Singapore LTA Working on Sustainability Efforts to Reduce Peak Land Transport Em

1. Singapore LTA Working on Sustainability Efforts to Reduce Peak Land Transport Emissions by 80% The Singapore government is working hard towards the Singapore Green Plan 2030. The Green plan focuses on sustainable development and features five key pillars including City in Nature, Sustainable Living, Energy Reset, Green Economy, and Resilient Future. In order to achieve sustainable development and make Singapore a greener city, the government has set a new target of reducing emissions by 80% by or around mid-century. How the government is going to do it? Read on to know more. 1.To pave the way for reducing land transport emissions, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) will ramp up the electrification of Singapore’s public bus fleet. By 2040, a 100% cleaner energy bus fleet will be deployed on the Singaporean roads for public use. Currently, 60 electric buses have already been purchased and deployed to test the operational and technical aspects of a larger-scale rollout. As Land Transport Authority (LTA) encourages people to take public transport to reduce traffic congestion as well as pollution, public transport operators like SMRT Corporation are exploring electric buses to reduce carbon footprint. 2.Moving forward, LTA will purchase only electric buses from now until 2030. 400 diesel buses that have reached their statutory lifespan will be replaced by 2025. 3.LTA is working with partners to spur the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). To help LTA and the government, SMRT Corporation, a leading multi-modal transport operator, has already launched its first batch of 300 electric taxi vehicles on the roads in August 2021. SMRT will do a total electric change out of the taxi fleet by 2026. Commenting on the same, SMRT Chairman, Seah Moon Ming said: “We strongly support the national effort to ensure Singapore remains a highly liveable city for generations to come. The Singapore Green Plan sets a 2030 target to have all vehicles run on cleaner energy. This requires a massive effort by the Government and industry players to drive the adoption of electric vehicles (EV) and establish a national EV charger network.” While SMRT CEO, Neo Kian Hong, said: “We saw an opportunity beyond just electric vehicles and partnered with SP Group to push for an ecosystem of connected electric services.” Neo Kian Hong further added: “Through both Mobility-as-a-Service and Electrification-as-a-Service, we intend to bring charging infrastructure and a diverse fleet of electric taxis, cars, vans, limousines, motorcycles, and buses to meet the evolving needs of a diverse local and regional market.” 4.To drive the adoption of electric vehicles, the government aims for every Housing and Development Board (HDB) town to be EV-Ready by 2025. To achieve this goal, LTA will deploy charging points in around 2,000 HDB car parks by 2025. The government has set a target of installing in total 60,000 EV charging points by 2030. 5.To reduce land transport emissions and lower energy costs, LTA will install solar panels on the roofs of new or recently upgraded land transport infrastructure, including rail and bus depots, stations, offices, and facility buildings. 6.LTA is planning to revise the Category A Maximum Power Output (MPO) threshold for electric cars. Currently, MPO is 97kW, which will be increased to 110kW. This will help the government to allow more mass-market electric cars to come under Category A.

2. Conclusion Recognising that the land transport sector has a greater impact on the environment, LTA, the Singapore government, and transport operators have started working on enhancing the country’s green capabilities to reduce pollution and emissions. By encouraging EV adoption, installing solar panels on the land transport infrastructure, launching electric buses and taxis, and creating EV- ready HDB towns, Singapore will be able to reduce peak land transport emissions by 80% in the coming years.