In Singapore, owning even a junk car is now considered a luxury
In most cities, a beat-up hatchback is just a way to get from A to B. In Singapore, even an old runabout signals serious spending power—because…
Singapore gets a lot of things right, including this.
One thing I like about their public transport is the "distance fare" system, where buses and MRT are integrated into the same payment system, so if you have a journey that consists of bus->train->bus it'll only cost you the same as if there were a single bus that did that same total route. The most it's possible to pay for the longest trip from one end of the island to the other is about US$2.30, and most shorter journeys are barely a dollar.
I love Singapore public transit. I love how they tell you how long it will take to walk to another station, how they have the lines on the station floor that you can follow, how their trains are long and open with no doors between cars, how they have PSA signs reminding people how to be polite to others. I could go on.
We have the same system in Switzerland. All countries with civilised public transport do.
That's 2.3 more pricier than my daily drive. They gotta do better. I recall Mexico had their metro at much lower prices that made sense.
I just had a quick look at I think if you adjust for the local economy, they're pretty much a muchness. A typical journey on the S'pore MRT is around a dollar, a typical journey on the MC Metro is $0.27. Average salary in Singapore is about 4-5 times Mexico City.
Also, if your daily drive only costs $1, it's not going to get you from one end of Singapore to the other, unless you're averaging 100mpg and also ignoring all forms of wear and tear, servicing, insurance, depreciation, initial purchase and taxes.
But, there's good public transport that's cheap and cheap abundant taxis too. The whole country is the size of a small city.
Yeah, that's the catch, isn't it? It's a small, densely packed area, which is where public transport really works.
It really doesn't need to be Singapore dense for public transport to work. It just needs to be clean, reliable, easy to use, and reasonably comprehensive. What it really requires is competent planning and funding.
Even developed world suburbs can have decent public transport (as long as you're willing to walk 10 mins) and if more did, fewer people would feel the need to own or use their cars.
Density helps but it's not a big factor in building public transport. Case in point, NYC is comparible in land size and population density, yet it doesn't come close to Singapore's transport system.
Policy and politics is what drives public transport. They want it, so they have it.
it's been like this for quite a few decades i think, the certificate to own a car, last year i checked, it's about 100k sgd. They also taxed a lot on car price.
All that to fund public transport, which is probably the best in Asia. Owning a car is no longer a need for them. I went there twice, and both time i only need to have a combination of walking, bus, and train.
The first time i went there from Malaysia, i went there by bus and was dropped in Woodland checkpoint because i have absolutely no idea where to go after going through custom, and i was stranded. It took just a bit of google-mapping to know where to take a bus and train, and just like that i'm at my hotel for check in.
Some said they're able to be that good because they're city state, but i wish i have good train and bus service in my city.
The results? About 11 cars per 100 people in Singapore (2024)—versus ~55 per 100 in the European Union (2023) and roughly 85 motor vehicles per 100 people in the United States (2022). (..)
Over the last decade, Singapore has added new MRT lines, over 1,000 new buses, and 200 additional trains. Today, 80% of households are within a 10-minute walk of a train station.
Today, 80% of households are within a 10-minute walk of a train station.
That might be a challenge in most of Europe, outside of the biggest cities.
is now considered a luxury
Has always been
I don't know, most of the homeless in my area have cars and semi live in them. You can't walk or bike here, there's no public transportation, and the winters are brutal. You can't live without a car or someone willing to drive you. When people are struggling to pay their bills, they'll lose their house before they lose their car.
[...]because owning a car in this city-state isn’t just about buying the vehicle. You also need to purchase a Certificate of Entitlement (COE)—essentially, a government-issued permit that gives you the right to own a car for ten years. And the current cost? Recent COE premiums for cars have exceeded S$120,000 (≈€82,000).¹ Add the car itself, and suddenly a basic sedan can set you back well over €100,000.
Damn, that's almost € 7 000 per month - I don't even earn that much before taxes.
In a city state like Singapore it's the perfect way to finance public transport.
edit: oops, 700. Thanks gloog.
More places need a system like this, cause fuck cars, but I don't like how this gate-keeps for only the wealthy. It would be nice if there was an inclusive system for people who really need one and pubic transit isn't a good option. Do they have cheap carshare rentals like Car2Go or similar? Maybe if it was a lottery that prioritized those with disabilties and accessibility needs that Transit, E-bikes Etc doesn't suffice for.
but I don’t like how this gate-keeps for only the wealthy
Agreed
It would be nice if there was an inclusive system for people who really need one and pubic transit isn’t a good option
I'm pretty sure public transit IS a good option in Singapore, because it's so dense and wealthy. An excellent transit system is a prerequisite for making cars unavailable for most people, I'd say.
Do they have cheap carshare rentals like Car2Go or similar
Google gives up hourly car rentals, idk if they have ones like here in Estonia where you just walk up to a Bolt Drive car and unlock it via the app.
Maybe if it was a lottery that prioritized those with disabilties and accessibility needs that Transit, E-bikes Etc doesn’t suffice for.
Hmm, well, if it's a lottery, that means people with disabilities still aren't guaranteed cars. On the other hand, if you give everyone with disabilities the ability to easily buy a car - everyone's going to have a disability.
It is.
Good.