Trolleybuses in Singapore

The Singapore trolleybus system was part of the public transport system in Singapore for more than 35 years in the 20th century. It gradually replaced the tramway network. The system was closed in 1962, where it was replaced by motorbus routes.

History
By the early 1920s, as a result of a lack of funds, the tram system in Singapore was in a very poor state. As a result, negotiations were made in 1922 with the Shanghai Electric Construction Company, and the management of the tram operating company was changed that year. By this time, as a result of the tram track being in a very poor state as well as the cost of its rehabilitation, as well as the success of trolleybuses in Shanghai, the Shanghai Electric Construction Company made plans to replace the tram network with a trolleybus one, as well as the reorganisation of the tram operating company.

In March 1925, the Singapore Traction Ordinance was passed by the Legislative and Colonial Council. This included the conversion of the tram system to trolleybuses, and the reorganisation of the tram operating company into the Singapore Traction Company, which was to operate the trolleybuses. The Singapore Traction Company was formed in October that year and it took over the assets of the old tram company.

After its formation, the Singapore Traction Company (STC) commenced the transition to trolleybuses from trams. In 1926, a fleet of trolleybuses were shipped to Singapore in kit form, with the first ten becoming ready for service in April later that year. These trolleybuses consist of the chassis constructed by Associated Equipment Company (AEC) and bodies constructed in Shanghai. Trolleybus service began on 14 August that year on the two routes, between Joo Chiat Road and Tanjong Pagar, and between Upper Cross Street and Outram Road, with service provided by at least 30 trolleybuses. To inaugurate the service, the special illuminated trolleybus ran between Bras Basah, Geylang and Singapore General Hospital in that evening.

The trolleybuses became very popular with the public following their introduction, and as a result, the ridership of the buses was much higher than that of the trams they replaced. As a result, the fare revenue of the Singapore Traction Company in the last quarter of the year increased by 21.72% between 1925 and 1926. The conversion of tram routes to trolleybuses continued into 1927, with the route between Tank Road and Keppel Harbour completing the conversion in March that year. Other routes were similarly converted and the conversion to trolleybuses were completed six months later, with the conversion of the route between Selegie Road and Bras Basah Road.

Soon after their introduction, problems arose over the trolleybuses. Several fatalities occurred as a result of people either alighting or falling from moving trolleybuses, and consequently, the request was made for a fitting that could allow the conductor of a trolleybus to control passenger flow at the exits of the buses. The request was made multiple times as more deaths has occurred, and as a result, the Traction Company decided to install a central rod at the second class entrance of each trolleybus in November 1927. However, the result of the coroner's inquiry into one of the fatalities that same month stated that the rods would not reduce the fatalities, and to do so, passengers had to be obliged not to alight until the bus had stopped. In 1928, with the death of the Chinese teenager after he fell from a trolleybus, the Traction Company installed inward-opening doors at third class exits of all its trolleybuses.

By October 1931, the trolleybus network had almost 40 million riders, and by 1933, it was claimed to be the largest trolleybus system in the world, with a total route length of 40.17km served by a fleet of 108 buses. In August 1939, new regulations for trolleybuses have been implemented. These regulations limited the trolleybuses to a top speed of 25 miles per hour, prohibited the placing of advertising on the exterior of the trolleybuses and mandated that the trolleybuses had to be conveniently and brightly lit.

With the fall of the Singapore to the Japanese in February 1942, operation of the network was taken over by the local administration, and trolleybus services were more or less per normal in May that year. First class on the trolleybuses were abolished in 1943 with the introduction of standard single-class trolleybuses, and as a result, the fares were restructured according to the prior second-class fare rates.

After the return of Singapore to the British rule, the Traction Company found out that the 108-strong prewar trolleybus fleet, only 20 trolleybuses of the roadworthiness remained. Trolleybus service was reinstated in September 1945 with the passenger capacity limited to just 45. Due to insufficient number of trolleybuses available, some routes previously served by trolleybuses were served by omnibuses until sufficient trolleybuses have been delivered.

Fleet
In 1943, the Syonan-si Siden introduced a new type of trolleybus. This trolleybus did away with the two-class layout in previous types used on the network, and had a lower floor then previous types.

After the war, as part of the rehabilitation programme, the Traction Company ordered 50 new trolleybuses, fitted with brand-new electrical equipment as well as pneumatic tyres which were to have their bodies constructed in Singapore. As a result of these buses being put into service, the old trolleybuses that had dated from the beginning of the network were able to be scrapped.