ComfortDelGro unit to manage ads across public bus network

Advertising spaces across Singapore's public bus network will be progressively managed by a single operator from Nov 1, after a subsidiary of transportation giant ComfortDelGro was awarded the contract in a $150 million deal.

- Kok Yufeng

Moove Media, ComfortDelGro's advertising arm, will manage and operate the ad spaces on all public buses and at all bus interchanges for seven years, with the possibility of a two-year extension.

It is the first time that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) is consolidating advertising operations for the public bus sector under a single operator—a move that is expected to give advertisers a wider reach and allow the ad operator to reap economies of scale.

There are about 5,800 public buses and 28 bus interchanges in Singapore.

Currently, public bus services operate under a contracting model, where operators bid for bus packages and are paid by LTA to run services.

Under this model, LTA keeps the fares, while the operators get to pocket non-fare revenue, which includes income from advertising and renting out commercial spaces in interchanges.

Advertising on buses and at bus interchanges is today managed by the four respective public bus operators—SBS Transit (SBST), SMRT, Tower Transit Singapore and Go-Ahead Singapore.