This revamp is meant to address wear and tear, and ensure the buses remain in good working condition.
Of the vehicles undergoing a facelift, 364 are single-decker buses that are being refreshed by coach refurbishment company Wah Sheng Motor Supply, while 265 are double-deckers being revamped by automotive engineering firm ComfortDelGro Engineering.
Bus models in this exercise include the Mercedes-Benz Citaro O530, MAN A22, Volvo B9TL and Alexander Dennis Enviro500.
The tender for the refurbishment of these vehicles was awarded separately to the two companies in March 2024. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) told The Straits Times that as at Jan 16, 20 per cent of them have been refurbished.
The first of these refurbished buses returned to service in August 2024.
The authority added that the renewal of all 629 buses is expected to be completed by January 2026, slightly after the initial scheduled date of end-2025.
When asked about the delay, LTA said that as this was its first midlife refurbishment programme, a more thorough assessment of the buses’ condition and the required works was needed.
This is the first time the authority is carrying out such a refurbishment since the public bus sector transitioned to a contracting model in 2016.
Under this model, LTA owns all operating assets and infrastructure, including buses. Prior to this, public transport operators owned the buses and carried out their own refurbishment works.
ST visited Wah Sheng Motor Supply’s workshop in Tuas South to have a closer look at the refurbishment of the single-deckers.
The process, which can take up to seven working days for one bus, starts with the vehicle being driven to the indoor workspace where it is disassembled, with the workers pulling out its pole structures, air-conditioning ducts and seats.
Mr Kenny Pang, chief executive of Wah Sheng Motor Supply, told ST that the poles need to be removed to facilitate the replacement of the floor mats, as they are connected to the bus floor.
Meanwhile, the air-con ducts have to be removed to protect them, as the ceiling will be spray-painted with a fresh layer of grey paint.
Workers then cut the existing floor mat into strips to remove it; it cannot be extracted in one go due to its irregular shape.
On the exterior of the bus, another group of workers scrape the existing window sealant – an adhesive – from all four corners of each window using a penknife, before applying a new layer using an air-compressed sealant gun.
After the bus is stripped bare of its removable parts, workers arm themselves with masking tape to stick sheets of brown paper and canvas on areas of the bus that need to be kept clean of spray paint.
These include the steering wheel, monitors, cameras, doors and windows.
After that, a designated spray-painter suits up with a respirator face mask and a coverall suit to paint the bus ceiling, the driver’s cabin and seat saloons where the seats are placed.
Only one worker at a time is allowed to spray-paint the bus, to prevent the production of excessive toxic fumes.
Whenever buses are being spray-painted, an extractor fan has to be turned on to draw out the contaminated air, and foldable screen doors are used to isolate the bus where this work is being carried out from the rest of the workshop, said Mr Pang.
This is why the spray-painting process for each bus can take one to two days.
Next, workers wash the bus floor and repair dents with putty – a clay-like material – to ensure there is a level surface to lay the new floor mat on.
Glue is then sprayed onto the bottom of the floor mat and on the bus floor.
The workers need to cut the mat in a way that accounts for certain features, such as the wheelchair ramp and poles.
This may take another day or two to be completed.
While all this work is taking place in the large workspace inside the Wah Sheng Motor Supply workshop, another group of workers is stitching new bus seat covers with sewing machines in a separate room.
Some dismantle the old seat covers and foam cushions from the seat frames, some sew the new seat covers and others fit new foam cushions into the new seat covers and attach them to the seat frames before installing them on the buses.
Those sewing have to cut the fabric accordingly before attaching the Velcro edges to the main body of the seat cover.
The seat covers used to be stapled to the cushion foams and seat frames. This made it difficult for maintenance and posed a safety hazard. With the new Velcro attachments, dismantling the bus seats will be easier.
NEW SEATS
It takes 30 minutes for each bus seat to be refreshed and re-upholstered.
And finally, at the last stage of the refurbishment, workers reinstall the pole structures, seats and air-con ducts on the freshly painted bus.
They then spray water all over the completed bus to ensure that the fresh layer of window sealants and new rubber coating around the doors are water-resistant.
The refurbished bus is then ready to go out on the road again.
ST has reached out to ComfortDelGro Engineering for more details on its refurbishment works for the double-deckers.
To ensure continued bus operations, LTA said it will work with the appointed contractors and public bus operators to manage the schedule for the refurbishment works.
Separately, when asked about the recent two-year extension to the lifespan of 56 Scania K230UB buses that was announced in September 2024, LTA said these buses were assessed by both LTA and bus operator SBS Transit to be in good condition and safe to operate for two more years.
This is to support the $900 million bus connectivity enhancement programme, intended to improve connectivity for those living in new estates.
These buses, which have been operating for close to 17 years, are not part of the midlife refurbishment exercise but will undergo enhanced maintenance to ensure that they continue to be roadworthy after the extension, added LTA.