Higher daily ridership and lower fuel costs on the Downtown Line gave SBS Transit a lift on its earnings in the second quarter.

Net profit came in at $7.2 million for the second quarter, up 19 per cent from the same period a year earlier.

Revenue increased by 5.6 per cent to $269 million.

The company's results were boosted by its rail business.

Revenue from the rail segment rose by 24.6 per cent to $65.1 million, owing to higher average daily ridership after the commencement of revenue from the service of the Downtown Line 2.

This was offset by lower average fares for the North-East Line and Light Rail Transit due to the fare reduction from Dec 27 last year.

Average daily ridership on the Downtown line surged by 204.8 per cent to 212,000 passenger trips, compared with the same period last year.

Operating profit for the quarter was $9.4 million,up by 11.1 per cent for the same period last year, mainly due to higher revenue, lower fuel costs and lower depreciation.

Some gains were offset by higher staff costs due to the recruitment of more staff for the Downtown Line, it said.

In a statement yesterday, the company said it expected rail revenue to grow from higher ridership, while bus revenue is expected to be maintained.

It added in a separate announcement that with effect from Sept 1, its bus unit will enter into a negotiated contract with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) for the operation of public bus services under the Bus Contracting Model.

Under this model, SBS will receive bus revenue comprising of the service fee for the provision of bus services and revenue from advertising and rental. In addition, LTA will pay SBS a leasing fee for the use of its existing fleet of buses.

The overall gain in profits translated to higher earnings per share of 2.34 cents, up from 1.97 cents.

Net asset value per share was $1.17 as at June 30, up from $1.10 as at Dec 31.

The company declared an interim dividend of 2.35 cents per share up from 1.65 cents last year.

Lee Xin En