Reader's Response

In the article “Dubbed the ‘best in class’: 6 things about Hong Kong's MTR rail system”, Lee (2015) reported that Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan complimented Hong Kong’s Mass Transit Railway (MTR), claiming that it is the ‘best in class’. Mr Khaw then further stated that Singapore Mass Rapid Transit (SMRT) and Singapore Bus Service (SBS) transit should adopt Hong Kong’s practices. Lee also stated that a few examples that contributed to the success of the MTR is Hong Kong government’s privatization of the MTR Corporation(MTRC) in the year 2000, which led to a decrease in budget and an increase in competency of the public transportation. This provided room for the MTRC to allocate 37% of their profits to rail “maintenance, renewals and service improvements”, which is adequate as compared to Singapore’s 19%, as claimed by Mr Khaw. Lee also expressed that while the MTR has 155 stations across nine prime travelling lines over 221km, maintenance is conducted via a mobile transportation unit that scans for irregularities through “ultrasonic techniques” once every 3 days. This is more extensive than Singapore’s inspection routine despite Hong Kong’s lines being longer. The MTRC also has an Operations Control Centre that monitors the entire system which is paramount to the organisation’s prompt response to emergencies. Therefore, with the enhanced monitoring system, trains in Hong Kong are more effective and efficient than in Singapore.

The article expresses that Singapore’s MRT system would do better by following the methodologies and technologies adopted by Hong Kong’s MTR system. I agree with the writer to a certain extent, that a higher percentage of SMRT’s profits should be allocated towards rail maintenance, renewals and service improvements because that would improve on the stability of the extensive rail system.
While there are many aspects that Singapore can learn from Hong Kong’s MTR systems, Singapore cannot adopt Hong Kong’s business model wholesale as it might not be the most appropriate, or practical.

Firstly, the business models of Singapore’s MRT and Hong Kong’s MTRC are entirely different. MTRC’s business model is coined as what experts like to call “Rail plus property”. This means that MTRC earns additional profits via the development of property, as well as other commercial business ventures. This gives MTRC the extra edge over SMRT, as well as the extra budget which would be allocated towards railway maintenance and improvements. Statistical data shows that Hong Kong had generated up to HK$20.1 billion in operating profits in 2014, HK$7 billion of which came from transport operations (Lim, 2015). With the increased capital, MTRC is able to “implement railway projects relatively quickly because it does not have to compete for public funds” (Leong, 2016). SMRT on the other hand earns their profits from trains, buses and taxi operations. SMRT also dwells in other business ventures such as rental of 36,800 square-metres worth of retail and F&B spaces, advertisements, as well as engineering consultation services. However, these business ventures do not compare to the scale of profits earned by MTRC via their “Rail plus property” business model.

Secondly, Singapore and Hong Kong’s geographies are different. In Lim’s article, Dr Theseira, a Senior Lecturer from UniSIM states that as compared to other countries, Singapore's geographical layout results in a mass of redundancies in its infrastructure. As the geographies of the cities of Singapore and Hong Kong are different, Singapore cannot adopt Hong Kong’s practices. Lim further provided an example in his article and mentioned that “a two-hour disruption in Singapore is very different from one in the London Underground as in London, people can get around the city easier as compared to Singapore.”

In conclusion, I feel that while the MTR is the “best in class” as dubbed by Mr Khaw, Singapore should selectively adopt Hong Kong’s methodologies and technologies, as not all of them might be appropriate or practical for Singapore, due to the limited budget SMRT has as compared to MTRC.


References
Lee, M. K. (2015, October 29). Dubbed 'the best in class':6 things about Hong Kong's MTR rail system. Retrieved September 15, 2017, from http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/dubbed-the-best-in-class-6-things-about-hong-kongs-mtr-rail-system#xtor=CS1-10

Leong, L. (2016, June). The ‘Rail plus Property’ model: Hong Kong’s successful self-financing formula. Retrieved September 27, 2017, from https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/capital-projects-and-infrastructure/our-insights/the-rail-plus-property-model

Lim, K. (2015, December 20). Singapore's train system: What needs to be done to ensure a smoother ride? Read more at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singapore-s-train-system-what-needs-to-be-done-to-ensure-a-smoot-8246388. Retrieved September 27, 2017, from http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/singapore-s-train-system-what-needs-to-be-done-to-ensure-a-smoot-8246388

SMRT Corporation LTD (2014). Momentum. (Rep.). Retrieved September 27, 2017, from SMRT Corporation LTD website: http://www.smrt.com.sg/Portals/0/PDFs/Annual%20Reports/FA_SMRT%20AR14_040614.pdf



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