bak 

proposed a national development strategy of 

‘Low Carbon and Green Growth’ in August 

2008, and as a result, sectoral strategies 



have been pursued in order to develop green 

industries as an ‘engine for growth’ for the 

future. As for the institutional framework for 

promoting green growth, the National Green 

Growth Committee was created in February 

2009 and the Green Growth Law is being 

deliberated in the National Assembly. 

Major developed countries have also 

established ambitious national low carbon 

green growth strategies. Germany is aiming 

at reducing carbon emission by 40% in 2020 

compared with 1990 emissions. The U.K.’s 

plan is also ambitious: 60% reduction by 2050. 

Japan also announced their ‘Thirty Thirty Plan’, 

which means 30% GHG reduction by 2030. 

Through cutting year 2000’s GHG emissions 

by 4.2% in 2006, Japan has already reduced 11 

million tons of transport-related GHG. In their 

2008 White Paper, the Japanese government 

revealed their policy directive involving vehicle 

technology and alternative fuel developments, 

traffic flow improvement and means to induce 

behavioural change in transport users. These 

efforts are reflected in Japan’s ultra-efficient 

urban transport system and the dominance 

of Japanese car manufacturers in the 

world markets. 

Low carbon green growth is the most urgent 

and proactive policy direction for Korea to 

maintain its global competitive edge and to 

ensure sustainable economic growth. More 

specifically, low carbon green growth requires 

diminishing GHG emissions and environmental 

burdens in the course of economic growth and 

simultaneously developing and utilising green 

industries for further economic developments. 

8 


New industries are expected to be developed 

and subsequently, new markets will also be 

created in many energy and environment related 

fields as stricter environmental and energy 

related regulations are introduced. Korea’s 

economy is still centred on manufacturing 

and IT, so Korea can leverage its competitive 

advantage in these fields to develop GHGreducing 

technologies. More attention and 

investment should be directed to developing 

low carbon green industries in order to drive 

momentum for a sustainable future. 

Transport in Korea in the Energy- 

Climate Era 

Mobility has tremendously increased during 

the last century. One of the most salient 

characteristics of the previous century is 

rapid motorisation and expansion of related 

infrastructure and industries. Increased vehicle 

use has enabled us to enjoy fast and convenient 

travel as well as rapid economic development 

and economic prosperity. Transport policy in 

many countries has centred on the car rather 

than on the person. And our lifestyle has been 

more and more dependent on automobiles for 

our socio-economic activities. 

Transport policy in many countries 

has centred on the car rather than 

on the person. And our lifestyle has 

been more and more dependent on 

automobiles for our socio-economic 

activities. 

However, increased automobile use can 

cause serious negative repercussions, such 

as, air pollution, noise pollution, congestion,

and even climate change, resulting from 

combustion of fossil fuels. The sustainability of 

an automobile-based transport system is now 

being seriously questioned, especially due 

to major global issues such as the possibility 

of climate change. The Intergovernmental 

Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which is 

a UN subsidiary, predicts that the average 

temperature will increase by 1.8 to 4 degrees 

Celsius over the next 100 years and the sea 

level will also rise by 58 centimetres. Rising 

sea levels could threaten to inundate lowlying 

areas and islands, threaten dense coastal 

populations, erode shorelines, damage 

property, and destroy ecosystems. The rising 

temperature could also cause dangerous 

consequences, such as, stronger storms and 

more heat related illnesses and deaths. Korea 

has experienced a 0.6 degree Celsius increase 

in average temperature in just the last decade 

and also a 10% increase in precipitation 

compared with 30 years ago. This suggests 

that Korea is not immune to global climate 

change impacts. 

According to the IPCC, global warming is 

mostly attributable to greenhouse gas (GHG) 

Table 1: GHG emissions in the transport sector in Korea 

Road 


emissions from fossil fuel combustion (OECD/ 

ITF 2008). The transport sector accounts for 

about 20% of greenhouse gas emissions 

and is the second largest emitter in Korea, 

trailing only the industrial sector. Within the 

transport sector, road transport dominates 

with an emission share of over 80% (Table 1). 

Thus, reducing transport’s impact on the 

environment should require transforming the 

current automobile-based transport system 

into a more energy efficient, low carbon and 

eco-friendly one. 

Figure 1: Energy consumption in transport sector 

by mode in Korea (2006) 

Air 

Maritime 

Rail 

Road 

79% 

Sustainable development in transport has 

also been a major concern for Korea. Both 

vehicle ownership and transport demand have 

increased tremendously during the past two 

Modes GHG (Million CO 2 eq) Share (%) 

Private 61.07 57.67 

Commercial 24.64 23.27 

Road Subtotal 85.71 80.94 

Rail 

Regional 1.43 1.35 

Urban (Subway) 0.52 0.49 

Rail Subtotal 1.95 1.84 

Water 11.61 10.97 

Aviation 6.62 6.25 

Transport Total 105.89 100.00 

JOURNEYS May 2010 9 

8% 

12% 

1%


Table 2: International comparison of energy consumption in transport sector 

decades and as a result, energy consumption 

(Figure 1) has increased very rapidly, and 

vehicles have become the major source of urban 

air and noise pollution in many Korean cities. 

The growth shows no sign of subsiding, and 

both passenger and freight transport demands 

are forecasted to increase 1.5 and 2.1 times 

by 2019, respectively. Already, many Korean 

cities suffer from chronic traffic congestion, 

costing an estimated U.S. $24 billion dollars 

per annum in Korea, which is about 3% of the 

national GDP. 

In terms of per capita energy consumption in 

the transport sector, Korea is already on par 

with many European countries and Japan 

(Table 2). But while rail is regarded in these 

countries as the most environmentally friendly 

mode due to its high energy efficiency and 

the high possibility of fuel substitution in the 

sector, its potential has not been fully exploited 

in Korea yet. 

10 

Country Aviation Road Rail Total Per Capita Energy Consumption 

Unit M TOE* M TOE M TOE M TOE TOE/Person 

Canada 5.7 42.3 1.7 55.6 1.72 

U.S. 82.0 527.9 11.6 639.2 2.16 

Japan 10.8 77.5 1.8 94.1 0.74 

Korea 3.5 26.3 0.5 34.2 0.71 

Australia 4.4 23.6 0.7 29.3 1.44 

France 7.1 43.3 1.0 51.9 0.85 

Germany 8.0 54.2 1.9 64.5 0.78 

Italy 3.8 39.9 0.5 44.9 0.77 

Spain 5.2 31.2 1.0 39.1 0.90 

U.K. 12.7 40.2 0.9 54.8 0.91 

Source : OECD Environmental Data Compendium 2006/2007 

*M TOE: Million Ton of Oil Equivalent 


Proactive National Transport 

Policy for Low Carbon and 

Green Growth 

Environmental sustainability has been one of 

the main concerns among transport planners 

as well as policy makers. However, transport 

is the most difficult area for environmental 

sustainability due to ever-increasing demand 

and its extremely heavy reliance on nonrenewable 

fossil fuels. A new paradigm of 

low carbon and green growth strategies 

are required. These include low carbon 

infrastructure, new land use framework, 

development of green logistics and 

technologies, modal shift to low carbon and 

non-motorised transport, and improvements 

in energy efficiency. 

Undersea high speed rail and 

waterway logistics infrastructure 

for the environment 

Since Korea is a very densely populated, 

urbanised country, mass transit and

ailways have very high potential for 

environmental sustainability. 

Currently, eight subway lines amounting to 

492 km are in operation in Seoul and five 

other major cities in Korea. Nine subway lines 

totalling 226.5 km are under construction in 

six cities with populations of one million or 

more. Additional subway lines totalling 159 km 

are planned through 2019. The total subway 

network will be expanded from 492 km to 

651 km by 2019, and especially in Seoul, the 

subway modal share is projected to increase 

from the current 35% to over 50%. 

For interurban railways, 1,418 km of new 

railway lines are planned to be added by 

2020 to the existing stock of 3,374 km. Rail 

electrification will also be increased from 47% 

to 78%. 

Compact development based on rail or mass 

transit would induce people to use more 

energy efficient means of transport (Figure 2). 

Figure 2: Plan for Eurasian railways 

The proposed undersea high speed railway 

linking Jeju Island and Honam Province (Figure 3) 

can provide a secure alternative to land 


transport for travellers and can also help create 

an ultra metropolitan economic bloc in the 

southwestern part of the Korean Peninsula. It 

can also provide green growth opportunities, 

as well as, an economic stimulus in the current 

economically depressed times. 

Figure 3: Concept of Honam-Jeju Undersea Railway 

Waterborne transport offers another possibility 

for low carbon green transport in Korea, where 

coastal areas are developed for industries and 

logistics. Inland ports need to be developed to 

fully exploit this potential. The Kyung-In Canal 

(Figure 4) connecting Seoul and Incheon, and 

the four major river regeneration projects, 

would revitalise economically depressed 

hinterland areas and would also provide 

employment opportunities. 

Figure 4: Rendering of Kyung-In Canal 



A waterway connecting Seoul and North 

Korea’s Wonsan (Korea Peace Waterway, 

Figure 5) is proposed in order to secure 

water resources and also to ease the tension 

between the South and the North. It will 

be approximately 200 km long and will 

contribute to the promotion of tourism along 

the waterway. 

Figure 5: Proposed route of Korea Peace Waterway 

Green transport cities 

A new land use framework is required in order 

to reduce travel demand and to fully utilise the 

public transport’s potential. Development of 

high density cities around the KTX high speed 

rail stations would serve as energy efficient 

regional hub cities. It would also facilitate 

balanced regional growth and help reduce 

regional auto travel. High density development 

around public transit should be promoted in 

order to encourage public transit patronage. 

Pedestrian travel should also be encouraged 

by constructing more pedestrian friendly 

facilities. For example, Daegu city transformed 

its busiest downtown street into a transit mall, 

allowing access to urban buses only during 

the day. The Ministry of Land, Transport and 

Maritime also plans and develops pedestrian 

priority zones to improve walking conditions 

(Figure 6). 

12 


Figure 6: Pedestrian priority area in Seoul downtown 

Green technology development 

in transport 

Non-motorised forms of transport lead to zero 

carbon emissions. Bicycles are extensively used 

in many European and Asian cities but their 

modal share in Korean cities is minimal due to 

limited infrastructure and low public reception. 

Bicycles should be promoted for short 

distance commuting by providing adequate 

infrastructure and increased safety. Figure 7 is a 

conceptual illustration of a Bicycle expressway, 

which is dedicated to bicycles, quite similar to 

light rail transit infrastructure. 

Figure 7: Illustrations of bicycle expressway

The concept of transport power plant is an 

electricity generating initiative by installing 

photovoltaic facilities along transport 

infrastructure, such as, highways, railways 

and waterways. The electricity generated in 

such transport power plants can be used for 

the transport facility itself or it could be used 

ultimately for charging future electric vehicles. 

Green car development 

Current dependence on heavy fossil fuel for 

transport should be reduced by diversifying 

energy sources. Neighbourhood Electric 

Vehicles (NEV) offer a promising alternative 

to conventional vehicles for short distance 

trips in urban areas. Wireless electricity 

technology could facilitate the introduction 

of electric vehicles by solving their current 

battery limitations. Fuel cell technology could 

be a long term option in future alternative 

fuel vehicle developments. Legal support and 

economic incentives should be provided for the 

development of these types of green vehicles. 

Wireless power supply technology is another 

promising technological option that could 

ultimately eliminate the challenging requirement 

for powerful and efficient batteries for electric 

vehicles. Vehicles travelling in downtown areas 

or highways can be charged or supplied with 

electricity continuously (Figure 8). 

Wireless electricity technology could 

facilitate the introduction of electric 

vehicles by solving their current 

battery limitations. 


Figure 8: Concept of wireless power supply city 

Travel demand management 

Another important pillar in policies for 

environmental sustainability is travel demand 

management (TDM). Measures to increase 

transport supply are often expensive or 

difficult to implement, and gains from these 

and other improvements are offset by further 

increases in travel demand. Lower-cost TDM 

strategies are intended to reduce demand, 

particularly single-occupant vehicle demand, 

and optimise system performance, reduce peak 

period congestion, save energy, and improve 

the environment. Various policy measures 

have been employed in order to discourage 

passenger car use in Korea. The Sustainable 

Transport & Logistics Act, in force from this 

year, allows local government to restrain total 

traffic volume in certain areas and adjust travel 

fares to promote public transportation. 

Another good example of TDM is congestion 

pricing. An experimental congestion pricing 

scheme was introduced in two major tunnels 

which connect the downtown area and 

the southern part of Seoul in November 

1996. The charge was set at 2,000 won per 

crossing and it was applied during the peak 

hours in weekdays to private passenger cars. 



The charge has reduced 12,000 vehicles per 

day at Seoul downtown, which is 13.3 % 

of total downtown traffic volume. More 

elaborate congestion pricing schemes should 

be developed, based on emission produced by 

each vehicle type and travel speed, in order 

to reduce congestion-related externalities and 

environmental burdens. 

Parking policy 

Previously, the core of Korea’s parking policy 

was to provide adequate parking for every 

building and facility. This thinking is about to 

be reversed and decreased parking spaces in 

the CBD is being considered so as to reduce 

the influx of private passenger cars into Korea’s 

cities. On the other hand, park-and-ride 

facilities have been continuously constructed. 

Parking-related charges should be employed 

in order to better reflect the cost of providing 

and maintaining parking spaces, as well as 

the externalities caused by the use of private 

passenger cars. 

Modal shift in freight transport 

and green logistics 

The freight transport sector accounts for 

31% of the total transport CO emissions and 

2 

it is also regarded as the most inefficient of 

Korea’s transport sectors. In particular, less 

efficient private freight vehicles dominate the 

sector. The government is now establishing 

a plan to reduce freight’s dependency on 

the road sector and to increase the capacity 

of the freight rail, a more energy efficient 

and environmentally friendly way to move 

the nation’s goods. This sector can also be 

made more efficient through policies such as 

14 


green logistics certification, which provides 

incentives to logistics firms to reduce energy 

consumption and GHG emissions. 

Parking-related charges should be 

employed in order to better reflect 

the cost of providing and maintaining 

parking spaces, as well as the 

externalities caused by the use of 

private passenger cars. 

Conclusion 

Greening of the current transport system 

requires a long term vision and multifaceted 

approaches. Land use and urban design 

should reflect energy and environmental 

considerations. Technologies should also 

be promoted and economic incentive 

schemes should be provided not only for 

the technological developments but also for 

behavioural changes in transport demand 

and usage. 

Transforming our transport system into a low 

carbon and environmentally friendly one would 

provide many opportunities for green growth 

and also indispensable infrastructure for 

sustainable economic growth and prosperity. 

A legal framework is required in order to 

facilitate the transition to green transport 

systems. Investments on transport infrastructure 

should be guided by a revised assessment 

methodology which takes the environmental 

benefits and cost into full consideration.

References 

OECD. 2008. Environmental Data Compendium 

2006/2007 


OECD/ITF. 2008. Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategies 

in the Transport Sector: Preliminary Report (2008) 

Hwang Kee Yeon is the President of The Korea Transport Institute. Dr. 

Hwang received his Ph.D. in urban and regional planning at the University 

of Southern California, USA. He has been a Professor of Urban Planning and 

Design Department in Hongik University from 2005 to 2008 and a member 

of the Presidential Committee on Green Growth, Korea. He was head of the 

research team for Cheonggyecheon Restoration Project, and as a member 

of Seoul Development Institute, has conducted many important projects for 

Seoul’s transport system, such as, the introduction of congestion charging in 

Seoul.He can be reached at keith@koti.re.kr 

Park Jin Young is a research fellow at the Centre for Transport and Climate 

Change in the Korea Transport Institute. Dr Park was one of the active members 

of the Seoul Bus Reform Project from 2003 to 2005. His main research area 

is Sustainable Urban Transport Systems. Currently he conducts research 

related to Sustainable Transport & Logistics Plan for Korea, He graduated 

from the Engineering Faculty of Seoul National University, and completed his 

PhD in Transport Engineering at the Department of Civil and Environmental 

Engineering, Imperial College London, UK. 


Urban Leaders Find Transportation Paths to Global Green Growth 

Urban Leaders Find Transportation Paths to 

Global Green Growth 

Michael REPLOGLE and Michael KODRANSKY 

Abstract 

A key driver of environmentally friendly transportation is visionary urban leadership 

that advances better ways to manage traffic and street space. Innovative leaders often 

get their inspiration by seeing what other cities are doing to advance best practices. 

Global challenges of rapid urbanisation, environmental degradation, and demands for 

economic vitality and livable communities are common themes driving global green 

growth initiatives. These are also key to reducing greenhouse gases. This paper provides 

an overview of the accomplishments, obstacles, experiences gained and directions taken 

by selected cities that have sought cost-effective transportation solutions and achieved 

measurable results, improving the environment and quality of urban life and economies. 

Introduction 

Today, most of the world’s cities suffer from 

sharply rising traffic congestion, healthimpairing 

air pollution, sprawling development, 

an inefficient transportation network, and 

energy insecurity. Without changes in policies 

and investments, transport related CO2 emissions are projected to increase worldwide 

by 57% between 2005 and 2030, with 80% of 

that growth to occur in developing countries, 

where population and incomes are growing 

most rapidly. 

But that projection does not take into account 

the potential transformation in many cities’ 

transportation systems as new information, 

communications, and smart management and 

operations strategies come into wider use. By 

2030, people living in developing regions will 

16 


comprise 80% of the world’s urban population 

and the share of people living in cities will rise, 

from 50% today to over 70% (Department 

of Economic and Social Affairs 2006). The first 

half of the 21st century will become known as 

the time of global urbanisation. Yet, only by 

smart urbanisation will humanity find a way to 

manage global climate change and a host of 

other problems. What are the transportation 

pathways that will deliver green global growth? 

Many find hope that those pathways are being 

created by innovative leaders in developing 

cities in Latin America, Asia and Africa, joined 

by others in Europe and North America. 

From Seoul to Ahmedabad, Capetown to 

Bogotá, from Paris to New York, mayors 

have demonstrated cutting-edge ways to 

reshape urban mobility and enhance livability,

combining new intelligent transportation 

systems with bricks-and-paving stone streetspace 

reallocation, and smart urban design. 

From Seoul to Ahmedabad, Capetown 

to Bogotá, from Paris to New York, 

mayors have demonstrated cuttingedge 

ways to reshape urban mobility 

and enhance livability,... 

Harnessing private sector involvement towards 

public-private partnerships and creative 

infrastructure management can be a key to 

success. Projects that advance global discourse 

often involve integrated transport and land use 

planning, such as the implementation of a well 

designed Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system (Table 1) 

with good pedestrian and bicycle linkages 

(Table 2), and the demolition of an elevated 

highway to create a new public space. Let’s 

look at some of the cities from around the 

world that have used transportation reforms to 

reduce greenhouse gas emissions, bring new 

mobility options to the neediest communities, 

stimulate economic development and improve 

overall quality of life. 

Projects that advance global discourse 

often involve integrated transport 

and land use planning,... 

BRT Systems Moving Cities Ahead 

Bogotá, Colombia 

Former Bogotá Mayor, Enrique Peñalosa, 

oversaw the conception and opening of an 

extensive, cost-efficient, high quality and high 

capacity public transit system between 1998 – 

2001, even as expensive metro proposals in 


other cities continued to languish for years 

without any progress. TransMilenio (Figure 1), 

as the BRT system in Bogotá is known, used 

lessons learned from Curitiba, Brazil, which 

debuted the first ever BRT system in the 

1970s, unveiling an even more ambitious 

system that quickly became a gold standard 

in BRT development. Bogota’s system consists 

of 9 lines that use exclusive busways with 

over 1,000 branded buses carrying 1.6 million 

passengers a day. Elevated stations, level 

passenger boarding and wide vehicle doors 

optimise getting on and off the buses. The 

capital construction costs for the system 

amount to $5.5 million per kilometre. 

Figure 1: TransMilenio buses in Bogotá are 

highway based and also enter the downtown area 

Before the introduction of TransMilenio, 

thousands of independent mini-bus drivers 

provided the only public transit system in the 

city. These drivers formed operating companies 

and participated in a competitive tendering 

process to run TransMilenio. The Bogotá 

system pays private operators to drive special 

red TransMilenio buses based on a set number 

of kilometres driven, so if a bus needs to be 

rerouted to another corridor, its income is not 



affected. With performance-based contracts, 

operators are penalised if they fail to provide 

other expected services, such as, keeping the 

vehicles clean and being on-time (Wright and 

Hook 2007). 

Approximately 400 feeder buses bring 

passengers from outskirt locations onto 

the system. Pedestrian and bicycle paths 

leading from low-income and impoverished 

neighbourhoods are integrated into the system 

design. TransMilenio is so successful that it is 

often overcrowded during non-peak hours – a 

major complaint by passengers. 

After the implementation of the widereaching 

system, a referendum was passed 

by overwhelmingly popular vote to hold a 

Car-Free Day every year, forbidding private 

vehicles from being driven in the city during 

one workday. Roads normally used for cars 

become boulevards for walking and cycling 

while TransMilenio continues to operate 

smoothly. This measure exists in conjunction 

with Ciclovía – Bogota’s world renowned 

Car-Free Sundays event. 

TransMilenio is so successful that it 

is often overcrowded during nonpeak 

hours – a major complaint by 

passengers. 

Guangzhou, China 

The world’s highest frequency and capacity 

BRT system opened in February 2010 in 

Guangzhou, China. The 22.5 km system is 

the first BRT to directly connect to a metro 

system and the first BRT system in China to 

18 


include bicycle parking in its station design. It 

has the world’s highest number of passenger 

boardings at BRT stations and the world’s 

longest stations in the world. Already carrying 

750,000 passengers a day, it is expected to 

soon carry even more. Infrastructure costs to 

build the GBRT were 30 million yuan renminbi 

(US$ 4.4 million) per kilometre. 

More than 40 bus routes use Guangzhou’s 

“open” BRT system, which is designed to 

enable many more one-seat rides, as many 

routes originate or end in neighbourhoods 

beyond the BRT corridor itself. Real time 

passenger information systems and operational 

control systems boost convenience, help keep 

buses on time, and support performance 

contracting. The BRT was faster to implement 

than a new metro line would have been, with 

the conceptual plan, engineering design and 

construction each taking one year to complete. 

Building the Guangzhou BRT took five years 

from start to finish, including times when the 

project was placed on hold. 

The BRT was faster to implement than 

a new metro line would have been, 

with the conceptual plan, engineering 

design and construction each taking 

one year to complete. 

Ahmedabad, India 

India’s first world-class BRT system opened 

in 2009 in Ahmedabad, a city of 6 million 

residents. The system is called Janmarg, or 

the “people’s way”, reflecting a strategic 

transportation focus on moving people rather 

than vehicles. It is a “closed system”, with buses

Table 1: Some notable cities advancing BRT 

Location Notable Features 

Cali, Colombia 

Curitiba, Brazil 

Guadalajara, Mexico 

Guangzhou, China 

Guatemala City, Guatemala 

Hangzhou, China 

Istanbul, Turkey 

Jakarta, Indonesia 

Johannesburg, South Africa 

Mexico City, Mexico 

Pereira, Colombia 


Cali’s MIO system launch is part of a national government 

initiative to build BRT systems in cities with more than 600,000 

inhabitants. MIO already meets 46% of the city’s public 

transport demand. 

The first BRT system in the world, inaugurated in the 1970s and 

used by over 75% of the population. 

The initial Macrobus line runs 16 km. When complete, it will take 

55,000 private vehicles off the road. 

The highest capacity BRT system in Asia, this 23 km system that 

opened in 2010 carries over 750,000 passengers daily. 

This first Central American BRT opened in 2007. The initial 11 km 

include dedicated median busways with on-level boarding 

stations. The system cut travel time by 20%. 

The second city in China after Beijing to unveil a BRT system, 

which includes bus prioritisation with facilities for cyclists 

and pedestrians. 

Metrobus BRT carries 450,000 passengers a day over 43 km of 

segregated busway, so travel speeds reach 40 km per hour – 

reducing travel time by 75%. 

TransJakarta uses mostly CNG buses in 10 corridors, carrying over 

300,000 daily riders. 

After violent protests from taxi drivers, the first true BRT system 

in Africa, Rea Vaya ("We Are Moving"), opened and is carrying 

18,000 daily passengers. 

The Metrobus system carries 320,000 passengers a day. Accidents 

dropped by 30%, and the corridor saw a 5% modal shift from 

private vehicles to public transport. 

The first city to emulate the success of TransMilenio in Colombia, 

it carries 155,000 passengers per day. 



using dedicated lanes instead of mixing with 

traffic, spanning over 88 km and connecting 

the downtown commercial district of Kalupur 

with outlying neighbourhoods. Most of the 

network passes through low and middle 

income neighbourhoods. Janmarg is meant to 

improve the quality of commuting in the city 

through dedicated bus lanes, bicycle tracks, 

pedestrian facilities and parking management. 

Some of the infrastructure highlights of the 

system include segregated lanes, high floor 

buses, level passenger boarding, external 

ticketing and real-time bus arrival information. 

Completion of the network is expected in 

2011; half of the system is now in operation. 

Ridership is now about 32,000 passengers 

daily, with that number expected to grow 

greatly. Eventually, the city envisions an 

integrated fare scheme between normal bus 

service, Janmarg and parking. The capital cost 

of Janmarg was US$1.8 million per kilometre. 

Figure 2: Bicycle riders enjoy the first ever Summer 

Streets in NYC 

Improving Walking and 

Cycling Infrastructure 

New York City, USA 

More than 50 acres of road space in New York 

City (NYC) have been reclaimed from traffic 

lanes and car parking spaces to meet the goals 

20 


of PlaNYC 2030, a comprehensive long-term 

sustainability vision announced on Earth Day 

in 2007 by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. A 

large component of the plan, after decades 

of car-oriented policies, is to create a more 

balanced transportation network in the 

city by the year 2030. NYC Department of 

Transportation Commissioner, Janette Sadik- 

Khan, succeeded in overseeing the creation 

of new public plazas and the installation of 

over 322 km of new bicycle lanes – 8 km of 

which are protected, installation of more than 

6,000 bicycle racks, more than two dozen 

bicycle parking shelters and a 45% increase 

in bicycle commuting (NYC Department of 

Transportation 2009). 

The city adopted a strategy that 

was championed by Copenhagen, 

Denmark – taking small nibbles of 

street space away from cars until 

reaching a groundswell of noticeable 

changes. 

The most iconic transformation occurred in 

Times Square with the pedestrianisation of 

Broadway after a century of accommodating 

car traffic. The city adopted a strategy that 

was championed by Copenhagen, Denmark – 

taking small nibbles of street space away from 

cars until reaching a groundswell of noticeable 

changes. Much of the street reclamations 

have been done initially using fast and costeffective 

coloured paint on asphalt, followed 

later by permanent reconstruction. As part of 

improving the street experience, over 98,000 

trees were planted and a Car-Free Sundays 

programme was launched, called Summer

Streets (Figure 2), inspired by Bogotá’s Ciclovía. 

The city also launched a Select Bus Service that 

incorporates partial elements of BRT, such as, 

advanced fare collection, dedicated lanes and 

signal prioritisation. 

Figure 3: Vélib stations are accessible everywhere 

within the city of Paris 

Paris, France 

The Paris Vélib, combines the French words for 

bicycle (vélo) and freedom (liberté), and has 

revolutionised bicycle sharing and showcases a 

new kind of individualised mass transit system. 

The design is already being mimicked in cities 

like Hangzhou, China. Vélib solves the problems 

of bicycle storage, maintenance and parking. 

Mayor Bertrand Delanoë and Deputy Mayor 

Denis Baupin saw an opportunity to offer 

advertising space to the company JCDecaux 

in exchange for management of the system. 

Approximately 4,000 car parking spaces were 

replaced with 1,451 Vélib stations that hold 

20,600 public bicycles for hire (Figure 3). 

Registered users pay a small fee to rent a 

bicycle and can return it to any station around 

the city, provided there is docking space. 

JCDecaux shuttles bicycles between stations 

to maintain a balance in the system and 

assures there are enough available bicycles 


at every station. If a station is full, users are 

directed to the next available docking space. A 

survey of users found that 15% of Vélib trips 

had shifted from car travel. Vélib users can 

hire a bicycle at any time of the day or night, 

which is a good complement to the metro that 

closes around midnight. Approximately 30% 

of bicycle traffic consists of Vélib users (Le 

Mairie de Paris 2007). To support an increase 

in cycling, Paris built nearly 400 km of new 

bicycle lanes and also increased general bicycle 

parking facilities. 

A cornerstone of the mobility plan under 

Deputy Mayor Denis Baupin, Vélib is one of 

many Paris transportation innovations aimed 

at revitalising community life in public spaces. 

In addition to improving conditions for cyclists, 

Paris has prioritised pedestrians by renovating 

public squares and plazas, widening sidewalks, 

adding new landscaping and installing raised 

crosswalks. Slow speed 30-km zones have 

been introduced to increase pedestrian safety. 

Paris has prioritised pedestrians by 

renovating public squares and plazas, 

widening sidewalks, adding new 

landscaping and installing raised 

crosswalks. 

A national directive passed in 2008 mandates 

that these zones include contra-flow bicycle 

lanes, which will further increase cycling in 

the coming years. The city also closes down a 

major stretch of highway along the Seine River 

for one month in the summer to create 3 km 

of beach areas known as Paris Plages. Lastly, 

a new system called Mobilien, which uses 



elements of BRT, opened along three corridors 

in 2007. All these improvements led to a 

decrease in private vehicle traffic by 20% and 

a 9% reduction in carbon dioxide emissions. 

Table 2: Other notable cities promoting walking 

and cycling. 

Managing the Demand of Vehicles 

Driving into the City 

London, UK 

In 2003, London adopted a groundbreaking 

congestion pricing plan in an effort to tackle 

traffic gridlock, improve air quality and 

generate funds for the city’s transport system. 

Drivers entering the congestion zone (Figure 4) 

during peak hours are required to pay a hefty 

fee. Enforcement is through automated license 

recognition, with multiple payment channels. 

The congestion pricing initiative was so 

successful in improving mobility conditions 

that neighbourhoods near the border 

requested that the zone be extended. In 

2007, the congestion zone was doubled and 

the price was increased. About 70,000 fewer 

vehicles enter the congestion zone on a daily 

basis. Congestion dropped by 21% that year 

and carbon dioxide emissions decreased by 

16%. More than £123 million (US$194 million) 

is generated annually from the congestion 

zone pricing and reinvested in public transport 

22 

Cape Town, 

South Africa 

Dakar, 

Senegal 

Santiago, 

Chile 

Continued government 

support for Car-Free days 

Organised West Africa’s first 

ever Car-Free day 

Implemented new bicycle 

lanes and Car-Free Sundays 


improvements. Bus travel times significantly 

improved after implementation of the 

congestion zone and bus ridership increased 

by 45%. Older, dirtier trucks pay a special 

steep daily charge to enter the city. 

Figure 4: The congestion zone is indicated with 

signage and street stencils in central London 

Cities such as Shanghai and Shenzhen in 

China are looking to introduce a London-style 

congestion scheme in their commercial centres 

to address traffic problems. Most London 

boroughs also charge a steep curbside parking 

fee to dissuade driving. Some boroughs, such 

as Camden and Richmond upon Thames, have 

even introduced CO -based residential parking 

2 

permits with the most polluting vehicles 

paying a higher price. A percentage of the 

parking revenues from every borough helps 

to fund the Freedom Pass programme, which 

enables disabled and elderly residents to use 

public transit free of charge (London Councils). 

Beijing, China 

As the 2008 Olympics approached, Beijing 

faced crippling traffic jams, severely 

compromised air quality and soaring collision 

rates due to the rapid growth in private vehicle 

use. City officials undertook an ambitious

task, working on a variety of fronts, to make 

transportation better and cleaner in time 

for the Olympic Games. Beijing instituted 

vehicle restrictions on weekdays based on 

odd/even license plate numbers. The success 

of the measure led to an extension of the 

programme, which is enforced through 

automated license plate recognition systems. 

A percentage of the parking revenues 

from every borough helps to fund 

the Freedom Pass programme, which 

enables disabled and elderly residents 

to use public transit free of charge. 

Drivers must leave their automobiles at home 

one day each week, leading to 800,000 

vehicles staying off the streets every day. The 

city also expanded the metro and existing BRT 

systems in 2008 with new lines and additional 

hours of operation. Beijing increased the 

regular bus fleet, while decreasing the fleet 

of government vehicles by 30%. Additionally, 

one-third of the police fleet is now patrolling 

using bicycles and electric bicycles. Measures 

to restrict automobile use have been 

complemented with investments in public 

transit infrastructure and policies to promote 

alternative modes. 

Integrated Transport and Public 

Space Planning 

Seoul, South Korea 

Under the leadership of Mayor Lee Myung 

Bak, a 6.4 km elevated highway that once 

covered the Cheonggyecheon River in the 

center of Seoul was replaced in 2005 with 

a riverfront park, high quality walkways 


and public squares (Figure 5). Removing the 

road has cut traffic congestion in the area 

and the popularity of the measure led to 84 

additional elevated roadways being shortlisted 

for demolition. The city government 

also retrofitted over 58 km along the former 

highway corridor with exclusive median bus 

lanes, and added more than 100 additional bus 

lanes as part of a broader initiative to improve 

all aspects of Seoul’s transportation system. In 

2007, Lee Myung Bak was elected President 

of South Korea largely due to his leadership 

in transforming the Cheonggyecheon area 

into a national public resource. President Lee 

had prioritised environmental stewardship 

as Mayor and improved the quality of life 

in Seoul. 

Figure 5: The highway that covered the 

Cheonggyecheon River was replaced with a 

riverfront park 

Guayaquil, Ecuador 

Improvements to deteriorating public spaces 

and other public works projects formed an 

important part of Mayor Jaime Nebot’s plan 



to revitalise the city of Guayaquil. His vision 

included enhancing pedestrian facilities that 

link to the city’s waterfront and hilly Santa 

Ana district. He also oversaw the opening of 

Metrovía in 2006, the city’s BRT system that 

stretches 45 km and serves nearly 500,000 

daily passengers. The private bus services 

in Guayaquil were included in the Metrovia 

operating consortium while over 500 of the 

fleet’s oldest and highest-polluting buses 

were removed from the road. In the same 

year, the city also launched its first Car-Free 

Sunday, closing streets to traffic and allowing 

thousands of residents to enjoy safe walking 

and cycling opportunities. 

References 

Le Mairie de Paris. 2007. Paris Transport and Travel 

Report. Paris Transport Monitoring Center 

London Councils, Freedom Pass. http://www. 

londoncouncils.gov.uk /freedompass/default.htm 

(accessed February 13, 2010) 

NYC Department of Transportation. 2009. DOT 

Completes Unprecedented Three-Year, 200-Mile 

Installation of Bike Lanes, Making City Streets Safer for 

All Users. http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/downloads/pdf/ 

pr09_030.pdf 

24 


Conclusion 

Any city can profoundly impact on sustainability 

and livability by employing some of the costeffective 

transportation best practices being 

advanced world wide and learning from the 

experience of neighbours. BRT, non-motorised 

transport, travel demand management, 

and integrated transportation and land use 

planning, implemented with intelligent traffic 

and transport management systems, can 

change the way residents experience a city in 

a positive way. The solutions also tackle larger 

issues: reducing emissions, saving commuters 

time, improving access to economic 

opportunities and decreasing air pollution. 

Population Division of the Department of Economic and 

Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat. 2006. 

World Population Prospects: The 2006 Revision and 

World Urbanization Prospects. http://esa.un.org/unup 

(accessed February 13, 2010) 

Wright, Lloyd, and Walter Hook. 2007. Bus Rapid 

Transit Planning Guide. Institute for Transportation and 

Development Policy


Michael Replogle is the Global Policy Director and Founder of the Institute for 

Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP), USA. He has over 30 years of 

experience in transportation engineering and policy. He is a strategic advisor 

on transportation for the Environmental Defense Fund, where he served 

as Transportation Director from 1992 to 2009. He has been an advisor or 

consultant to the World Bank, Federal Highway Administration, and the United 

States Environmental Protection Agency. He has been an advisor to various 

government agencies, including Mexico City, Jakarta, Beijing, New York City, 

Washington, DC, and Singapore’s Land Transport Authority. He is currently consulting to the United 

Nations Environment Programme and Asian Development Bank regarding strategies to evaluate and 

mitigate greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. 

Michael Kodransky is an urban planner at the Institute for Transportation and 

Development Policy (ITDP), where he conducts and coordinates research on best 

practices in parking management, BRT and other ITDP global programme areas. 

He has also done research examining the impact of neighbourhood design 

on walking, road closures on traffic congestion and curbside management on 

street activity. The focus of Michael’s transportation related inquires always 

return to issues of equity and community health. 


Practices and Policies of Green Urban Transport in China 

Practices and Policies of Green Urban 

Transport in China 

JIANG Yulin and LI Zhenyu 

Abstract 

China faces serious challenges as a result of rapid urbanisation and motorisation. 

Congestion and environmental impact have become major concerns. In this crucial 

setting, this paper looks at the practices of green urban transport in China and offers a 

possible interpretation of the green development of urban transport. Finally, it proposes 

the approach and some policy recommendations to steer urban transport towards 

green development. 

Introduction 

Over the past three decades, while urban 

transport has made great contributions for 

fast urban socio-economic development, it 

also poses challenges such as congestion, air 

pollution, energy security, as well as safety. 

Green transport is a category of 

sustainable transport which uses 

human power, animal power, public 

transportation, smart design, and 

renewable energy. 

According to evaluations, the cost of congestion 

is 250 billion RMB, equivalent to 2% of China’s 

GDP in 2003 (Qiu 2007). Worldwide, transport 

systems account for between 20% and 25% 

of carbon dioxide emission (World Energy 

Council 2007). Greenhouse gas emissions 

from transport have been increasing at a 

faster rate than any other energy consumption 

sector (IPCC 2007), but until now, less climate 

26 


change mitigation gains have been made in 

the transport sector. In China, the statistics 

from the Ministry of Environment Protection 

show that at city level, in 2005, the national 

average proportion of vehicular emission in 

urban air pollution is more than 70%; the 

motorised vehicle has become the biggest 

emission source in Chinese cities. Therefore, it 

is urgent to implement green development of 

urban transport in China. 

Green transport is a category of sustainable 

transport which uses human power, animal 

power, public transportation, smart design, 

and renewable energy (Ecoseed 2008). Chris 

Bradshaw, who started the first pedestrian 

advocacy group in America, defined a Green 

Transport Hierarchy, in which he ranked 

the modes of passenger transport based on 

how environmentally friendly each mode is 

(Bradshaw 2009). In this hierarchy, walking 

was ranked the greenest, followed by cycling,

public transport, car sharing, and finally private 

car. This classification of green transport is also 

suitable for China. 

Practices of Green Urban Transport 

in China 

Compared with European cities, public 

transport lags far behind in China. With 

the economic development and increasing 

affluence, car ownership will continue to 

experience unprecedented growth, putting 

incredible pressures on the urban transport 

systems. Therefore, to achieve green 

development, comprehensive urban transport 

measures have been implemented in China. 

Transit Oriented Development (TOD) 

is the creation of compact, walkable 

communities centred around mass 

transit systems, making it possible 

to live a higher quality life without 

complete dependence on a car for 

mobility and survival. 

Urban planning 

The pattern of travel demand is affected by the 

way we use land. For a long time, Chinese cities 

have followed ring type (Figure 1), single centre 

development patterns, which are unfavourable 

to public transport development. Transit 

Oriented Development (TOD) is the creation 

of compact, walkable communities centred 

around mass transit systems (Wikipedia 2007), 

making it possible to live a higher quality life 

without complete dependence on a car for 

mobility and survival. Lately, TOD has been 

gradually accepted in the urban transport 

planning for cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, 


Shenzhen, Guangzhou, etc. It has shown 

obvious effects on green development of 

urban transport. 

Figure 1: Chengdu: 2nd Ring Road Project 

Smooth Traffic Project 

Since 2000, the Smooth Traffic Project has 

been initiated among the 36 Central cities 

in China. Ten years later, other cities joined 

the project. Both the transport infrastructure 

and capacity have been greatly improved, 

the service quality has also been improved 

obviously, which laid a good foundation for 

the green development of urban transport 

today. To maintain the developments, the 

management concept should be updated, 

and the management efficiency should be 

improved continuously. 

Public transport 

priority development 

Under the central directive on Public Transport 

Priority Development, in combination with 

local actual circumstances, many cities issued 

local policies to promote public transport 

priority development. Thus, the capacity of 

public transport is increased obviously. For 

example, in 2006, Beijing issued Opinions 

on the Development of Public Transport 



Figure 2: BRT in Beijing 

Figure 3: LRT in Beijing 

Priority. The public transport system has been 

developed, with urban rail system as the 

backbone, bus as the body, other transport 

modes as the supplement. The public transport 

modal share increased from 28% in 2002 to 

37% in 2008; citizens enjoy quick, convenient 

and substantial public transport services. In 

addition, municipal governments of Shanghai, 

Shenzhen, Guangzhou, etc., have formulated 

administrative provisions for giving priority 

to public transport and made great progress, 

such as with urban rail and bus rapid transit 

(BRT) systems (Figure 2 and Figure 3). 

Action plan for green 

urban transport 

Some city authorities have made action plans 

for green urban transport. After the Green 

Olympics, Beijing began to implement the 

28 


Action Plan for Green, People-oriented and 

High-tech Urban Transport (2009 – 2015). 

By 2015, the public transport modal share 

will be improved to 50% in the central 

area. The rail system will be up to 561 km. 

Beijing will pilot some electric vehicle 

demonstrations, and more than 5,000 new 

energy vehicles will be put into operation. 

Furthermore, to form a new green system, 

Beijing will develop cycling. Some measures 

will be taken, such as, planning nonmotorised 

transport (NMT) zones, free 

bicycle rental and convenient transfers to 

public transport by cycling, etc. 

Shanghai has launched a Green-Commuting 

Project and created the Green Transport 

Strategy to ensure smooth traffic flow and 

a greener environment during the 2010 

World Expo. The Strategy encourages both 

residents and visitors to choose greener 

modes of transport. They have also made a 

green commuting plan for some enterprise 

employees and developed a WebGIS-based 

transport carbon calculator for them. 

In addition, to impove urban public transport, 

more than one hundred cities join the Public 

Transport Week & Car-Free Days Action in 

September annually; the concept of Green 

Commuting has gradually penetrated into the 

lives of Chinese citizens. 

Non Motorised Transport (NMT) 

NMT includes cycling and walking and is the 

greenest transport mode. Bicycles not only 

could be a viable alternative to car journeys for 

many short trips, but also serve as collection

and distribution means for the public 

transport system. 

• Bicycle travel 

NMT is the most important component 

of urban transport in most Chinese cities. 

According to statistics, the bicycle modal 

share accounts for 36% to 50% of total 

travel volume in different cities, and 

walking modal share is about one-third, on 

average, far above that of public transport 

(Jiang and Jiang 2008). However, with 

rapid urbanisation and motorisation, both 

cycling and walking are becoming more 

difficult because of vehicle oriented road 

network planning. More driveways are 

broadened, while walkways are encroached 

by roadside parking or street vendors, 

which greatly dampen the enthusiasm of 

both cyclists and pedestrians. In Beijing, 

the bicycle modal share was up to 62.7% 

in 1986, but reduced sharply to 38.5% in 

2000, 30.3% in 2005, and 20% in 2008. 

Figure 4: Free bicycle rental in Beijing 

To ease the shrinking modal share, 

bicycle rental has entered the agenda 

of city government. Governments of 

Hangzhou, Beijing, Wuhan, etc., have 

initiated policies, including financial 


investment, for bicycle travel by setting 

up free-of-charge bicycle rental nonlocal 

access systems, which create a new 

channel for improving cycling. Bicycle travel 

will even be included in the Beijing Overall 

Transport Plan in 2010. Two free bicycle 

rental demonstrations are being piloted 

in Beijing (Figure 4). A few cities are also 

developing connections between bicycle 

networks and public transport. 

With rapid urbanisation and 

motorisation, both cycling and 

walking are becoming more 

difficult because of vehicle 

oriented road network planning. 

• Walking 

Walking shows its advantages for meeting 

the increasing travel demand from trade, 

shopping and leisure activities. Recently, 

pedestrianised streets were constructed 

all over China, fully embodying the people 

oriented concept. For example, in the 

Overall Planning of Shenzhen (2007 – 

2020), publicised at the end of 2008, in 

addition to implementing “Public Transport 

Priority”, NMT was also advocated, with 

“Walking Priority” written in the plan. 

This is a correction of transport planning 

concepts in Shenzhen and is a notable 

progress in China. 

Transport Demand 

Management (TDM) 

TDM can restrict motor vehicle use through 

effective guidance of transport demand, and 

is an important way for developed countries 



to realise green transportation. In recent 

years, China has tried some measures and 

accumulated certain experience in TDM. 

• License plate quota auction system 

The car license plate quota auction system 

is to restrict vehicle ownership growth. The 

main measures are to suppress the desire 

to purchase a vehicle by levying high tax. 

30 

Shanghai is the only city in China that 

carries out this system which effectively 

suppresses car ownership growth. In 

2007, average daily increment of motor 

vehicles in Shanghai was 380, about 

one-third of Beijing’s 1,050 daily average. 

At a news conference in January 2008, 

Wu Yi, the Deputy Director General of 

Shanghai Municipal Transport Bureau 

said, “in the past 13 years after the policy 

implementation, about 1.5 million motor 

vehicles have been reduced in Shanghai.” 

So we can say that the system implemented 

in Shanghai achieves notable effect on the 

green development of urban transport. 

Small charging differences among 

different parking places cannot 

relieve urban parking problems 

notably. Shenzhen’s case shows 

that synchronous implementation 

of relevant supporting policies is 

required to achieve better effect. 

• Parking charges 

Differentiated parking charges could shift 

some commuters from private vehicles to 

public transport. Existing parking charge 


is cheap in the cities, and without certain 

area and time difference. A few cities, 

such as, Beijing and Shanghai, began 

to introduce charges according to area 

and time. But small charging differences 

among different parking places cannot 

relieve urban parking problems notably. 

Shenzhen has shown that synchronous 

implementation of relevant supporting 

policies is required to achieve better effect, 

for example, increased road parking prices, 

setting time limits for parking on the street, 

heavy penalties for exceeding the time 

limit, etc. 

• Travel restriction measures for cars 

After the 2008 Olympic Games, to relieve 

traffic jam and improve air quality, Beijing 

began to implement No Driving, One Day Per 

Week, and reduced about 800,000 motor 

vehicles per day in the whole city. The 

policy is that vehicles with certain licence 

plate tail numbers will not be driven on 

certain days. Thus, 30% of government 

vehicles stay off the roads. Statistics show 

that although the number of motor vehicles 

in February 2009 still increased greatly 

compared with November 2007, the traffic 

jam index decreased from ‘moderate’ to 

‘slight’; the duration of jams in work days 

also decreased from 7 hours 45 minutes 

to 2 hours 30 minutes. ‘Restriction’ has 

notably improved traffic status and air 

quality in Beijing. 

Based on its good effects, Beijing decided 

to continue the measure with a little 

change, after a half year trial.

Beijing began to implement No 

Driving, One Day Per Week, and 

reduced about 800,000 motor vehicles 

per day in the whole city. 

• Other economic instruments 

Since 2008, in order to expand domestic 

demand and promote reasonable 

consumption of automotives, China 

implemented some economic instruments, 

while concurrently introducing measures to 

reduce transport emissions. 

i Consumption tax adjustments 

From 1st September 2008, the Ministry 

of Finance adjusted vehicle consumption 

tax. The tax rate of large passenger cars, 

3.0 litres to 4.0 litres, was increased from 

15% to 25%, while tax for cars above 

4.0 litres was raised from 20% to 40%. 

On the other hand, the consumption 

tax rate of small passenger cars, those 

below 1.0 litre, was reduced from 3% 

to 1%. This seems to have achieved 

its primary effect. In 2008, passenger 

cars 1.6 litres and below accounted 

for 61.5% of annual vehicle sales, and 

sales increased up to 18%, far higher 

than the increment for the overall 

vehicle market. 

ii The Adjustment and Vitalisation Plan 

for Auto Industry 

This plan released by the State Council 

specified that, from January 20 to 

December 31 2009, the vehicle purchase 

tax for passenger cars 1.6 litres and 


below would be reduced from 10% to 

5%, to encourage the consumption of 

smaller vehicles. 

iii Fuel tax 

The State Council implemented a fuel 

tax from 2009. Gasoline consumption 

tax increased RMB 0.8 per litre, diesel 

consumption tax increased RMB 0.7 per 

litre, and the unit tax amount of other 

fuels increased correspondingly. The 

fuel tax embodies the principle of more 

payment for more use, less payment 

for less use, thus promoting social 

equity and enhancing the competitive 

power of small vehicles. It changes 

the consumption pattern in the 

domestic automotive market, promotes 

automotive enterprises to improve car 

technology, and drives the healthy 

development of industrial chains in the 

vehicle industry. 

Alternative Fuel Vehicle 

(AFV) Action 

Diversifying fuel supply for vehicles is necessary 

to save fossile fuels. So more cities in China are 

encouraged to choose AFV, including hybrid 

vehicles and electric vehicles. 

• Clean Vehicle Action 

Since 1999, the Clean Vehicle Programme 

has been initiated in 12 large cities in 

China. There were 153,000 LPG or CNG 

vehicles and 486 gas stations available in 

the 12 cities in 2002, and 250,000 LPG or 

CNG vehicles and 712 gas stations available 

in 19 cities by 2004 (Wang 2005). After ten 



32 

years of development, the quality of AFV 

has improved and now more AFV are used 

in over 100 cities, which also promotes the 

development of other relevant industries. 

• Electric Vehicle Action 

Since the Ninth Five-Year Plan (1996 – 2000), 

China has focused on the development of 

electric vehicles with fruitful results. The 

Safety Requirements for Hybrid Electric 

Vehicles states standards which began 

to be implemented from 2005, and is a 

turning point for electric vehicles, from 

research to industrialisation. In March 

2009, the State Council publicised the 

Adjustment and Vitalisation Plan for the 

Auto Industry, putting forward the goal 

that the sales volume of new energy 

vehicles from 2009 to 2011 should 

account for about 5% of the total 

sales volume of passenger cars. It also 

mentioned that China will allocate RMB 

10 billion to support the development 

of new energy vehicles, etc., (Jiang and 

Jiang 2008). 

In 2008, the Ministry of Science and 

Technology and the Ministry of Finance 

jointly initiated the electric vehicle 

demonstration project, Ten-Cities, Thousand 


Units. 13 cities, including Beijing, Wuhan 

and Shanghai, were preliminarily selected 

for using electric vehicles in public 

transport, taxis, etc. (Figure 5). It is planned 

to popularise 60,000 new energy vehicles 

all over China by 2012, of which hybrid 

vehicles account for above 95%. The 

project’s launch ceremony in Wuhan in 

January 2009 marked a fresh era of new 

energy vehicle industrialisation in China. 

The higher cost of new energy vehicles 

will be subsidised by the Central and 

local governments. 

Figure 5: Electric Bus in Beijing 

Table 1: Emission standard implementation in China, Beijing, Shanghai and EU 

EU 

Euro 

1 

Vehicular emission control 

In order to improve air quality, stricter emission 

standards for vehicles have been implemented. 

In 2007, China implemented GUO 3 emission 

standard for light vehicles, which is equivalent 

to Euro 3. GUO 4 emission standard will be 

Year 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 

China GUO 1 GUO 2 GUO 3 

Beijing GUO 1 GUO 2 GUO 3 GUO 4 

Shanghai GUO 1 GUO 2 GUO 3 GUO 4 

Euro 2 Euro 3 Euro 4 Euro 5 

GUO 

4

Figure 6: Approach to achieving green 

urban transport 

Urban 

Planning 

Compact 

High Density 

Mixed 

Land use 

Green Urban 

Transport 

NMT 

Bicycle 

Rental 

Bicycle 

special lane 

Electric 

bicycle 

Public 

Transport 

Economic 

Awareness 

Technology 

implemented in 2010, which is equivalent 

to Euro 4. Some cities, such as, Beijing and 

Shanghai, have begun to implement GUO 4 

(Table 1). The emission standard gap between 

China and European countries is becoming 

smaller. At the same time, the fuel quality is 

improved and the sulfur content in vehicular 

fuels is reduced. In Beijing, the environment 

tax for vehicles will be levied according to the 

different emission levels, which will promote 

the development of clean urban transport 

as well. 

The higher cost of new energy 

vehicles will be subsidised by the 

Central and local governments. 

TDM 

Information 

New Energy 

Emission 

Approach to Achieving Green 

Urban Transport 

With a large population and limited fossil fuel 

resources, China has to build a green transport 

system comprising “Urban public transport & 

NMT” (Figure 6). The figure shows the main 

factors and their interrelation that influence 


green urban transport. Firstly, through urban 

planning, some travel by motorised modes 

can be reduced effectively. Secondly, some 

private car commuters must shift to more 

environmental friendly modes such as public 

transport and NMT. Thirdly, the energy 

efficiency of transport modes and vehicle 

technology should be continually improved. 

Policy recommendations 

Based on the approach, Chinese transport 

authorities should move away from the idea 

of “Vehicle-orientation” in urban transport 

planning, focus mainly on public transport 

improvement, manage urban road space 

better and guide the reasonable use of private 

cars, as the key elements in the green urban 

transport strategy. Policies that encourage 

people to take public transport or NMT can 

bring these benefits too, while enhancing 

the local environment and supporting 

healthier lifestyles. 

Firstly, China should optimise the urban 

transport layout by integrating urban and 

transport planning based on TOD, develop 

“compact” communities and cities in multifunctional 

areas, so as to reduce redundant 

transport trips from the source. Specifically, 

for new developments, we should construct 

compact, intensive small towns along Mass 

Transit stations of rail or BRT systems. 

Secondly, to improve urban public transport, 

the Legislation for Urban Public Transport 

should be unveiled as soon as possible. The 

transport authority should set up a special 

fund for urban public transport, regulate public 



fares and subsidy compensation mechanisms, 

strengthen planning integration, guarantee 

land use for public transport facilities and 

launch the action plan to improve the quality 

of public transport services. 

Thirdly, more TDM should be used in most big 

cities, to balance travel demand and supply 

well, especially in traffic congested cities. 

For urban taxis, a good information platform 

should be developed to improve the loading 

rate and reduce empty running. On the other 

hand, governments should take the lead to 

encourage the use of energy efficient and low 

emission vehicles, and raise the awareness of 

the public to choose green transport modes. 

Fourthly, city governments should encourage 

bicycle rental, develop scientific bicycle-renting 

businesses, make plans for urban bicycling 

lanes, extend the special lanes for bicycles and 

Acknowledgements 

The paper is funded by Volvo Research and Educational 

Foundations (VREF). The authors thank Ms. Liu Leilei 

for her contributions to this paper, and Professor Chen 

34 


footpaths and set up high-speed pedestrian 

systems in downtowns to provide convenience 

for travellers. 

Last but not least, to improve overall 

transport efficiency, better coordination and 

integration of different transport services will 

improve the attractiveness and convenience 

of public transport. For example, we are 

keen to promote the use of smart ticketing 

which allows passengers to move seamlessly 

between different modes. 

By 2030, with the concept of people 

orientation, China will have a more advanced 

public transport system that gives a network 

of paths connecting people safely, and mainly 

by public transport and NMT, with the places 

they want to reach. And it will undeniably 

be a highly efficient and low carbon urban 

transport system. 

Suoxiang for providing invaluable comments on an earlier 

version of this paper.

References 

Bradshaw, Chris. 2009. Green Transportation Hierarchy: 

A Guide for Personal and Public Decision-making. 

Available via http://www.sierraclub.org/sprawl/articles/ 

trips.asp 

EcoSeed. 2008. Green Transportation. Available via 

http://www.ecoseed.org/en/general-reference/greenreference/green-transportation. 

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. 2007. 

IPCC Fourth Assessment Report: Mitigation of Climate 

Change, Chapter 5, Transport and its Infrastructure. The 

full report can be viewed online at http://www.ipcc.ch/ 

Jiang, Yulin, and Kejun Jiang. 2008. Policy for energy 

saving of urban transport in China. China: China 

Communications Press 


Qiu, Baoxing. 2007. Fulfilling bus transportation priority 

strategies, expediting the construction of socialist 

harmony. Urban Vehicles (in Chinese only), No.1 2007, 

pp27 – 33 

Transit-oriented development. From Wikipedia, the 

free encyclopedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transitoriented_development, 

2007,10 

Wang, Bingang. 2005. The achievement and prospect 

of Alternative Fuel Vehicles in China (in Chinese only). 

Automotive Engineering, Vol. 27 No. 6 2005, pp643 – 647. 

World Energy Council. 2007. Transport Technologies 

and Policy Scenarios. World Energy Council. http://www. 

worldenergy.org/publications/809.asp. (accessed May 

26, 2009) 

Jiang Yulin is a Professor and Director of CUSTReC and Deputy Chief Engineer 

of China Academy of Transportation Sciences (CATS), Ministry Of Transport 

(MOT), P. R. China. She has led CUSTReC to international prominence by building 

strong partnerships with Chinese government agencies and international 

organisations, integrating interdisciplinary research and public outreach 

programmes. Her research interest spans the areas of transport, environment 

protection and energy policy. Over the years, she has carried out extensive 

field and analytic studies by working locally, nationally and internationally on a 

number of projects. She held positions on four National Academy Committees related to sustainable 

transport and environment. Professor Jiang is a member of the standing committee on Sustainability 

and Transportation of the TRB, USA. She has published ten books and more than sixty papers in recent 

years. She can be reached at jiangyulin@vip.sina.com 

Li Zhenyu is an Assistant Professor in CUSTReC, China Academy of 

Transportation Sciences (CATS), Ministry Of Transport (MOT), P.R.China. His 

research interests cover transport strategy and policies on energy saving and 

emission reduction, green transport, low carbon transport and climate change. 

Mr. Li has published 10 papers and 1 book in recent years. He can be reached at 

lizhenyu_sxcz@163.com 


GIS@LTA – Bringing Maps to Life 


Rosina HOWE 

Abstract 

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has brought Geographic Information System (GIS), 

a means to visualise and analyse intelligent information through digital maps, a step 

closer to the pulse of businesses and the community. Through the innovative use of GIS, 

maps have come alive in strategic land transport planning, in ensuring public safety, in 

becoming more pro-enterprise and in strategic information dissemination. 

Introduction 

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) has brought 

Geographic Information System (GIS), a means 

to visualise and analyse intelligent information 

through digital maps, a step closer to the pulse 

of businesses and the community. Building 

on its extensive and comprehensive digital 

Figure 1: Land Transport GIS Hub 

36 


knowledge of land transport infrastructure 

information, LTA has conceptualised and 

developed a Land Transport GIS Hub (Figure 1) 

for the enterprise, capable of meshing 

engineering drawings and geotechnical 

readings together with traffic management 

schemes and public transport planning, to 

aid improvements in construction safety,

oad safety, as well as, provide new services 

for commuters and motorists. Through the 

innovative use of GIS, maps have come alive 

and given new meaning to location-based 

services which cater to engineers, construction 

professionals, planning regulators and the 

man-in-the-street. 

Geography In Action 

Strategic land transport planning 

Singapore faces increasing population and 

travel demand, changing demographics and 

expectations, all against a backdrop of limited 

land space. This brings great challenges to LTA 

in integrating land use and transport planning 

to guarantee quality of life for everyone and 

create sustainable communities. 

Decision-makers are able to visualise 

things as they really are, or will be, 

resulting in improved efficiency 

and accuracy when developing 

transport proposals for road and rail 

improvements and expansions. 

The Concept and Master Plans are 40-year 

and 15-year horizon plans, respectively, on 

land use and transport planning. LTA uses GIS 

technology to lay down medium to long-term 

transport plans, including the road and rapid 

transit networks, on these strategic plans. 

Multiple environmental criteria are “layered” 

on top of one another to identify areas that 

require facelifts, and to predict travel demand 

on our roads and rail network. Decisionmakers 

are able to visualise things as they really 

are, or will be, resulting in improved efficiency 

and accuracy when developing transport 


proposals for road and rail improvements and 

expansions. 

LTA uses GIS extensively for strategic studies, 

transportation modelling and network travel 

demand projection. LTA’s geometry and 

business data are meticulously tagged and 

consolidated in enterprise databases, allowing 

the quick creation of GIS maps that integrate a 

medley of different parameters specific to each 

analysis. This facilitates the study of changes 

from current and future planning quantum for 

scenario comparison. 

Figure 2: RTS Catchment Areas 

GIS is also applied in studying the behaviour 

and characteristics of consumers living in 

various bus and rail catchment areas. It allows 

us to analyse the sensitivity of the consumers 

to different parameters. Each bus stop and 

Rapid Transit Station (RTS) along the corridor 

is mapped using GIS technology. By modifying 

the radius of the catchment area (Figure 2), GIS 

can easily show us patterns, relationships and 

trends that help us understand the attributes 

and underlying factors within the catchment 

areas, so that we can choose the best 

modal option for the population living in the 

catchment area. It helps us plan for changes 



in the transportation network design for the 

future. This will in turn yield considerable 

commuter satisfaction. 

LTA’s transport planners exploit the 

complementary strengths of transportation 

models and GIS systems to develop a 

comprehensive bus route network, fulfilling 

our role as the central bus planner. The 

graphical maps enable us to better understand 

the viability of various routes. By integrating 

data and layering with maps, we can easily see 

the demographics of the area being served 

by the bus network. It also helps us to better 

connect train and bus services, allowing train 

passengers to easily transfer to bus services 

and vice versa. 

With GIS, we can display ridership counts 

for different services and compare service 

ridership volumes. This comparative analysis 

can be used to check the coverage of the 

existing bus stop or RTS station. By combining 

historical ticketing data with a change of bus 

route, the model is able to highlight changes 

in ridership patterns and hence determine the 

feasibility of the proposed revised route. 

Public safety and road planning 

In the area of road safety, LTA leverages on 

GIS technology to significantly reduce the 

number of traffic accidents, fatal or otherwise, 

at accident-prone areas in Singapore to protect 

38 

GIS makes the visualisation of 

collision incidence distributions and 

patterns more intuitive than statistics, 

charts and tabular data. 


motorists and pedestrians. GIS makes the 

visualisation of collision incidence distributions 

and patterns more intuitive than statistics, charts 

and tabular data. Through collaboration with 

Singapore Traffic Police, traffic accident locations 

and collision patterns can be easily visualised 

and analysed geographically in a process 

known as “Black Spot Analysis” (Figure 3). 

Trouble spots can be pin-pointed for our road 

safety engineers to implement mitigating 

traffic improvement schemes. This has yielded 

significant reduction in accidents over a twoyear 

period in treated areas; specifically, 66% at 

traffic junctions and 90% at expressways. LTA’s 

approach to road safety improvement garnered 

the Prince Michael International Safety Award 

2007 for outstanding achievements in its 

collaborative efforts to promote road safety 

through innovations in engineering and active 

public education. 

Figure 3: Black Spot Analysis 

By harnessing GIS technology, our road 

safety engineers are able to validate the 

effectiveness of the implemented treatments 

over a two-year period and further refine 

improvements for proactive maintenance 

of road carriageways across Singapore. 

Through predictive forecasts of road

surface deterioration, road carriageways are 

maintained at an optimum level of roughness 

and skid resistance to prevent possible skidding 

during wet weather. 

At construction sites, GIS is used to enhance 

the safety of construction workers and the 

community in the environs. Specialised 

sensing instruments are enabled with GIS 

technology to monitor construction activities 

that may affect the integrity of structures and 

buildings in the vicinity. The United Kingdombased 

Royal Society for the Prevention of 

Accidents (RoSPA) has named LTA in its annual 

honour roll of organisations committed to 

occupational safety and health in 2008 for 

achieving a high level of safety performance 

underpinned by good management systems. 

Being pro-enterprise 

Business communities and industry partners 

also enjoy greater convenience and a more 

seamless experience when transacting with 

LTA. Leading an online inter-agency system 

that leverages on GIS to coordinate road 

construction works, LTA has reduced the 

processing time for approval of road works 

applications from 2 – 3 months to within 2 

weeks. The duration for approval of plans 

for civil and structural works is also reduced 

by 50%. Surveyors, real estate developers, 

lawyers, architects, and engineers can also 

obtain online road line plans instantaneously, 

whereas previously they had to wait up to 

10 days. 

Strategic information dissemination 

LTA shares data from our GIS@LTA initiative 

with various agencies in the government 


sector. Our data is used by the government 

agencies in areas such as strategic planning, 

operations management, research studies, 

homeland security, crime prevention and 

risk management. LTA also supports the 

development of the National Spatial Data 

Infrastructure (SDI). This is the national strategy 

for information sharing. 

Strategic partnerships are formed with the 

likes of Google, Nokia and local start-ups, 

such as, Quantum Inventions, a company that 

processes LTA’s raw traffic data to provide 

real-time traffic information, dynamic routing 

and navigation solutions, to further exploit 

its enterprise geospatial data to benefit end 

users. These collaborations have brought 

about an array of innovative services that 

Figure 4: Interactive traffic and public transport 

maps on LTA portals 



directly benefit the public and transform the 

way Singaporeans use the land transport 

systems, as well as helped to fuel the growth 

of new commercially-viable services. Through 

these partnerships, LTA has sought to extend 

its reach through new media channels, such 

as, the mobile Internet to disseminate GIS@ 

LTA’s data. 

By placing GIS-enabled transport 

information right at the fingertips 

of commuters and motorists, we 

empower them to effectively plan 

their journeys and reduce overall 

travel time and travel anxiety. 

Citizens can also freely access LTA’s GIS data 

at the One.Motoring (www.onemotoring. 

com.sg) and PublicTransport@SG (www. 

publictransport.sg) Portals. Motorists can be 

informed of road accidents and travel speeds 

of the routes they are planning to take, before 

they embark on their journeys. They may even 

query regarding the availability of car parking 

spaces at their destinations, so that they can 

make alternative arrangements to avoid long 

waits. Commuters can locate the nearest busstops 

using mobile telephones equipped with 

location based services (LBS), and even find 

out when their next bus will arrive. By placing 

GIS-enabled transport information right at 

the fingertips of commuters and motorists, 

we empower them to effectively plan their 

journeys and reduce overall travel time and 

travel anxiety. 

40 


International Recognition 

ESRI Special Achievement in 

GIS 2008 

LTA received the Special Achievement in GIS 

(SAG) Award at the 28th Annual Environmental 

Systems Research Institute (ESRI) International 

User Conference 2008 in San Diego, California, 

from among 100,000 user organisations 

worldwide, for demonstrating vision and 

leadership in using GIS technology to better 

serve the world. 

CIO Asia Awards 2009 

LTA has won the annual CIO Asia Award 

three times in seven years, for its adoption 

of GIS technologies for decision-making 

and information dissemination within the 

organisation and across other government 

agencies. The Award recognises the top five 

Asian organisations that have made use of 

information and communications technology 

to obtain the greatest returns for their key 

operations and businesses. 

The next generation of GIS@LTA will 

support more LBS to benefit endusers, 

while planners will have access 

to a myriad of geospatial data at 

their fingertips to make effective and 

timely business decisions. 

IDC Enterprise Innovation 

Awards 2009 

LTA was among the top 10 institutions for its 

innovative approach in using emerging GIS 

technologies and IT processes to rejuvenate, 

sustain and empower business growth. The 

IDC Enterprise Innovation Award 2009 was

presented at IDC’s Asia Pacific CIO Summit on 

14 July 2009. 

Moving Forward 

With the Land Transport Masterplan setting 

the stage to double today’s 138 km Rapid 

Transit System (RTS) network to 278 km 

in the future, and expand road networks 

to serve new developments and support 

economic growth, GIS@LTA will play a pivotal 

role in supporting land transport planning and 

development efforts. 


LTA’s GIS framework needs to remain agile 

and nimble, yet be robust enough to respond 

to the fast changing business needs. The next 

generation of GIS@LTA will support more 

LBS to benefit end-users, while planners will 

have access to a myriad of geospatial data at 

their fingertips to make effective and timely 

business decisions. 

Acknowledgements 

I would like to thank Lem Kiah Chen and Jonah Ong from 

the Application Services 1 Division, and Chan Bee Ling 

from the Development & Building Control Division for 

their efforts in gathering the information for this paper. 

Rosina Howe is the Group Director of the Innovation and InfoComm Technology 

Group in the Land Transport Authority, Singapore. She is also the Chief Innovation 

Officer at LTA where she plays a significant role in charting strategic directions 

through value innovation and technology breakthroughs to meet LTA’s vision of 

providing a people-centred land transport system. Mrs Howe spearheads the 

Innovation Steering Committee in formulating and implementing LTA’s Vision 

and Strategy for Innovation. She also chairs the Land Transport Innovation 

Fund Committee which catalyses LTA’s collaborative efforts with its local and 

overseas partners in land transport research and development to realise the Singapore Urban Transport 

Solution initiative. 


Urban Transportation Planning for a Vibrant and Distinctive Singapore 

Urban Transportation Planning for a 

Vibrant and Distinctive Singapore 

Michael QUAH and Dickson YEO 

Abstract 

Singapore’s Economic Strategies Committee in early 2010 issued a series of 

recommendations towards making Singapore a “vibrant and distinctive global city... 

open and diverse, the best place to grow and reach out to a rising Asia, and a home 

that provides an outstanding quality of life for our people.” This paper explores the 

role of urban transportation planning as one of many factors that could contribute to 

this vision. 

Singapore’s well-articulated plans to test-bed electric vehicles dovetail well with its 

vision for a “smart energy economy” – an example to Asia. We will focus primarily on 

the pros and cons of vehicle electrification; issues more complex than is often simplified 

by purveyors of new technologies. 

Introduction 

Singapore, with its Rapid Transit Systems 

(RTS), buses, taxis, its control of private 

vehicle ownership and usage through the 

Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) scheme, vehicle 

tax schemes and the annual quota for growth 

of the private vehicle fleet, is to be lauded 

for striking an appropriate balance between 

economic efficiency, satisfying demand 

for better transportation and managing 

traffic congestion. 

In fact, the ERP systems in place in Singapore, 

the signboards of the parking guidance system, 

the speed-trap cameras, the proliferation of 

GPSs, in totality, all provide the foundation for 

an Intelligent Transport System (ITS), which 

could in the future: 

42 


• Reduce accidents, by enabling vehicle-tovehicle 

(V2V) communications 

• Allow for individual vehicles to communicate 

seamlessly with traffic signals, i.e., vehicleto-infrastructure 

(V2I) communications, 

enabling smoother traffic flows [these 

may be based on Dedicated Short Range 

Communications (DSRC) technologies] 

• Provide real-time relevant traffic and 

weather data to all vehicles (also V2I), and 

• Enable data capture for traffic management, 

over time, to assess and improve upon 

multi-modal transportation performance. 

Beyond the safety aspects, such systems provide 

environmental benefits in reducing tail-pipe 

emissions from idling vehicles and thus improve 

overall energy efficiency and fuel savings.

Exploring vehicle electrification 

The Energy Studies Institute (ESI), Singapore is 

committed to researching all forms of energy 

usage in the regional landscape. The recent 

interest in electric vehicles (EVs) (Figure 1) 

has been analysed by Wong Yuk Sam. He 

has offered a series of observations on the 

EV phenomenon and how it would impact 

our energy environment. Here are some 

conclusions from his studies (Wong 2009). 

Figure 1: Electric Vehicle on sale (Mitsubishi iMiEV) 

Energy consumption and CO 2 emission 

reductions are achieved by (1) reducing energy 

demand and (2) improving system efficiency. 

Among land vehicles in Singapore, Hybrid 

Electric Vehicles (HEVs), Plug-in Hybrid Electric 

Vehicles (PHEVs) and EVs are viable to replace 

gasoline Internal Combustion Engine Vehicles 

(ICEVs) to reduce total energy consumption 

and CO emissions from land vehicles. While 

2 

electricity harnessed from solar and wind in 

Singapore would theoretically be zero-carbon, 

it would not be sufficient to feed PHEVs and 

HEVs, given the small land area in Singapore. 

However, given that most of Singapore’s 

electricity is generated from Natural Gas 


(NG) in Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) 

power plants, switching some fraction of 

the automotive fuel diet from petrol and 

diesel to electricity (hence natural gas) would 

effectively reduce carbon emissions, as 

natural gas is a cleaner burning fuel. More 

importantly, it moves the various fugitive 

point source emissions to those at the power 

plants, allowing for easier carbon capture by 

CO smoke stack scrubbers, thus effectively 

2 

reducing the amount of emissions. 

In 2008, the total energy consumption from 

gasoline cars is 327 million gge (gallon gasoline 

equivalent) and the CO emissions total 3.24 

2 

million US tonnes. HEVs can reduce the energy 

consumption by up to 39% and reduce the 

CO emission by up to 39%. PHEVs can reduce 

2 

the energy consumption by up to 46% and 

reduce the CO emission by up to 54%. 

2 

The graphic (Figure 2) taken from Wong’s 

(2009) study represents our continuing studies 

at ESI to further analyse all types of energy 

sources for propulsion systems, including the 

future role of nuclear electricity in providing 

zero-carbon electricity for power generation 

Figure 2: The energy supply chain for vehicle 

electrification 



and for the EVs (Figure 3) of the future. In a 

separate study by Michael Quah (2009), biomass 

sources for the production of bio-diesel 

and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are further 

considered (Quah 2009). The key lessons from 

that study are the following: 

Figure 3: Renault Fluence Z.E. Concept, an 

electric vehicle 

• in the quest for energy security, energy 

diversity is key, and in the future, all 

possible sources of energy must be taken 

into consideration 

• for urban populations, there may be no 

need to move to fuel cell vehicles (as in 

the case of large countries, such as the 

US) because such power sources are more 

suited to long-range driving to minimise 

time between fuelling up 

• for urban populations with short-distance 

driving patterns as in Singapore, EVs (from 

PHEVs to HEVs to full EVs) may be the 

best options for private vehicles, although 

further improvements in energy storage 

systems, such as batteries and capacitors, 

and charging stations need to explored. 

Hence, the many test-bedding programmes 

being currently conducted in Singapore 

44 


will help contribute to our holistic “systems 

of systems” approaches to meeting the 

challenges of the future. For example, the 

Experimental Power Grid Centre (previously 

known as SINERGY Centre) at A*STAR, 

focusing on intelligent grids, micro-grids 

and Distributed Energy Resources (DER), 

will provide plug-and-play capabilities and 

core research competencies in analysis and 

modelling, interconnection technologies, and 

advanced system control and management. 

These disciplines are critical to supporting 

the EV programmes as well as the vehicle-togrid 

(V2G) and V2I interactions of the future. 

Similarly, the Energy Market Authority (EMA) 

Pulau Ubin project on micro-grids will assist 

in understanding system interactions vital for 

a future “smart energy system” in Singapore. 

And so will the Energy Research Institute at 

NTU (ERI@N), with its work on energy storage, 

modelling, advanced metreing, and command 

and control systems. 

In the quest for energy security, 

energy diversity is key, and in the 

future, all possible sources of energy 

must be taken into consideration. 

What is impressive is that the variety of 

science and technology programmes (both 

fundamental and applied, as in test-bedding 

programmes) taken as a whole provides 

Singapore the tools to further advance 

urban transportation innovations and 

implementations; but, as in all “systems of 

systems” approaches, we must consider the 

pros and cons of policy implementation.

Vehicle Electrification: 

Potential pitfalls versus 

technology advantages 

With the underlying assumption that Singapore 

is beginning to test-bed the use of EVs, as 

being jointly driven by the EMA and the Land 

Transport Authority (LTA), we will examine 

the pros and cons of the transformation in 

the vehicle powertrain. We assert that this 

transition would be no simple task given the 

complex interactions among: 

• consumer preference and choice 

• public transportation policy 

• corporate and industrial pressures for 

governmental subsidies for new technologies 

(as is evident in the West) and 

• advocacy from renewable energy sector 

private investors interested in public 

funding. 

Singapore could become the 

region’s first successful example of 

a truly distributed energy network 

with a flourishing private power 

generation market. 

The potential rewards are understandably 

satisfying: 

• a partial divorce between road 

transportation and dependence on the 

“liquid” fossil fuel diets (and hence the 

oil markets) 

• a decrease in Singapore’s net emissions 

(because of Singapore’s primarily natural 

gas sources for power generation) and 

• new technologies and new business sectors 

for economic growth. 


With increasing electrification and the ITS 

innovations described earlier, centralised 

control of traffic flow and more efficient urban 

policies can all stem from success in electrifying 

the vehicle fleet. Equally importantly, 

mass increase in EVs provides a tantalising 

test-bed for a series of innovative energy 

generation and storage options: Singapore 

could become the region’s first successful 

example of a truly distributed energy network 

with a flourishing private power generation 

market which accommodates both legacy 

power plants and private individuals. Such a 

“systems of systems” integration could not 

be achieved without government establishing 

a framework for market interactions. But a 

whole-of-government approach is essential 

for leadership in establishing new industrial 

policies, balancing sophisticated technology 

investments without the government picking 

the winners in a complex network of vendors. 

Behavioural economics will have to come into 

play, where consumers may begin to consider 

that all types of EVs are safe, user-friendly and 

superior to the internal combustion engine 

(ICE): a formidable challenge for public -private 

sector collaboration. 

Behavioural Economics: 

Do people really prefer electrons 

over petrol or diesel? 

The lessons learned from the adoption of 

electric two-wheelers (E2W) in China and 

Taiwan might be crucial. A number of factors 

contributed to the demand in metropolitan 

China: the rapid increase in per capita income, 

rising concern of the pollution levels from 

ICEs, traffic congestion and the official ban 



on fossil-fuelled two-wheelers in metropolitan 

zones within China (Wienert 2008). The last 

factor is widely understood to be crucial to 

the rapid increase in demand for electrical 

replacements; consumers are simply turning 

to the most viable alternatives. This is a 

tough lesson for other countries seeking to 

adopt EV fleets: is the law as a stick the best 

encouragement for change? 

How would Singapore do? The China and 

Taiwan approach is likely to be unpalatable to 

proponents of market-based solutions who 

prefer to see consumers switching to EVs on 

their own accord (Wienert 2008). A legal ban on 

ICEVs on segments of Singapore roads would 

raise many questions (and many possibilities.) 

But a multi-government agency with a wholeof-government 

approach would have to be 

first established to provide options, e.g., rapidly 

engineer the electrical-charging infrastructure 

necessary to keep the EVs and electric bicycles 

on those segments of road. While the EV 

test-bedding programme is a good start, the 

entire car re-sale market would have to be 

actively tweaked by the government in order 

for existing car owners to gradually phase out 

their current vehicles; an ample adjustment 

period to alleviate any economic woes caused 

by the new policies is needed. Major cardealers 

and parallel importers would have to 

be persuaded to market EVs (Figure 4). And 

how is this to be achieved? We suggest that a 

study of the politics of subsidies and incentives 

and economic policy be expedited to ensure 

mass consumer confidence in new products, 

new systems, new technologies, given that 

there remains many rate-limiting steps, such 

46 


as improvements needed in energy storage 

systems and systems for better monitoring 

and control of power flows within the vehicle 

and from grid-to-vehicle (G2V) and from V2G 

(Anderson 2009). Singapore could emerge as 

an international leader in the implementation 

(test-bedding) of EV technology with its 

attendant corporate consulting benefits and 

R&D leadership. However, the social-economic 

costs in doing so must be well-considered. 

Figure 4: Electric Vehicle on sale (Nissan Leaf) 

In Singapore, the current view is that through a 

system of government-sponsored and private 

sector-driven corporate incentives, the sticker 

price of any EV (HEVs, PHEVs, or EVs) would 

decline to levels palatable to the average 

motorist. The Chinese experience with E2Ws 

indicates that short of an outright ban on 

ICEVs, the public was unprepared to accept 

EVs as a general rule; one author has termed it 

“a policy accident, rather than success” (Yang 

2010). In Taiwan, motorists were not prepared 

to accept EVs even when prices were on par 

or below that of conventional cars, motorbikes 

and scooters (Yang 2010). The PHEV combines 

the positive attributes of EVs and the ICE, 

but in the event where the driver forgets to 

charge the vehicle over-night, the efficiency 

factor of a PHEV plummets as the battery

on board simply becomes a dead weight 

to the conventional engine and consumes 

unnecessary fuel (Yang 2010). Even the most 

efficient lithium-ion batteries used in today’s 

cutting edge car models like the GM Chevrolet 

Volt have much less energy storage capacity 

compared to traditional ICE cars. Although 

urban transportation patterns seem to indicate 

that most people would drive much less than 

the total energy requirement for EVs, breaking 

established patterns on car-refuelling might 

prove to be the Achilles heel for road vehicle 

electrification. Consumer behaviour related to 

driving habits, re-fuelling and the willingness 

of drivers to re-charge their cars regularly, 

all have to be examined much more closely 

in the Singapore context before policies can 

be implemented (Yang 2010). 

The PHEV combines the positive 

attributes of EVs and the ICE, but in 

the event where the driver forgets 

to charge the vehicle over-night, the 

efficiency factor of a PHEV plummets 

as the battery on board simply 

becomes a dead weight. 

Perhaps the most difficult component would 

be the paying of subsidies for the EV roll out 

in Singapore. There is much international 

chatter with regards to governments offering 

partial financial assistance to car companies, 

infrastructure providers, electrical utilities 

companies and, ultimately, consumers, to 

commercialize EV technology on a mass 

scale (Anderson 2009). Once again, in the 

Singapore context, this approach runs counter 

to current policy on curbing private vehicle 


usage and establishing an unfettered market 

on energy. In addition, there has to be a 

sustained political will to withstand the costs 

of doing so; an entire bevy of international 

consultants, financiers, researchers, policy 

makers and scientists will stand to gain a 

financial windfall from any local government 

largesse. The political endorsement for 

such a move has to be sustained for an 

indefinite period before we see the results. 

Consumer behaviour related to 

driving habits, re-fuelling and the 

willingness of drivers to re-charge 

their cars regularly, all have to be 

examined much more closely… 

But Singapore is well-recognised for its 

commitment to industrial policy and growth 

development. EVs are now fashionably touted 

in the international arena and in the US, the 

lobbyists for vested interests in this arena are 

plentiful. We contend that a holistic “systems 

of systems” technological and economic 

study be conducted to make the public fully 

aware of the social and economic cost of 

implementing such policies as well as the 

potential economic benefits of new industrial 

innovation in Singapore. 

Carbon pricing, by rewarding Singapore 

for the offset of CO emissions from road 

2 

vehicles, coupled with any additional tax 

revenues from road pricing, could help to pay 

for the current added costs of EVs (Anderson 

2009). As mentioned earlier, there has to be 

a large degree of flexibility and strong publicprivate 

sector co-operation in order for this 



project to come to fruition. Singaporeans 

have to actively “buy-in” to the rewards of 

EVs and their attendant benefits. One of the 

low hanging fruits would be the creation of 

the first consumer-oriented market place for 

carbon emissions in the world; it is possible 

that private equity, whether from Singapore 

or other financial centres, can be used to 

lubricate the transition process and help 

to pay for the government investments in 

the transition to EVs. The potential job and 

revenue spin-offs from participating in the 

carbon markets have been addressed by Tilak 

Doshi (2009). But once again, there has to 

be a concerted political effort to analyse the 

macro-economic impact of implementing a 

carbon marketplace/taxation effort. But as 

we work the carbon tax or cap-n-trade issues, 

consider its impact (negative?) on Singapore’s 

petro-chemical and international logistics 

sector which generate a majority of the 

carbon emissions in operations and bunkering 

while contributing tremendously to the islandstate’s 

economy. 

Changing the industrial 

architecture of road vehicle 

electrification 

The much touted association between EVs 

and renewable energy sources, such as, wind 

and solar lies in the usage of the electricity 

storage capacity of these vehicles when they 

are at rest, known as V2G (Anderson 2009). 

Essentially, the vehicles absorb the electricity 

generated by renewable sources and redistribute 

it through the national grid; this 

helps to offset the peaks and troughs for 

renewable energy generation at all hours of 

the day. 

48 


EVs are now fashionably touted in 

the international arena... We contend 

that a holistic “systems of systems” 

technological and economic study be 

conducted to make the public fully 

aware of the social and economic cost 

of implementing such policies. 

Figure 5 illustrates the uneven nature of 

energy generation of the wind energy sector 

in Denmark, which theoretically could be 

offset by V2G technology. 

The complication lies in the implementation 

of this technique in Singapore. The amount 

of electricity generated by renewable energy 

remains negligible in the domestic Singapore 

electricity market, as mentioned earlier; natural 

gas powered turbines which are much more 

regular in energy generation remain the status 

quo. Hence, implementing a V2G solution 

would have much more different implications 

for the supply and demand structure of the 

power grid locally. 

Singapore is accustomed to separating the 

energy demand for transportation and 

electrical power. Combining these two areas 

means that an entirely new perspective on 

energy has to be formed; we will be witnessing 

a rapid increase in demand for electricity at all 

hours. The market case for renewable energy 

sources remains to be proven in the Singapore 

context and further investigation into its 

reliability in providing concentrated power 

for distributed, private transportation remains 

to be seen. LTA could collaborate with public

infrastructure providers or with customers with 

large roof areas to encourage the re-sale of 

excess electricity from vehicle owners, thereby 

creating a new market for small scale private 

holders in the domestic scene. However, 

ensuring that there is sufficient power for 

vehicles at all hours of the day would involve 

complex software and hardware co-ordination 

along with centrally allocated electricity blocs 

throughout the island. From a common sense 

perspective, motorists might not be able 

to use their vehicles at all hours of the day, 

given such an arrangement. Hence, consumer 

behaviour has to be changed, either through 

market persuasion or government regulation. 

Figure 5: Wind energy and electricity consumption 

in Western Denmark power grid 

Excerpted from Paul H. Anderson (2009) p.2484 

These are basic hurdles which have to be 

examined more thoroughly. A first step to 

solving this conundrum would be to electrify 

the road vehicle fleet of the 2 major public 

transportation providers; the fixed schedules 

of the various buses would be a much more 

predictable format for initial field tests of V2G. 

Financing the public transportation companies 

to make the switch from diesel and petroleum 

would be another attendant issue. 


This focus on vehicle electrification serves to 

illustrate four major points of our paper: 

• such transitions would provide major 

economic benefits to Singapore in its 

re-engineering to participate in new 

technology innovations and hence new 

business and economic developments 

• however, the socio-economic costs nearterm 

and the remaining technological and 

system infrastructural challenges must not 

be underestimated, 

• hence, a holistic “systems of systems” 

analysis/study is paramount, because 

• in meeting the above challenges, Singapore 

could take the lead in vehicle electrification 

business developments, while striking the 

balance between private vehicles and the 

importance of public transit. 

LTA has shown that meeting urban 

transportation challenges today with 

a grand vision for tomorrow will 

indeed catalyse economic growth, and 

technological innovation with minimal 

environmental impact. 

Conclusion 

Given the above programmes in Singapore (the 

balance of promoting public transit versus the 

“control” of the growth of private vehicles, the 

decision to gradually electrify the automobile 

to reduce emissions, and the advancement 

of “smart energy systems” leading to future 

intelligent transportation systems), we contend 

that this nation has begun the journey towards 

emerging as a leading test-bed for innovative 

energy solutions for the transportation 

industry. Keeping in mind Singapore’s physical 



constraints and the imperative for innovation 

and continuous improvement, there emerges 

one important conclusion: a holistic “system 

of systems” integration across multiple 

disciplines (and thus agencies) must be further 

strengthened to achieve success. LTA has 

shown that meeting urban transportation 

challenges today with a grand vision for 

tomorrow will indeed catalyse economic 

growth, and technological innovation with 

References 

Andersen, Poul H. John A. Matthews, Morten Rask, 

2009. “Integrating private transport into renewable 

energy policy: The strategy of creating intelligent 

recharging grids for electric vehicles” Energy Policy 37 

(2009) pp 2483 

Doshi, Tilak 2009. “Singapore can be a carbon trading 

hub for ships” Straits Times 15 December 2009 

Friedman, Thomas L. 2008 “Hot, Flat, and Crowded”, 

Farrer, Strauss and Giroux, New York, 2008 

Quah Cheng-Guan, Michael, 2009, “Crafting a 

Technology Roadmap Towards Energy Security and 

Environmental Sustainability in Singapore: Beginning the 

Journey”, ESI Project Report, August 2009 

50 


minimal environmental impact. As such, we 

are on our way to becoming a “vibrant and 

distinctive global city.” Indeed, if our urban 

environment could evolve to the standards set 

by Changi airport, then Thomas Friedman’s 

quotation, when he described his trip from 

New York’s JFK airport to Changi as “like we 

had just flown from the Flintstones to the 

Jetsons,” (Friedman 2008) may also apply to 

Singapore’s urban transportation system. 

Wienert, Jonathan, Joan Ogden, Dan Sperling, Andrew 

Burke, 2008. “The future of electric two-wheelers 

and electric vehicles in China” Energy Policy 36 (2008) 

pp 2544 

Wong Yuk Sum, 2009. “Energy and Carbon Dioxide 

Benefits of Hybrid, Plug-in Hybrid and Battery Electric 

Vehicles to Singapore” 1st July 2009 ESI Project Report 

Yang, Chi-Jen 2010 “Launching strategy for electric 

vehicles: Lessons from China and Taiwan” Technological 

Forecasting & Social Change (2010), doi:10.1016/j. 

techfore.2010.01.010 P 2,3


Michael Quah joined the National University of Singapore’s (NUS) Energy 

Studies Institute (ESI) as Principal Fellow and Chief Scientist, Energy Systems 

and Technology in October, 2009. He is also a Visiting Fellow at the Institute 

of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS), and Executive Advisor at NUS Enterprise. 

He has worked for the DuPont Company for about 20 years, and also served as 

Adjunct Professor, Chemical Engineering, at North Carolina State University, 

USA. He was also an independent consultant and served in the US Army 

Research, Development, and Engineering Command, Communications and 

Electronics Directorate. Dr. Quah holds the following degrees from Yale University: Ph.D. (1980), M. 

Phil. (1978), M.Sc. (1975), Chemical Engineering and has a B.A. [magna cum laude] (1974), Chemistry 

and Physics, from Harvard University, USA. 

Dickson Yeo has a BA in Mass Communications from the Oklahoma City 

University and is attending the graduate programme in South East Asian 

Studies in National University of Singapore (NUS), Singapore. He has cowritten 

and edited a number of energy related works on energy security, 

regional politics and administration. These include “A Regional Review of the 

Economics of Climate Change in Southeast Asia (RRECCS) – Country Report 

for Singapore” in December 2008. 


Household Interview Surveys from 1997 to 2008 – A Decade of Changing Travel Behaviours 

Household Interview Surveys from 

1997 to 2008 – A Decade of Changing 

Travel Behaviours 

CHOI Chik Cheong and Raymond TOH 

Abstract 

The Land Transport Authority (LTA) conducts the Household Interview Travel Survey 

(HITS) every four to five years to give transport planners and policy makers insights into 

residents’ travelling behaviours. About one percent of all the households in Singapore are 

surveyed each time, with household members answering detailed questions about their 

trips. A decade of such travel surveys has provided vital insights about the commuting 

behaviours of Singapore’s residents and their evolving travelling patterns. The analyses 

from 1997 and 2004 HITS (which was subsequently confirmed by the 2008 HITS results) 

were helpful in understanding some of the challenges and policy issues that Singapore’s 

transport landscape faces going forward. An ambitious Land Transport Masterplan 

(LTMP) was consequently unveiled in 2008 to address these challenges. 

Introduction 

Travel is an integral part of life. People 

choose to travel for various reasons – work, 

education, recreation, leisure and other 

social activities. However, travel behaviour is 

strongly influenced by a country’s social and 

economic development, and understanding 

the way people travel and their reasons for 

travelling is vital for transport professionals 

to formulate transport strategies and policies. 

Thus, the Household Interview Travel Survey 

(HITS) is an important information-gathering 

tool of the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to 

acquire feedback on the travel behaviour of 

Singapore residents. 

HITS is an intensive process of studying the 

travel behaviour of every member above the 

52 


age of four in the households surveyed. It is 

conducted regularly, once every four to five 

years1 , with about one percent of Singapore 

households distributed across the island 

surveyed each time. 2 Detailed questions about 

the characteristics of trips made in a typical 

day are asked and these include questions 

on transport mode, frequency of trips, travel 

purpose and time of travel, along with other 

questions pertaining to the respondents’ 

socio-economic characteristics. 

Though the HITS is a time consuming exercise, 

it provides essential information for the 

transport planners and policy makers in their 

ongoing work. The information gathered 

from the surveys gives feedback about 

residents’ travel needs and the adequacy of


the existing infrastructure, and helps transport 

professionals understand travel behaviour. 

Analysis of the results gives insights as to how 

the travel behaviours evolve and allows planners 

and policy makers to develop strategies and 

policies to meet these challenges. 

HITS is an intensive process of 

studying the travel behaviour of every 

member above the age of four in the 

households surveyed. 

This paper presents a decade of travel survey 

results from the HITS and highlights some 

of the changes in Singapore residents’ travel 

behaviour that have been observed. We will 

conclude with a review of the Land Transport 

Masterplan which was unveiled by LTA in 2008 

and highlight how the earlier survey results 

influence the development of the master plan 

and how it addresses some of the challenges 

arising from the changing travel behaviours. 

Singapore Residents’ Travel 

Behaviours 

Trip generation 

With an expanding economy and increasing 

population in Singapore, it is not surprising 

to see that travel demand had increased 

tremendously over the past decade (Figure 1). 

In 2008, an average of 9.9 million trips were 

generated daily – a growth of 32 percent from 

1997, which saw only 7.5 million daily trips. 

Between 1997 and 2004, the growth rate was 

only 10 percent (1.3% per annum), while 2004 

and 2008 saw a growth rate of 20 percent 

(4.8% per annum), suggesting accelerated 

growth in travel demand. 

In the same figure, the growth rates of 

different transport modes were given. Private 

transport (PV) trips grew steadily; from 2.7 

million daily trips in 1997 to 3.4 million in 

2004, and 4.3 million in 2008 – an average 

growth rate of 25 percent between survey 

years. In the same period, public transport 

(PT) trips did not as grow much; PT trips grew 

marginally between 1997 and 2004, and grew 

by 16 percent between 2004 and 2008. The 

overall impact of the different growth rates is 

that PT mode share has actually declined over 

the past decade. 

Figure 1: Daily Trips Generated 

No. No. of of Daily Trips (‘000) 

12,000 

10,000 

8,000 

6,000 

4,000 

2,000 

0 

Total 

Trips: 

7,500 

PV 

2,700 

HITS 1997 

Total: +10% 

PV: +26% 

PT: +1% 

PT 

4,800 

Total 

Trips: 

8,200 

PV 

3,400 

PT 

4,800 

Total: +20% 

PV: +25% 

PT: +16% 

Total 

Trips: 

9,900 

PV 

4,300 

PT 

5,600 

HITS 2004 HITS 2008 

(Note: Numbers are rounded off) 

The number of trips grew rapidly over the decade with private 

transport trips growing faster than public transport 

There are many reasons for the rapid 

growth in trips. Key factors affecting trip 

generation are the pace of Singapore’s 

economic development and the growth in 

population. According to Table 1, Singapore’s 

population had grown from 3.8 million to 

4.8 million between 1997 and 2008, a 26 

percent increase. Economic activity also grew 

tremendously during the period, as seen from 

the second and third columns of Table 1. More 

significantly, Singapore’s real GDP per capita 



Table 1: Singapore Population, GDP per Capita, Economic Activities and Daily Trips Made 

grew by 33 percent between 1997 and 2008, 

matching the growth rates in trips, suggesting 

that there is a close relationship between 

economic development and travel demand. 

However, the increase in trips generated 

cannot be attributed to economic activities 

alone. It is found that in 2008, each person 

made an average of 2.18 trips on a typical 

day (Table 1), an increase from previous 

survey years when the trip rates were 1.98 

and 1.97 trips per person in 1997 and 2004, 

respectively. Taking into account Singapore’s 

unemployment rates during the survey years, 

trip rates below 2.0 are to be expected. This 

explains why the trip rate dropped slightly in 

2004 as unemployment rose. However, as 

the employment situation improved in 2008, 

54 

Year Population 

(mil) 

GDP per Capita 

($’000 at 2000 prices)^ 

Resident 

Unemployment Rate* 


Daily Trips 

(mil) 

Daily Trips 

Per Capita 

1997 3.8 36.2 3.5% + 7.5 1.98 

2004 4.2 (11%) 44.2 (22%) 4.4% 8.2 1.97 

2008 4.8 (14%) 48.3 (9%) 3.2% 9.9 2.18 

(Note: Numbers are rounded off; figures in brackets refer to the change from the previous period.) 

^ From Singapore Department of Statistics’ website (http://www.singstat.gov.sg/) 

* From Ministry of Manpower’s website (www.mom.gov.sg) 

+ This is 1998’s unemployment rate as the 1997 figure is not available. 

Table 2: Purpose for Travelling (Forward Trips Only) 

the trip rate overshot the 2.0 benchmark, 

suggesting that individuals were making more 

discretionary trips that were driven by social 

and leisure activities. 

Based on the questions on trip purpose, it is 

possible to better understand the reasons for 

travelling. As seen from Table 2, most of the 

journeys generated are to and from homes 

and workplaces and for personal business 

and educational purposes – together they 

accounted for close to 80 percent of all 

the daily trips. This result had not changed 

drastically for the decade. However, a trend 

observed is that more private vehicle trips 

were made in servicing passengers3 (pick up 

or drop off) as the proportion of such trips had 

increased from 6 – 7 percent (about 500,000 

Purpose HITS 1997 HITS 2004 HITS 2008 

Go home 43% 45% 45% 

Go to workplace 25% 23% 21% 

Part of work (Travelling on business) 4% 3% 2% 

Go to school 8% 8% 10% 

Home/Work/School Sub Total 79% 79% 78% 

Personal business 4% 5% 3% 

Recreation/Social, Shopping and Eating 10% 10% 10% 

Other Reasons Sub Total 14% 15% 14% 

Serve Passenger (eg: pick up/drop off) 7% 6% 8% 

(Note: Numbers are rounded off.) 

The proportion of work/education related trips remained stable while there is a growing trend of more trips servicing passengers


daily trips) to 8 percent (775,000 daily trips) 

(Table 2). 

The growing number of passenger servicing 

trips should raise a red flag to transport 

planners as they are usually first-and-last 

mile trips that could have been completed 

on the PT network and thus avoided entirely. 

Growing demand for passenger servicing will 

put additional pressure on the road network. 

Already, Singapore cars are clocking very high 

mileage annually4 because car-owners tend 

to use their cars even for very short journeys. 

If such short journeys could be avoided, the 

demand on road space would lessen and there 

would be less pressure to expand existing 

road infrastructure, especially in the residential 

developments and key transport facilities. 

As the economy develops, we can expect 

more social or leisure (discretionary) trips, 

thus, there is a need to alter the current 

trend of making these trips by private 

transport. Commuters need to be persuaded 

to use alternative modes of transport, such 

as, PT or cycling or walking, for short trips, 

so that there can be better utilisation of PT 

resources and less demand on the limited 

road space. In land-scare Singapore, such 

outcomes are desirable. 

Mode share 

We have seen earlier that the daily PV trips had 

grown much faster than PT trips. This resulted in 

the daily PT mode share dropping consistently 

for the past decade, from 63 percent in 1997 

to 58 percent in 2004, and even lower to 56 

percent in the 2008 survey (Figure 2). Though 

the rate of decrease has fallen, the trend, if 

it continues, is not a sustainable one because 

of the corresponding increasing reliance on 

private vehicles. 

Figure 2: PT Mode Share 

Mode Share (%) 

70% 

65% 

60% 

55% 

67% 

AM PT mode share: 

-4% (-0.9% p.a.) 

63% 63% 

58% 

AM PT mode share: 

-4% (-1.5% p.a.) 

59% 

56% 

AM Peak 

Daily 

50% 

HITS 1997 HITS 2004 HITS 2008 

The daily mode share for PT has dropped from 63% in 1997 to 56% in 

2008. The same trend is observed for AM peak mode share 

One of the reasons for the fall in PT mode 

share is the increase in car population per 

capita. Figure 3 shows that the car population 

had grown significantly by 47 percent between 

19985 and 2008, faster than the population 

growth rate of 26 percent. As a result, more 

people are owning cars now and the ratio for 

the number of persons per car has changed 

from 10 persons per car in both 1997 and 2004 

to 8.8 in 2008. As discussed earlier, Singapore 

car owners used their cars rather intensively, 

Figure 3: Car Population 

Car Population (‘000) 

600 Growth in car population: 

11%, 1.2%p.a. 

500 

400 

300 

200 

100 

377 385 395 

408 407 408 

Steep growth in car 

population: 32%, 7%p.a. 

0 

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 

The car population has been increasing steadily from 1998 


419 

441 

475 

517 

553


thus, a rapid increase in car population would 

dampen the growth in PT trips. 

Figure 4: Market Share Within the PT Sector 

Cumulative Mode Share (%) 

The demand for MRT is growing much faster than buses, resulting in a 

higher mode share for MRT 

Within the PT sector, the mode share is currently 

dominated by buses. However, from Figure 5, 

we observe that most of the increase in PT trips 

is from the increase in demand for mass rapid 

transit (MRT). Figure 4 shows that 0.93 million 

daily MRT trips (0.24 trips per capita) were 

generated in 1997, growing to 1.3 million (0.31 

trips per capita) in 2004, and 1.7 million (0.35 

trips per capita) in 2008 – almost doubling in 

ten years. The market share of MRT within the 

PT industry has risen by 12 percentage points 

to stand at 31 percent, with the bulk of the 

increase arising due to decanting from bus 

ridership, which consequently saw a gradual 

drop in market share. 

Factors affecting PT demand 

To better appreciate the factors affecting 

demand for each mode of transport, Figure 5 

gives the share breakdown of various transport 

modes against income levels. 

56 

100% 

80% 

60% 

40% 

20% 

0% 

20% 0.24 taxi 

0.93 mil trips per 

capita 

61% 

2.91 mil 

19% 

0.92 mil 

0.77 bus 

trips per 

capita 

0.24 rail 

trips per 

capita 

18% 

0.87 mil 

55% 

2.65 mil 

27% 

1.3 mil 

0.21 taxi 

trips per 

capita 

0.63 bus 

trips per 

capita 

0.31 rail 

trips per 

capita 

55% 

3.09 mil 

31% 

1.7 mil 

HITS 1997 HITS 2004 HITS 2008 

MRT/LRT Buses Taxi 

14% 

0.78 mil 

0.16 taxi 

trips per 

capita 

0.64 bus 

trips per 

capita 

0.35 rail 

trips per 

capita 


Figure 5: PT mode breakdown by income levels 


100% 

80% 

60% 

40% 

20% 

0% 

No 

Income 

$1 – 

$1,000 

Taxi 

Bus 

MRT/LRT 

$1,001 – $1,500 – $2,000 – $2,500 – $3,000 – $4,000 – $5,000 – $6,000 – $7,000 – $8,000 

$1,499 $1,999 $2,499 $2,999 $3,999 $4,999 $5,999 $6,999 $7,999 and 

above 

Income Level 

Mode share for MRT remains stable across all income levels 

It shows that MRT mode share remained 

constant over the various income levels. At 

each income level, the MRT mode share was 

above 10 percent and rose to as high as 20 

percent for the middle-income group ($2,001 – 

$3,999). The mode share for buses was 

highest for the low-income group but quickly 

tapered off for those with incomes higher 

than $2,000. Taxis played an important mode 

of travel across all income bands because of 

Singapore’s relatively low car ownership levels. 

Figure 6: Mode share vs distance from MRT Station 


100% 

80% 

60% 

40% 

20% 

0% 


the MRT station the lower the mode share. The 

PT mode share drops by a rate of 1.6 percent 

per 100m distance from the MRT station, and 

reaches a low of about 40 percent for people 

living 2 km from the station. 

The observation bodes well for transport 

planners. With the opening of the entire 

Circle Line (CCL) in 2011 and Downtown Line 

(DTL), Singapore residents will have greater 

accessibility to the rapid transit system (RTS) 6 

network. The LTMP also indicates a strong 

commitment to double the RTS network which 

implies that the likelihood of the population 

taking the PT will be higher for more people. 

Time of travel (Trip distribution) 

Time of travel (trip distribution) is of interest 

to the transport planners because it provides 

vital information for the planning of future 

transport infrastructure.The method employed 

to analyse the time of travel is based on the 

mid-trip time (the average of start and finish 

time of the trip). It gives a better indication 

of the distribution of travel demand on the 

transport network because at the mid-trip 

time, the trip makers are more likely to be 

actually present on the transport network 

than at the time of departure (Chandrasekar 

et. al. 1994). 

Over the ten years, it is observed that the 

peak of the morning peak had shifted earlier 

by an hour, and correspondingly the morning 

peak period had lengthened (Figure 7). The 

change could be due to the twin effects of the 

electronic road pricing (ERP) system and the 

introduction of flexible work times. 

Figure 7: Trip distribution in a typical day 

Distribution (%) 

9% 

8% 

7% 

6% 

5% 

4% 

3% 

2% 

1% 

0 

0.00 

1.00 

2.00 

3.00 

4.00 

5.00 

6.00 

7.00 

Hour Beginning HITS 1997 HITS 2004 HITS 2008 

The trip distribution in a typical day shows that the morning peak 

has shifted earlier and spread across a longer period 

The ERP was introduced in 1998 to price 

congested expressways and arterial roads. 7 

Its primary objective is to make road users 

more aware of the true cost of driving and 

the impact to traffic conditions if they choose 

to drive. With road pricing, road users are 

more likely to make conscious decisions about 

the need to drive, the time to make the trip 

and the route to take. One of the behaviour 

changes implied by the shift in the peak hour 

is that some drivers had begun to leave home 

earlier to avoid paying the ERP charges. 

Fundamental changes in work 

practices, such as, widespread 

telecommuting, that could eliminate 

work trips will likely reduce the peak 

period demand. 

Similarly, flexible work arrangement for 

employees meant that workers could reach 

their office within a stipulated time belt 

instead of precisely on the hour8 . This relieves 

the pressure on the transport infrastructure 

as employees stagger their arrival times at 

work. The scheme was introduced by the Civil 


8.00 

9.00 

10.00 

11.00 

12.00 

13.00 

14.00 

15.00 

16.00 

17.00 

18.00 

19.00 

20.00 

21.00 

22.00 

23.00


Service in the 1970s, but it only took off in 

the late 1990s/early 2000s when there was 

greater emphasis on work-life balance. The 

impact we observed is a wider morning peak. 

It should be noted that even with the shift 

in PT trips during the morning peak, traffic 

conditions have not improved significantly. 

Fundamental changes in work practices, such 

as, widespread telecommuting, that could 

eliminate work trips will likely reduce the peak 

period demand. 

Addressing the Evolving 

Travel Behaviours 

In 2008, the Land Transport Authority came 

up with a bold and ambitious transport master 

plan that sets out the vision for the land 

transport system in 2020. The Land Transport 

Masterplan (LTMP) contains many policies and 

initiatives and some of them resulted from 

a better understanding of travel behaviours 

from past HITS. The 2008 HITS which came 

out after the review further confirmed some of 

the trends and highlighted the pressing need 

for timely implementation of the initiatives in 

the LTMP. In this section, we briefly review 

a few of these initiatives, namely, increasing 

the use of ERP to manage travel demand, 

reducing the population of cars and making 

PT a choice mode. 

Managing travel demand 

through ERP 

From the HITS results, we can see the 

effectiveness of the ERP. Firstly, city-bound 

traffic (private vehicles going into the restricted 

zones) grew only 15 percent compared to 

58 


the island-wide vehicular journeys which 

grew 25 percent between 2004 and 2008. 

This suggests that traffic demand had been 

suppressed for areas that were priced by the 

ERP. Secondly, the trip distribution had also 

started to widen in the morning peak hours 

because of the imposition of the ERP and 

other policy changes. Therefore, the ERP has 

been effective in managing travel demand and 

ensuring better use of limited road resources. 

Table 3: Growth Rates of Traffic Volumes 

City-bound 

Traffic 

Island-wide 

Traffice 

Growth in Traffic Volumes 

15% 25% 

(Between 2004 and 2008) 

City-bound traffic going into the restricted zones grew less than the 

island-wide traffic 

Though ERP has been useful, the growing 

affluence of Singapore residents has led to a 

greater propensity to drive, which in turn has 

caused a significant increase in traffic volumes. 

With more cars on the road, congestion is 

now more prevalent, particularly during the 

peak periods. In the LTMP, LTA is committed 

to ensuring that the ERP remains effective in 

managing congestion. This includes refining 

the method of measuring traffic speeds to 

trigger ERP rate changes, changing the pricing 

structure and introducing more ERPs around 

the island to manage congestion in the 

city area. 

An important change is the restructuring of the 

ERP pricing mechanism. Instead of having many 

small adjustments, LTA will make larger rate 

increments so that the ERP charges can remain 

effective in influencing motorists’ behaviour. 

Instead of raising the incremental ERP charge

y $0.50, LTA will raise the incremental charge 

to $1.00. In addition, the starting charge for 

a new ERP gantry point will be increased from 

$1.00 to $2.00. These changes will improve 

the effectiveness of the ERP system, such that 

each time the ERP rates are adjusted, motorists 

who still choose to drive on priced roads will 

enjoy tangible improvements in traffic flows. 

Instead of having many small 

adjustments, LTA will make larger rate 

increments so that the ERP charges 

can remain effective in influencing 

motorists’ behaviour. 

Reducing car population 

Land in Singapore is scarce and building more 

roads is not a sustainable approach to managing 

traffic congestion. Therefore, LTA has to 

manage the growth in the car population. The 

Vehicle Quota System (VQS) was introduced 

in 1990 to restrict vehicle population growth, 

and the vehicle population growth was set at 

3 percent per annum. Over the past 15 years, 

the rate of total vehicle population growth 

has outstripped road development (Figure 8). 

Figure 8: Growth of Roads and Vehicle 

Population Index 

INDEX 

150 

140 

130 

120 

110 

100 

Vehicle Population 

The growth in vehicle population has outstripped the pace of 

road development 


Road Development 

1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 

Year 

The road growth rate has been only 1 percent 

per annum in the last 15 years and will drop to 

about half a percent per annum over the next 

15 years. Therefore, it is necessary to further 

limit the growth of the car population. 

HITS revealed the behavioural tendency of car 

owners to drive than use the PT even for short, 

discretionary trips. This trend has resulted in 

the rapid growth of PV trips. Therefore, in 

managing travel demand, LTA has to further 

restrict the growth of private vehicles to 

complement the ERP measures, so that the 

increasing demand for private trips may be 

arrested. In light of this, the vehicle quota 

growth has been reduced to 1.5% per annum 

from 2009 onwards, subject to further review 

in 2011. 

Making public transport a 

choice mode 

The initiatives with regards to private transport 

are only effective in suppressing the choice 

for PV mode. Overall demand for transport is 

still a derived demand, which means that as 

population grows and the economy develops, 

trip generation will not slow down. Thus, more 

needs to be done to avoid a choked transport 

system. Hence, the most important strategy is 

to make the public transport a choice mode 

for most of the population’s commute. 

As seen from Figure 5, the MRT is increasingly 

becoming a popular mode of transport. It is 

fast, efficient and good for long-distance 

commute. Even people in the high-income 

groups do not mind commuting on the MRT 

because of the comfort and speed. Therefore, 



expanding the RTS is the right strategy 

going forward to attract more people to use 

public transport. 

In the LTMP, the Government announced that 

it will commit over $20 billion to double the 

existing 138 km of rail network to 278 km. 

This will increase the RTS density from 31 km 

per million population today to 51 km per 

million population, comparable to cities like 

New York and London, and surpasses RTS 

densities in Hong Kong and Tokyo today. 

Within the city centre, commuters will be able 

to access an RTS station within a 400 metre 

radius, or a five-minute walk. As seen earlier in 

Figure 6, this improvement in the accessibility 

to the MRT will have positive impact on the 

mode share and create better utilisation of the 

PT facilities. 

To complement the RTS network, LTA will also 

spend resources to improve the bus system for 

better integration between the PT modes and 

ensure the success of Singapore’s ‘hub-and- 

60 

LTA will also spend resources to 

improve the bus system for better 

integration between the PT modes 

and ensure the success of Singapore’s 

‘hub-and-spoke’ public transport 

network. 

Notes 

1. There is a longer gap between 1997 and 2004 

surveys because the HITS was conducted only after 

Northeast Line (NEL) was opened in 2003. 

2. The sampling rate is kept constant so to be 

comparable across surveys. It is also consistent with 

the recommended home interview sampling rate 


spoke’ public transport network. Initiatives, 

such as, building integrated transport hubs 

and creating integrated fare structures, will 

enhance seamless bus-rail transfers. In addition, 

more bus priority schemes and premium bus 

services will greatly enhance the experience 

of bus passengers, thus improving the overall 

attractiveness of the PT system. In a nutshell, 

LTA is adopting a holistic approach to make 

the PT a choice mode for Singapore residents. 

Conclusion 

A decade of HITS has provided Singapore 

transport professionals with vital feedback 

about the travel behaviours of Singapore 

residents. The results have helped in making 

decisions about the types of transport 

infrastructure to be provided and the policies 

needed to make Singapore a liveable city. 

However, the observations on behaviour 

also presented many challenges in building a 

sustainable transport system. The solutions to 

some of the challenging transport issues have 

been provided in the Land Transport Master 

Plan. By adopting both pull and push measures, 

such as the expansion of the MRT network, 

reducing the car population and refining the 

ERP system, LTA aims to address the falling PT 

mode share and create a sustainable transport 

system for future generations of Singaporeans. 

of 1.5% to 0.5% for a population above 1 million. 

For HITS 2008, about 10,500 households were 

interviewed. 

3. Passenger servicing trips refer to trips made by 

motorists in picking-up or dropping-off passengers 

who are on their first/last mile. These motorists will


usually return to their place of origin and are not enroute 

to work/home. 

4. On average, cars in Singapore clock 20,000 km per 

year, comparable to cars in Chicago City. However, 

Singapore’s physical land mass is only 25 km long and 

48 km wide, so the statistics suggest that Singapore 

cars are driven excessively. 

5. The data for car population growth starts from 1998 

because a new road tax structure was implemented 

on 1 September 1998. 

6. The Rapid Transit System (RTS) refers to the 

Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and Light Rail Transit 

(LRT) systems. 

7. ERP was introduced in September 1998 to replace 

the manual Area Licensing Scheme (ALS) for the 

restricted zones (mainly in the Central Business 

District). At the same time, the road pricing scheme 

was also expanded to price major expressways when 

they are congested. In September 1999, the ERP was 

extended to some of the key arterial roads beyond 

the restricted zones. 

8. The Civil Service Flexi-hour is between 7.30 am and 

9.30 am. 

Acknowledgement 

We would like to acknowledge Lim Wee Liang for his 

contribution and assistance for this paper. 

References 

Chandrasekar, Piotr Olszewski, Wong Yiik Diew, 

John Polak, and Peter Jones. 1994. Analysis of Travel 

Behaviour in Singapore. Report prepared for Public 

Works Department. 

Land Transport Authority. 2008. Land Transport 

Master Plan. 

Choi Chik Cheong is Deputy Director, Content Development and 

Documentation with Land Transport Authority, Singapore. He has over 

15 years experience in overall integrated land-use and transport planning, 

covering road and rail studies on alignment and scheme appraisal, including 

economic and financial assessments for highway and public transport 

projects. He also conducted studies on evaluation of public transport fare 

structures, and traffic and commuter surveys. He has directed studies on bus 

planning, road pricing, car-parking standards and multi-criteria evaluation of 

transport schemes. He worked with urban planners to integrate LRTs into both old developments and 

new towns, and has over ten years experience in building and MRT construction. He has an MSc in 

Transport from Imperial College London, UK. 

Raymond Toh is currently an Economist in the Land Transport Authority, 

Singapore. He graduated from the National University of Singapore, majoring 

in Economics, and has previously worked in Singapore’s Ministry of Transport 

under strategic and corporate planning where he had a global overview of the 

issues facing Singapore’s transportation. He is currently involved in economic 

research in areas of commuters’ travel behavior and people’s perception of 

public transport. His research interest is in winning people over to make public 

transport their choice mode and to give up their cars for a better Singapore. 


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