SMRT Buses

SMRT Buses

Parent	SMRT Corporation
Founded	31 May 1982 (as TIBS) 10 May 2004 (rebranded after merger)
Headquarters	Singapore
Service type	Bus service
Routes	98
Stations	6 (Interchanges) 2 (Terminals) 3 (Depots)
Fleet	1190 buses (2012)
Daily ridership	931,800 (FY2011)
Chief executive	Desmond Kuek Bak Chye (President & CEO)
Website	SMRT Buses Website

A mix of resprayed buses in red livery with some in older, yellow Tibs livery parked at Bukit Panjang Bus Interchange

Interior of a Mercedes-Benz O405G with Hispano Habit bodywork

SMRT Buses (originally Trans Island Bus Services (TIBS)) is a public bus transport operator in Singapore. Singapore has a duopoly transport system in which SMRT's only competitor is SBS Transit, which also operates bus services in Singapore. The company was incorporated as TIBS on 31 May 1982, in a heavily regulated market, to be a competitor to Singapore Bus Service. In accordance with restructuring at parent company SMRT Corporation, TIBS was renamed "SMRT Buses" on 10 May 2004.

History

In 1982, the company ran with a fleet of 37 buses and two services, 160 (later renumbered 980) and 167. Later, more services were handed over to them by the government along with the tender to operate services in the northern region, mainly Yishun and the developing Woodlands New Town.

In 1995, as part of the government's plan to make the local bus system more competitive, 16 SBS services were handed over to TIBS Holdings (TIBS) along with the tender to operate bus services in the north-east corridor, mainly the developing towns Sengkang and Punggol as well as Bukit Panjang.

In 1996, TIBS began operations at the Woodlands Regional Bus Interchange, Singapore's first underground bus interchange. It was also the first bus interchange designed to accommodate articulated buses. TIBS used articulated buses, some of which were designed by world-renowned designer, Pininfarina and was known as the Habit articulated buses, on a large scale in its fleet, in contrast to the double-deckers used by Singapore Bus Service (SBS).

Things changed in 1999, when SBS Transit won the tender to operate the North East Line in the north-east corridor. In order to allow better coordination and synergy between rail and buses, SBS Transit was allowed to take back control of bus services in the northeast. In return, TIBS and SMRT Buses agreed to merge, and TIBS was to operate bus services in the north-west corridor towns of Choa Chu Kang and Bukit Batok.

The handover was done in stages. Eight TIBS services in the northeastern corridor were handed over to SBS Transit in 1999. In 2004, the merger was completed, and TIBS adopted the name SMRT Buses to reflect their merger with SMRT.

In 2008, SMRT Buses initiated a fleet replacement to replace the retiring Nissan Diesel U31RCN buses with 134 Mercedes-Benz OC500LE wheelchair-accessible buses. All of the buses are in revenue service and are equipped with Passenger-In-Bus announcement systems.

In the following year, SMRT Buses was handed over a Mercedes-Benz Citaro (O530) demonstrator bus, registered as SMB136C. SMRT Buses then placed a purchase of 50 new Mercedes-Benz Citaro (O530) production batch buses. All of them entered revenue service as of 25 November 2011.

In July 2011, SMRT Buses placed an order of another 200 MAN NL323F (A22) buses from ST Kinetics. The buses began revenue service in October 2011.

From 15 November 2012, 27 bus services and all bus interchanges operating under SMRT Buses, will be wheelchair accessible (WAB).

23 MAN NL323F (A22) buses are used for Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP) since 17 September 2012.

Bus stations

SMRT Buses operates 6 bus interchanges, 2 bus terminals and 3 bus depots.

Bus interchanges

• Bukit Batok Bus Interchange
• Bukit Panjang Bus Interchange
• Choa Chu Kang Bus Interchange
• Sembawang Bus Interchange
• Woodlands Regional Bus Interchange
• Yishun Bus Interchange

Bus terminals

• Lorong 1 Geylang Bus Terminal
• Marina Centre Bus Terminal

Bus depots

• Ang Mo Kio Bus Depot
• Kranji Bus Depot
• Woodlands Bus Depot

Bus fleet

Current bus fleet

Model	Image	Bodywork Manufacturer	Year Introduced	Units Introduced	Batch (Euro Tier(s))	Registration Number(s)	Notes
DAF SB220		Walter Alexander Sentanta	1995	45	N/A (Euro I)	TIB675K — TIB724C.	Partially installed with LAWO SICMA or Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced the original LAWO Luminator EDS. TIB700X uses a MB O405 front after an accident in 2002. Deregistering.
Dennis Lance	File:TIB937E on 804.jpg	Duple Metsec (UMW-Dennis Specialist Vehicles)	1998	68	N/A (Euro II)	TIB906U — TIB946D. TIB1257C.	Installed with Transit Media EDS.
		Duple Metsec (Dennis Specialist Vehicles)	2000			TIB1002X — TIB1016G.	Installed with Transit Media EDS. TIB1010Y installed with LAWO BENEFIT EDS.
		Volgren				TIB1017D and TIB1018B.	Installed with Lawo EDS. TIB1017D and TIB1018B are used as Training Buses from Ang Mo Kio Bus Depot (AMDEP).
Hino HS3KRK		Volgren	1998	12	N/A (Euro I)	TIB905Y.	Demonstrator unit. Installed with Transit Media EDS.
			1999			TIB947B — TIB957Y.	Installed with Transit Media EDS. TIB952K installed with Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced the original Lawo EDS.
MAN NL323F(A22)		MCV Evolution	2011	201	N/A (Euro V)	SMB138Y.	Demonstrator unit. Installed with Hanover EDS. The first bus in Singapore to have rear sliding plug doors.
		MAN Lion's City Hyrbid (Gemilang Coachworks)	2011 — 2012			SMB189A — SMB365H. SMB3001M — SMB3023A. Deliveries and registration are ongoing. Registered buses: SMB189A — SMB317Y, SMB319S — SMB333A, SMB335U — SMB336S, SMB339J — SMB341B & SMB3001M — SMB3023A.	Installed with Mobitec MobiLED EDS.
Mercedes-Benz O405		Hispano Carrocera OAC	1994 — 1995	323	N/A (Euro I)	TIB425R — TIB561E. TIB572Z — TIB634D.	Partially installed with LAWO BENEFIT or Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced the original Lawo EDS. TIB488J installed with roof-mounted Konvekta air-conditioning unit. TIB596E installed with Transite Media EDS. TIB597C used to have Coolair EDS, but has been replaced by Mobitec MobiLED EDS. TIB612S installed with 2 additional foldable seats. Refurbishment for lifespan extension of 2 years have completed.
		Hispano Carrocera CAC	1995			TIB725A — TIB797S.	Partially installed with LAWO-BENEFIT or Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced the original Lawo EDS. Installed with Hispacold or Denso air-conditioning units. TIB727U is the first refurbished CAC bus which converted to non-sliding windows. TIB741C and TIB779U has underfloor HispaCold air-conditioning unit. TIB783G installed with Lawo Luminator Europa EDS. TIB792E originally installed with non-sliding windows. Buses are undergoing refurbishment for lifespan extension of 2 years.
		Hispano Carrocera OAC	1996			TIB798P — TIB832Z.	Partially installed with LAWO-BENEFIT or Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced the original Lawo EDS. Buses are undergoing refurbishment for lifespan extension of 2 years.
		Volgren	1999			TIB958U — TIB972C.	Installed with Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced the original Lawo EDS. TIB958U installed with LAWO BENEFIT EDS.
Mercedes-Benz O405G		Hispano Carrocera Mark I	1996	57	N/A (Euro I)	TIB838H	Nicknamed as "Box" articulated bus. Demonstrator unit.
						TTIB849B — TIB904A.	Nicknamed as "Box" articulated bus. Installed with Mobitec MobiLED or Gorba imotion EDS that replaced the original Hanover EDS. TIB861P is the first refurbished bendy bus. TIB890E is the only SMRT bus with headrest seats. Refurbishment undergoing.
		Hispano Carrocera Mark II	1999 — 2000	38	N/A (Euro I)	TIB973A — TIB1001Z.	Nicknamed as "Smiley" articulated bus. Installed with Mobitec MobiLED or LAWO BENEFIT EDS that replaced the original Transit Media EDS. TIB982Z is the first refurbished bendy bus. TIB984T and TIB986M have no "Smiley" front markings. TIB994P installed with LAWO-BENEFIT EDS. Refurbishment undergoing.
		Hispano Carrocera Habit	2000 — 2004	208	1 (Mark I) (Euro II)	TIB1019Z — TIB1147L.	Installed with Mobitec MobiLED, Gorba imotion or Hanover EDS that replaced both the original Lawo Luminator Europa and Transit Media EDS. TIB1034D installed with Hanover LED EDS. TIB1105H was rebuilt with a new engine and a new interior, due to a fire. Subsequently, it is installed with LAWO-BENEFIT EDS as well as Konvekta overhead air-conditioning unit. This concluded as the first Mercedes-Benz O405G Habit-bodied articulated bus to be refurbished.
					1 (Mark II) (Euro II)	TIB1148J — TIB1177A.	Installed with Mobitec MobiLED, Gorba imotion or Hanover EDS that replaced both the original Lawo Luminator Europa and Transit Media EDS.
					2 (Euro II)	TIB1198P — TIB1247G.	Installed with Mobitec MobiLED, Gorba imotion or Hanover EDS that replaced both the original Lawo Luminator Europa and Transit Media EDS.
		Volgren	1999 — 2002	21	N/A (Euro II)	TIB1024H.	Demonstrator unit. Installed with Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced the original Lawo Luminator Europa Aluma EDS.
						TIB1178Y — TIB1197S.	Installed with Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced the original Transit Media EDS. TIB1178Y  — TIB1182J have normal-sized windows while TIB1183G  — TIB1197S have larger windows.
Mercedes-Benz OC500LE		Gemilang Coachworks	2008  — 2009	134	N/A (Euro V)	SMB1H.	Demonstrator unit. Installed with LAWO BENEFIT EDS. Currently used as a training bus from Kranji Bus Depot (KJDEP).
					1 (Euro V)	SMB2E — SMB67T.	Installed with LAWO BENEFIT EDS. Advertised as the first Euro V low floor buses in Southeast Asia.
					2 (Euro V)	SMB68R — SMB134H.	Installed with LAWO-BENEFIT EDS. Advertised as the first Euro V low floor buses in Southeast Asia. SMB70H was laid-up for an unknown reason and back on service as of 9 May 2012. SMB91Y installed with Mobitec MobiLED EDS that replaced original LAWO BENEFIT EDS, which destroyed in an accident.
Mercedes-Benz Citaro (O530)		EvoBus GmbH	2010	51	N/A (Euro V)	SMB136C.	Demonstrator unit. Installed with Gorba imotion EDS. The only WAB in Singapore with exit doors that swing inward.
			2011		1 (Euro V)	SMB139U — SMB148T.	Installed with LAWO BENEFIT EDS and rear swinging plug doors.
					2 (Euro V)	SMB149R — SMB188C.	Installed with LAWO BENEFIT EDS, rear swinging plug doors and third brake lights.
Scania L113CRL		ELBO	1996	64	N/A (Euro I)	TIB833X — TIB837K. TIB839E — TIB848D.	Installed with Mobitec Flip-Dot EDS. TIB837K, TIB840A  — TIB842U, TIB844P and TIB846J  — TIB848D are left.
		Walter Alexander Strider	1995  — 1997			TIB562C — TIB571B. TIB635B — TIB674M.	Installed with Lawo EDS. TIB569J & TIB640K were installed with Mobitec MobiLED EDS. TIB666L, TIB670Z & TIB673R installed with LAWO-BENEFIT EDS. Deregistering.

Former buses and decommissioned buses

Model	Image	Bodywork Manufacturer	Year Introduced	Units Introduced	Registration Number(s)	Notes
DAF SB220LT		Hispano Carrocera	1991	33	TIB391D — TIB424T.	Sold to New Zealand (Bayes Coachlines) or scrapped.
Hino RK176		Hino integral body	1983	42	TIB1E — TIB42L.	Scrapped.
Hino HT228KA		Hino integral body	1984	104	TIB146X — TIB250C.	Scrapped.
Hino HT238K		Hino integral body	1989	35	TIB337L — TIB361R. TIB380K — TIB389L.	Scrapped.
Nissan Diesel U31F		Fuji Coach	1987	55	TIB43J — TIB44G. TIB85M — TIB112T. TIB121S — TIB145Z.	Scrapped.
Nissan Diesel U31RCN		Fuji Heavy Industries	1992 — 1993	50	CSS178K — CSS207K, TIB362M — TIB377X, TIB1248D — TIB1256E except CSS199A — CSS201B and CSS206M.	Scrapped.
Nissan Diesel U31SCN		Fuji Heavy Industries	1990	46	TIB251A — TIB336P. TIB390G.	Scrapped.
Yutong ZK6126HGC		Yutong Integral Body	2009	1	SMB135E.	Singapore's first Made in China city bus. SMRT rejected the bus after the 1 year trial. Registered as PC194T with Bedok Transport.
Zhongtong LCK6121G HEV		ZhongTong Integral Body	2011	1	SMB137A.	Demonstrator unit. Diesel-electric hybrid bus. First hybrid bus operated by SMRT Buses. The six-month trial for this bus has ended. Bus is laid-up till 28 June 2013.

Bus routes

See also: List of bus routes in Singapore

SMRT Buses operates many different types of bus routes and bus services, taking up the smaller part of the pie of Singapore's duopoly bus system in almost all areas of Singapore especially the north and northwest areas.

• Trunk: Routes that ply between towns. These are the basic forms of SMRT bus services. Fares are distance-related and differential up to 8 fare bands.
• Short working Trips (SWT): Routes that operate short haul trips between origin-destination pairs with high demand, such as the area near an MRT station. It operated a subset of the parent route and there can be more than one SWT per trunk route.
• Feeder: Services that operate within a neighbourhood, connecting outlying areas to the town centre or bus interchange. (Loops around from an interchange, around one or more neighbourhoods or towns and then terminates at the starting interchange). As a name suggest, it is to feed the commuters to the trunk services or MRT services at the terminal/interchange. A flat fare, equivalent to the first fare band is charged per entry.
• Intra-town: Routes that consist of combined feeder services to provide links and improve connectivity between neighborhoods within the same town. (Somewhat identical to a feeder service except that, other than when stopping a 'session', the service will not terminate at the interchange but will re-run its route immediately after letting passengers alight, in essence, a true loop)
• Express: Routes that stop at several nominated and sparsely located stops and generally run on expressways for faster travel between several towns. This is a basic-plus service charging higher fares.
• Cross Border Services: Bus services will cross the Singaporean Border into Malaysia. The bus service usually terminates at Kota Raya terminal. SMRT's only cross-border service is 950.
• Resorts World Sentosa: Bus services start with RWS followed by 8. The service will start from HarbourFront MRT Station.
• Premium: A single trip from the designated neighborhoods during the morning peak hours on weekdays to the CBD. Fees are flat rated ($3 to $5 depending on the distance traveled) and standing is prohibited on Premium Services. The scheduled arrival time at individual bus stops are provided.
• NightRider: After-hour services on Friday, Weekends and Eve of Public Holidays.

External links

• SMRT Bus Guide