MEDIA RELEASES
31 July 2024
Media Release - Stewarding Public Transport and Charting New Frontiers of Excellence
SINGAPORE, 31 JULY 2024 – SMRT Corporation (SMRT) had a productive year as it charted new frontiers of excellence in the land transport sector. In Financial Year 2023/2024 (FY23/24) which ended 31 March 2024, Singapore’s leading rail operator delivered innovative engineering capabilities and strengthened its operational and maintenance services in a financially sustainable manner.
To position itself for sustainable growth and execution excellence, SMRT restructured its businesses into two pillars: Engine A and Engine B, each with its distinct focus areas and leadership teams. This took effect on 1 July 2024. Engine A focuses on regulated public transport businesses in the rail and bus industries, comprising SMRT Trains and SMRT Buses respectively, while Engine B focuses on non-fare commercial business arms, namely STRIDES, which offers a range of mobility, digital and engineering services; and Stellar Lifestyle, which enhances the commuter travel experience and lifestyles by creating vibrant transit destinations.
Mr Ngien Hoon Ping, Group Chief Executive Officer, SMRT said: “As a major land transport operator supporting millions of commuters every day, we are committed to serving Singapore first and foremost. As a good steward of the public transport network, we remain steadfast in ring-fencing government grants responsibly to continuously invest in engineering capabilities, delivering safe, reliable and inclusive journeys for commuters. This aligns with our vision of “Moving People, Enhancing Lifestyles”, where commuters and their commuting experience are at the heart of everything we do.”
Sustained Rail Reliability through Optimal Maintenance
In FY23/24, all SMRT-operated lines achieved over 1 million mean kilometres between failure (MKBF), surpassing the target set by the Ministry of Transport (MOT). This marks the fifth consecutive year that SMRT Trains has achieved this milestone, despite ongoing complex renewal and upgrading works across its existing lines, and the integration of Thomson-East Coast Line Stage 4 with the rest of the operational stations on the line. SMRT Trains remains committed to meeting the regulatory requirements and standards mandated by the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and MOT, fulfilling its promise to deliver safe, reliable and commuter-centric transport services of a global standard.
To sustain operational excellence in a financially viable manner, SMRT adopted cutting-edge solutions to achieve data-driven and digitally-enabled optimal maintenance. To augment existing maintenance efforts and enhance rail reliability, SMRT Trains continued to innovate and develop in-house, proprietary engineering capabilities such as the newly established Maintenance Engineering Centre (MEC), as well as the AI-enabled Overwatch decision support system that enables swifter recovery of train services. Overwatch was recognised globally by the International Association of Public Transport (UITP) for operational excellence in 2023.
SMRT Trains key financial results
SMRT Trains’ revenue increased by nine per cent, or $73.5 million, to $886.7 million in FY23/24 due to a gradual recovery in train ridership and higher average fares. However, higher electricity and staff costs partially offset the revenue increase.
In FY23/24, SMRT achieved over $120 million of savings through ground-up ‘Kaizen’ initiatives, where staff took personal ownership and proactively sought improvements, enhancing productivity and safety standards. This was a key contributor to easing financial challenges faced by the public transport operator.
As a result, SMRT Trains posted earnings before interest & tax (EBIT) of $6.2 million in FY23/24, comparable to $6.1 million from the previous financial year (FY22/23).
Overall, SMRT Trains recorded a narrow profit margin of 0.8 per cent in FY23/24. Compared to FY22/23, profit after tax (PAT) for FY23/24 decreased by 82 per cent to $7.5 million, as SMRT Trains announced a PAT of $42.5 million in FY22/23, which included a one-time $40.8 million dividend payout from SMRT TEL. This dividend was made from accumulated profits, achieved through extensive Kaizen efforts, since the line commenced operations on 31 January 2020.
Doing Right, Doing Good and Doing Well through Kaizen
To commemorate its 36th anniversary, and as part of its Do Right, Do Good and Do Well initiatives to uplift the larger Singapore society, SMRT shared a portion of ‘Kaizen’ cost savings with the community. In August 2023, it distributed 22,800 EZ-Link cards worth nearly $1 million to students from the ITE Colleges and various Polytechnics, reaffirming its commitment to serving the wider community.
Kaizen for Safety
In March 2024, SMRT launched Safety Culture 3.0, applying the Swiss cheese model, and emphasising the role of the 'Second Last Man' in its operational processes. This initiative aims to engage its staff and ensure that they do their utmost to ensure not just their own safety, but also that of their colleagues.
SMRT aspires to be the Queen Bee of Safety in Singapore’s land transport sector to collectively enhance and uplift the safety standards across its ecosystem.
In August 2024, SMRT will organise the annual SMRT Contractors’ Safety Forum to engage everyone in its operations and maintenance eco-system and implement a system to recognise role models amongst sub-contractors who achieve a high standard of safety at the workplace. This follows the successful inaugural Forum that took place in August 2023, which brought together industry leaders and contractor partners such as Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) to share best practices and address key safety-related issues.
SMRT introduced an AI-enabled system, iSafe, into the Bukit Panjang LRT network (BPLRT), offering real-time alerts whenever there is an intrusion on the BPLRT track. This also marks the first time in Singapore that a system like iSafe has been fully implemented in an LRT network.
As a leading public transport operator, SMRT launched the SMRT Rail Safety Experiential Centre (SRSEC) in June 2024, to serve both its staff and those of other public transport operators, providing valuable learning opportunities and benefitting the larger land transport community.
Another example of SMRT’s Kaizen efforts for safety is the implementation of the comprehensive telematics system in its bus fleet, which includes collision warning and driver fatigue alerts. The fatigue indicators enable the operations control centre (OCC) to intervene immediately, including stopping bus captains' duties, if necessary. This new telematics system also collects data and generates insights to identify at-risk bus captains for intervention training, enhancing the safety of passengers and other road users.
SMRT Buses to serve more commuters
SMRT Buses was awarded the contract for the Jurong West Bus Package in August 2023. Starting from 1 September 2024, SMRT Buses will serve commuters along 26 service routes for five years.
SMRT Buses has consistently demonstrated a strong commitment to providing inclusive travel and quality services. It was the first public transport operator in Singapore to deploy NaviLens, a system which aids visually impaired commuters in their navigation within bus interchanges. It was also the first public transport operator in Singapore to complete a fleet-wide implementation of a comprehensive telematics system, which enhances the safety of its passengers and other road users.
Developing deep capabilities to complement and strengthen Engine A
The non-fare commercial entities made significant business inroads in FY23/24, complementing SMRT’s public transport business’ capabilities.
In November 2023, Stellar Ace Outdoor Private Limited was awarded the LTA Road Assets Advertising Operator Contract, propelling it to become the leading player in the outdoor advertising space in Singapore. People on the move can look forward to innovative advertising solutions across the omnichannel eco-systems spanning home-travel-eat-shop-play.
Stellar Lifestyle refreshed the Wink+ app in April 2024. Wink+ is the transit lifestyle app that provides lifestyle information and retail offerings, enhancing commuters’ travel experience and strengthening the appeal of travelling on SMRT-operated networks and will be deployed progressively to serve commuters across Singapore’s entire MRT network.
STRIDES Premier expanded its range of services beyond its taxi and private hire charter offerings. It was awarded three specialised vehicle maintenance contracts by the Republic of Singapore Air Force, Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, and Changi Airport Group.
Leveraging SMRT’s strong track record and deep engineering capabilities, STRIDES Engineering secured the contract for the operations, maintenance and service excellence of the Sentosa Express Monorail.
Beyond Singapore, serving a national strategic role
SMRT serves a national strategic role, working with the Land Transport Authority, Malaysia’s Land Public Transport Agency (APAD) and Prasarana Malaysia Berhad on the Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link between Singapore and Johor Bahru, slated for revenue service in 2027. This project will enhance cross-border connectivity, stimulate investments, generate employment opportunities, and bolster trade links, contributing to stronger people-to-people connections.
Across its spectrum of operations, SMRT remains steadfast in stewarding public transport and providing safe, reliable and commuter-centric services.
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