City Direct Bus Services were introduced in 2014 as part of the Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP)Â and were solely operated by Private Bus Operators up to April 2017. Since then, City Direct Bus Services have been gradually withdrawn or transferred to Public Transport Operators.
The last handover took place on 14 December 2020, when operations of City Direct 668 was transferred to SBS Transit, thus completing the transition of City Direct Services from Private Bus Operators to Public Bus Operators.
Background
On 13 June 2013, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) called for tender VT387 City Direct Services, which consisted of City Direct routes 652 to 660. 6 of the 9 bus services in the tender were awarded to 5 different Private Bus Operators on 9 November 2013. Each contract for the City Direct route lasts 2 years.
The remaining 3 routes (658, 659 & 660) were not awarded due to unsatisfactory bids. These routes were re-tendered out in later November 2013 as “PT162 City Direct Bus Services” and later awarded to Aedge Holdings Pte Ltd in February 2014.
In January 2015, LTA exercised its option to extend the contract period for City Direct Services 651 – 657 for a duration of one year.
On 1 Aug 2016, LTA called for tender “PT288 City Direct Bus Services“, which consisted of City Direct Services 652 – 657. The contract for City Direct 654 was awarded to BT&Tan Transport Pte Ltd for SGD $1,226,507.60 on 14 November 2016. BT&Tan subsequently took over City Direct 654 in January 2017.
The remaining routes that were not awarded were subsequently either transferred to Public Transport Operators (PTOs) (653, 655, 656 & 657) or continue to be operated by the existing Private Bus Operator (652).
Subsequent tenders called by LTA for City Direct Services in 2017 (PT309 – City Direct Bus Services for 658 – 660 and PT321 – City Direct Bus Services for 661 – 665) were not awarded to any Private Bus Operators.
Since then, City Direct bus services were progressively transferred to PTOs. However, City Direct Services 658, 659, 662 & 664 were withdrawn in December 2018.
Summary of City Direct PTO changes
| Summary of City Direct PTO changes | |||
| City Direct | Last Private Operator | Incumbent PTO | Takeover Date |
| 651 | Rui Feng Chartered | Tower Transit | 13 Jan 2020 |
| 652 | Ren Quan Transport | SMRT Buses | 6 Jan 2020 |
| 653 | ComfortDelGro Bus | SMRT Buses | 13 Apr 2017 |
| 654 | BT&Tan Transport Service | SBS Transit | 22 Jul 2019 |
| 655 | Woodlands Transport Service | SBS Transit | 17 Apr 2017 |
| 656 | Loh Gim Chong Transport | SMRT Buses | 17 Apr 2017 |
| 657 | Transtar Travel | SMRT Buses | 24 Apr 2017 |
| 658 | Aedge Holdings | (Withdrawn from 17 Dec 2018) | — |
| 659 | Aedge Holdings | (Withdrawn from 17 Dec 2018) | — |
| 660 | Aedge Holdings | SBS Transit | 2 Jan 2019 |
| 661 | Aedge Holdings | Go-Ahead Singapore | 2 Jan 2019 |
| 662 | Aedge Holdings | (Withdrawn from 17 Dec 2018) | — |
| 663 | Bus Hub Service | Tower Transit | 28 Sep 2017 |
| 664 | Aedge Holdings | (Withdrawn from 17 Dec 2018) | — |
| 665 | Bus Hub Service | Tower Transit | 12 Oct 2017 |
| 666 | BT & Tan Transport | Go-Ahead Singapore | 2 Mar 2020 |
| 667 | Tong Tar Transport Service | SBS Transit | 9 Mar 2020 |
| 668 | BT & Tan Transport | SBS Transit | 14 Dec 2020 |
| 669 | Tong Tar Transport Service | (Withdrawn from 3 Jun 2019) | — |
| 670 | Tong Tar Transport Service | SMRT Buses | 30 Mar 2020 |
| 671 | Rui Feng Chartered | SBS Transit | 13 Jan 2020 |
| 672 | Rui Feng Chartered | SBS Transit | 13 Jan 2020 |
City Direct Service Affected by Operator Change (Dec 2020)
City Direct 668
| City Direct 668 | Former Details | From 14 December 2020 |
| Operator | BT & Tan Transport Pte Ltd | SBS Transit Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0730hrs, 0736hrs, 0743hrs & 0750hrs | No Change |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1810hrs & 1825hrs | No Change |
City Direct Services Affected by Operator Change Previously
City Direct 651
| City Direct 651 | Former Details | From 13 January 2020 |
| Operator | Rui Feng Chartered Pte Ltd | Tower Transit Singapore Pte Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0730hrs, 0745hrs | No Change |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1815hrs, 1830hrs | No Change |
City Direct 652
| City Direct 652 | Former Details | From 6 January 2020 |
| Operator | Ren Quan Transport | SMRT Buses Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0725hrs, 0730hrs, 0735hrs, 0740hrs, 0745hrs, 0750hrs | 0725hrs, 0733hrs, 0741hrs, 0750hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1810hrs, 1825hrs | No Change |
SMRT Buses deployed Double-Decker Buses on City Direct 652 from 6 January 2020 to compensate for the reduced number of Morning Trips.
City Direct 653
| City Direct 653 | Former Details | From 13 April 2017 |
| Operator | ComfortDelGro Bus Pte Ltd | SMRT Buses Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0715hrs, 0721hrs, 0727hrs, 0733hrs, 0739hrs, 0745hrs | 0715hrs, 0725hrs, 0735hrs, 0745hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1810hrs, 1820hrs, 1830hrs | 1815hrs, 1830hrs |
SMRT Buses deployed Double-Decker Buses on City Direct 653 from 13 April 2017 to compensate for the reduced number of AM & PM Trips.
City Direct 654
| City Direct 654 | Former Details | From 22 July 2019 |
| Operator | BT&Tan Transport Service | SBS Transit Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0730hrs, 0735hrs, 0740hrs, 0745hrs, 0750hrs, 0755hrs | No Change |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1820hrs, 1827hrs, 1835hrs | No Change |
City Direct 655
| City Direct 655 | Former Details | From 17 April 2017 |
| Operator | Woodlands Transport Service Pte Ltd | SBS Transit Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0730hrs, 0745hrs | No Change |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1815hrs, 1830hrs | No Change |
City Direct 656
| City Direct 656 | Former Details | From 17 April 2017 |
| Operator | Loh Gim Chong Transport | SMRT Buses Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0720hrs, 0726hrs, 0734hrs, 0740hrs | 0720hrs, 0730hrs, 0740hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1810hrs, 1825hrs | No Change |
Under SMRT Buses, one morning trip was cut from City Direct 656.
City Direct 657
| City Direct 657 | Former Details | From 24 April 2017 |
| Operator | Transtar Travel Pte Ltd | SMRT Buses Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0730hrs, 0745hrs | No Change |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1815hrs, 1830hrs | No Change |
City Direct 660
| City Direct 660 | Former Details | From 2 January 2019 |
| Operator | Aedge Holdings Pte Ltd | SBS Transit Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0730hrs, 0735hrs, 0740hrs, 0745hrs, 0750hrs | 0730hrs, 0736hrs, 0743hrs, 0750hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1820hrs, 1835hrs | No Change |
SBS Transit deployed Double-Decker Buses on City Direct 660 from 2 January 2019 to compensate for the reduced number of AM Trips.
City Direct 661
| City Direct 661 | Former Details | From 2 January 2019 |
| Operator | Aedge Holdings Pte Ltd | Go Ahead Loyang Pte Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0730hrs, 0740hrs, 0750hrs | 0730hrs, 0750hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1810hrs, 1825hrs | No Change |
Go-Ahead Singapore deployed Double-Decker Buses on City Direct 661 from 2 January 2019 to compensate for the reduced number of AM Trips.
City Direct 663
| City Direct 663 | Former Details | From 28 September 2017 |
| Operator | Bus Hub Service Pte Ltd | Tower Transit Singapore Pte Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0720hrs, 0730hrs, 0740hrs, 0750hrs | 0720hrs, 0735hrs, 0750hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1815hrs, 1830hrs | No Change |
City Direct 665
| City Direct 665 | Former Details | From 12 October 2017 |
| Operator | Bus Hub Service Pte Ltd | Tower Transit Singapore Pte Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0710hrs, 0716hrs, 0721hrs, 0727hrs, 0734hrs, 0740hrs | No Change |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1815hrs, 1830hrs | No Change |
Double-decker buses were added to City Direct 665 from 9 April 2018 due to growing demand, with the AM trip departure timings adjusted to 0700, 0708, 0716, 0724, 0732 & 0740.
City Direct 666
| City Direct 666 | Former Details | From 2 March 2020 |
| Operator | BT & Tan Transport Pte Ltd | Go Ahead Loyang Pte Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0725hrs, 0740hrs | No Change |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1810hrs, 1825hrs | No Change |
City Direct 667
| City Direct 667 | Former Details | From 9 March 2020 |
| Operator | Tong Tar Transport Service Pte Ltd | SBS Transit Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0745hrs, 0800hrs | No Change |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1820hrs, 1835hrs | No Change |
City Direct 670
| City Direct 670 | Former Details | From 30 March 2020 |
| Operator | Tong Tar Transport Service Pte Ltd | SMRT Buses Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0720hrs, 0730hrs, 0740hrs | 0720hrs, 0740hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1810hrs, 1825hrs | No Change |
City Direct 671
| City Direct 671 | Former Details | From 13 January 2020 |
| Operator | Rui Feng Chartered Pte Ltd | SBS Transit Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0730hrs, 0740hrs, 0750hrs | 0730hrs, 0750hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1820hrs, 1835hrs | No Change |
SBS Transit deployed Double-Decker Buses on City Direct 671 from 13 January 2020 to compensate for the reduced number of Morning Trips.
City Direct 672
| City Direct 672 | Former Details | From 13 January 2020 |
| Operator | Rui Feng Chartered Pte Ltd | SBS Transit Ltd |
| Weekday Morning Trips | 0735hrs, 0742hrs, 0750hrs | 0735hrs, 0750hrs |
| Weekday Evening Trips | 1820hrs, 1835hrs | No Change |
SBS Transit deployed Double-Decker Buses on City Direct 672 from 13 January 2020 to compensate for the reduced number of Morning Trips.
References:
- LTA awards contracts for six new city direct bus services – LTA
- 7 City Direct bus services extended for another year – Straits Times
Back to City Direct Services
What about buses 666, 667, 668 & 670?
Sooner or later all CDS routes will either be operated by PTOs or withdrawn altogether. Don’t forget TEL is in the ascendancy.
LTA should also take the opportunity to transfer 663 and 665 to SMRT Buses while 657 goes to TTSG. TTSG can also take over 651.
When will it be 651’s turn? 651 was launched in September 2013. The first city direct to be launched. It has been six years. Two cycles of operators have already been completed. When will 651 be transferred to the public operators?
TT will operate 651.
SBST-Seletar should take charge of 652 while GAS should be running 671.
Strictly speaking, Comfort Delgro isn’t exactly a private operator. It is after all the parent company of SBS Transit. Just like the relationship between SMRT and Bus Plus.
Just curious. Will LTA make these services wheelchair-accessible? Thanks