A shuttle bus service that takes residents living in Marine Parade, MacPherson and Mountbatten to essential services in the towns is set to continue beyond its ongoing year-long pilot.
Usage of the service's seven routes is being monitored, and the routes may be tweaked in response to feedback.
Providing these updates, Manpower Minister and Marine Parade GRC MP Tan See Leng also said on April 6 that a few of the routes have registered very good take-up.
Asked for updates about the shuttle service that began on July 8, 2024, and if it would continue beyond the year-long pilot, Dr Tan said: "We intend to continue with that. Now, how the routes will be eventually tweaked, that is something that we will continue to work on with all our grassroots leaders on the ground."
He was speaking to reporters at Kampong Ubi Community Centre, where the Marine Parade MPs launched two community initiatives.
Called WeCare Shuttle Service, the bus service plies seven routes for the residents of Marine Parade GRC's five wards - Marine Parade, Kembangan-Chai Chee, Geylang Serai, Braddell Heights and Joo Chiat - as well as Mountbatten SMC and MacPherson SMC.
The service makes stops at markets, food centres and polyclinics, with routes planned based on feedback from residents, said Culture, Community and Youth Minister and fellow Marine Parade GRC MP Edwin Tong in June 2024, when the service was announced.
On April 3, at a media briefing ahead of the launch of the Marine Parade initiatives to support youth and caregivers, Dr Tan said a few of the routes have been utilised by residents "on a very regular basis", adding that they have found them helpful in getting to polyclinics, wet markets and hawker centres, as well as town council and Housing Board offices.
"The plan is to continue, because, as we have always stated, we need to let it run one year - it's a pilot," he added.
"We will obviously look to see how we can tweak the routes to make sure that more people can benefit, and as we speak, on a weekly basis, we monitor the attendance of the residents taking the shuttle."
He also noted that some routes have already been adjusted, and added that an update on the service will be given when the pilot ends.
A post on the Marine Parade Cluster Facebook page showed that stops were added or tweaked on some routes from Jan 13, such as buses on the Mountbatten route making a stop at Kinex mall instead of a Dunman Road bus stop.
Mr Tong's Joo Chiat ward will be part of East Coast GRC at the upcoming general election.
Asked if the shuttle service is likely to continue for Joo Chiat residents beyond the one-year pilot, Mr Tong said on April 6 that this will have to be assessed alongside the other routes in the pilot.
"Obviously, the way in which it is funded, as well as the way in which it is organised and integrated with the rest of the divisions around Marine Parade - those are issues that will have to be taken into account," he added.
The Marine Parade cluster comprises grassroots organisations in both Mountbatten and MacPherson SMCs and Marine Parade GRC.
The Marine Parade shuttle bus service had drawn attention from opposition MPs, who questioned in Parliament the Government's approach to equity and fairness in the use of taxpayer-funded grants to run the service.
They also asked why the MPs for the Marine Parade cluster are fronting the free shuttle, with their caricatures on one side of the buses.
Responding to these questions, Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth Alvin Tan told Parliament in August 2024 that the community development council grant of $200,000 was provided on a one-off basis, and that grassroots organisations in Marine Parade have to raise funds to cover the cost of operations, or refine its financing model, to sustain the service.
The service costs about $1 million to operate over a year, he added.
Mr Tan also said featuring on the buses people and landmarks that are familiar to residents would help with identifying the vehicles.
In addition to the drawings of the MPs' faces, the shuttle buses also bear images of landmarks in the area, such as Wisma Geylang Serai.
