Netizens ridicule PTC survey results as it does not reflect ground sentiments

A survey conducted by the Public Transport Council (PTC) has shown that customer satisfaction with public transport is at the highest level it’s ever been in nine years. But given the recent breakdowns and flooding in October last year, a positive rise in commuter satisfaction rings a little hollow.

On Monday, February 5, the PTC released the results of a survey conducted last year, wherein people who responded to the survey also gave public transport 7.6 out of 10, which is higher than the previous score of 7.2 in 2015, in terms of mean satisfaction score.

As for MRT services’ satisfaction, PTC’s survey showed a core of 96 percent, while in 2015 it was 93.2 percent. Mean satisfaction with the MRT went up from 7.3 to 7.6.

The improvement in scores can reportedly be attributed to improved services with regards to waiting and travel time, as well as comfort. New units in 2016 in the North East and Circle Lines had de-loaded previously crowded trains, and made waiting shorter. Additionally, when Downtown Line 2 opened in December 2015, this made commuting more convenient, according to the PTC.

https://theindependent.sg.sg/smrt-a-flawed-system-of-compliments/

The Land Transport Authority’s improvement of rail reliability, and the operators’ actions in adding manpower, better maintenance and asset renewals on the East-West and North-South Lines.

The survey also showed increased satisfaction with bus services, from 90.7 percent to 96.7 percent. Mean satisfaction also improved, from 7.2 percent to 7.6 percent. This is due to higher customer satisfaction scores in service information and reliability, as well as customer service.

The PTC said that, “The improved results are likely attributable to several factors, including the transition to the Bus Contracting Model which has injected greater competition among the bus operators and hence motivated them to improve their services, and the adoption of performance standards for regularity of bus arrivals.

Improvements felt by commuters can also be attributed to service excellence initiatives put in place by the operators to give recognition to frontline staff who go the extra mile for commuters.”

Since 2006, this survey has even conducted by the PTC every year. In this most recent survey, 3,869 regular MRT and bus commuters from the ages of 15 and older were chosen at random. They were interviewed in October 2016 in different MRT stations, bus stops and stations during busy and off-peak hours of the day.

Many netizens were not only angered, outraged and astonished, but outright disbelieving of the survey results.

Others wondered if the survey were a joke, or perhaps a example of fake news

Another netizen posted a link asking the Transport Minister to resign

Others questioned how the survey was conducted

And still others called the news item reporting the survey results as “propaganda”