Consultations for next land transport master plan to start in next few weeks: Jeffrey Siow

Public consultations on Singapore’s next land transport master plan will kick off in the next few weeks, with more people set to have a say in how the next bound of the Republic’s transport future will be shaped.

- Kok Yufeng

Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow announced this in Parliament on Sept 22 during the debate on the President’s Address, though he did not give details about the exact scope of the consultations or the direction that the new road map will take.

“We want to engage more Singaporeans than ever before - commuters, drivers, cyclists, seniors, persons with disabilities, mobility device users. We want to bring all of them together to have deeper conversations and to weigh trade-offs,” said Mr Siow. “My hope is simple - that more Singaporeans feel that the system works for them and that their story matters.”

The last time such a consultation exercise was held was in 2018. Inputs from more than 7,400 Singaporeans at the time went towards the drawing up of the Land Transport Master Plan 2040, which was published in 2019.

The 2040 road map set out an inclusive, “car-lite” vision, where nine out of 10 peak-hour journeys would be made in 45 minutes or less using public transport or other active and shared modes of transport such as cycling or walking.

Key measures from the master plan being rolled out now include the expansion of the rail network, the building of more cycling paths, the upgrading of transport infrastructure, and a shift towards cleaner-energy vehicles.

Mr Siow, who is also Senior Minister of State for Finance, said on Sept 22 that his approach to policymaking is to build trust and create space for voices to be heard.