As part of the efforts to continually improve everyone’s accessibility to the public transport system, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) is working with various partners to enhance three navigational and infrastructural elements to better serve all commuters, including families and those with special needs.
Better Communication Support for Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing Commuters
2 A visual communication tool developed by LTA in collaboration with The Singapore Association for the Deaf, Building and Construction Authority and the public transport operators will be rolled out to all MRT stations and bus interchanges by end-2022. The tool features pictograms and text for common keywords to better facilitate communication between commuters who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and public transport staff.
3 Passenger Service Centres at all new MRT stations, starting with the Thomson-East Coast Line, will be equipped with Hearing Enhancement Systems (HES) that enable sounds to be transmitted intelligibly to a person wearing hearing aids without the interference of background noise or reverberation. Passenger Service Offices at existing bus interchanges undergoing upgrading works as well as those built from 2019 onwards will also be equipped with HES. This initiative will help improve communication between commuters with hearing aids and station staff.
4 Currently, all MRT stations already have existing tools such as detectable warning surfaces in the MRT stations to help the visually impaired navigate independently. For wheelchair users, ramps and lifts are provided for accessibility to all public areas in the MRT stations. Similar provisions are available at bus interchanges as well. Starting from Thomson-East Coast Line, lighting level, font size and colour contrast on signage have also been improved and braille text on handrails, toilet signs and lift buttons have been added to aid the partially visually impaired.
Supporting Families with Young Children
5 Currently, all interchange stations on the Thomson-East Coast Line and 60 per cent of bus interchanges are equipped with Baby Care Rooms to provide a private space for nursing mothers and parents who need to attend to their babies. Going forward, Baby Care Rooms will be provided at all Jurong Region Line and Cross Island Line stations, as well as at new bus interchanges to enhance the transport journeys of parents or caregivers travelling with babies and young children. Please refer to Annex A for the current list of Baby Care Rooms at transport nodes.
Expanding Number of Dementia Go-To-Points
6 Another group of commuters LTA aims to improve infrastructure for and better serve is commuters with dementia and their caregivers. As part of an initiative launched by the Ministry of Health, supported by the Agency for Integrated Care (AIC) and the community partners, LTA is working with the public transport operators to progressively list all of our public transport nodes as Dementia Go-To-Points (GTPs) by end-2022. Besides serving as resource centres to provide information and useful resources on dementia and link those who need help with the relevant dementia-related services, GTPs are also touch points which serve as “safe return points” for those living with dementia, as public transport staff at these GTPs are trained to assist in reuniting those with dementia with their caregivers. Members of the public can also bring persons with dementia who are lost and need assistance to the GTPs. Currently, approximately 54 public transport nodes, including MRT and LRT stations, bus interchanges and integrated transport hubs, have already been designated as GTPs. The list of GTPs is available on the Agency for Integrated Care’s Dementia Friends mobile app. Please refer to Annex B for the current list of GTPs at public transport nodes.
7 LTA will continue to work with community partners, social service agencies and the public transport operators to improve the accessibility, convenience and user-friendliness of our public transport infrastructure.
