Would you expect this statements come from a transit operator’s annual report? In fact, SMRT Corporation Ltd (SMRT), Singapore’s multi-modal public transport service provider offering integrated transport services island-wide, is among a number of rare cases in the world in which a transit operator is actually making money.
My visit to SMRT was hosted by Mr. Tay Ko San, Senior Manager of Control Operations from Rail Operations Division. He brought me around to ride the MRT system and visit a number of MRT stations. Mr. Tay mentioned that similar to transit operator in Hong Kong, SMRT diversified heavily in real estate, developing shopping areas near major MRT stations. In 2007, SMRT refurbished commercial spaces at 10 stations, adding 141 shops to the network. In 2007, this line of business brought in $9 million of profit.
In 2007, SMRT rail had 435 million passenger trips; about 1,280 thousand total passengers weekly. In Singapore, private car ownership is very costly and they employed a controlled traffic flow system into the city such as the electronic road pricing system (ERP). Thus, public transportation is very important to the city state.
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