Bring Back the Free Shuttle Buses to Resort World Sentosa
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Dear Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports
We, the customers of Resort World Sentosa would like Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA) and Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) and Public Transport Council (PCT) to bring back the free shuttle buses to Resort World Sentosa.
The Government's main rationale for granting licenses to the two gaming operators was that they would build integrated resorts where the majority of amenities and services would be non-gaming in nature.
The Government should not stop the free shuttle buses on the grounds that Singaporeans are visiting the casino which consist of less then 5\% of Resort World Sentosa.
We, the customers of Resort World Sentosa wants to have our free shuttle buses back so that we can enjoy the other 95\% of the amenities and services which are non-gaming in nature.
If the Government is truly concern about it's citizen taking up gambling and losing their life savings away, we want to suggest the following options that will affect the gaming patrons of the casino directly and not to penalize the rest of it's customers.
1. Raise the casino levy to an obscene amount like S$500-S$1000 per day and to eliminate the option of having a yearly casino levy. This will effectively stop all lower/middle income patrons from visiting the casino.
2. The Government should also mandate that all patrons should have a minimum annual income of $S30,000 to ensure that in event the casino patrons are truly addicted to gaming, they have a means to support their gaming habits. Their monthly casino expenditure should also be capped based on their monthly income. The number of times a person can visit the casino should also be capped based on their monthly income.
3. Should the Government find that the steps outline above are still not sufficient to curb the gaming habits of Singaporeans, We, the customers of Resort Worlds Sentosa will support the Government in an outright ban on all Singaporeans from entering the casino.
The PTC has also made a stand that IRs should remain accessible by public transport and agree with our opinion that apart from casinos, there are also other attractions within the integrated resorts. Despite what you have said in your parliamentary speech, the free shuttle buses are indeed part of Singapores public transport network. The free shuttle buses are licensed by PTC under the category of Special Bus Services and according to LTA which have also provided the approval of the shuttle buses, the shuttle buses are allowed to use public bus stops for passenger service. As Sentosa is generally not as accessible as other parts of Singapore, the shuttle buses are a boon to commuters visiting RWS to enjoy its numerous non-gaming amenities and services. But I would say that unlike other forms of public transport in Singapore, the shuttle buses provided by RWS arrived at the pickup location on-time as well as arrive at the destination on time. The drivers of the shuttle buses also ensure that the buses are not overcrowded and standing on the bus is not allowed. It is a shame that we are deprived of this excellent mode of public transportation due to a misguided attempt to dissuade gamblers from visiting the casinos.
In your parliamentary speech dated 21st July 2005, you said that the $100 levy is to signal that gambling is an expense and not a way to make money and will discourage casual gaming. When ask by other MPs about increasing the $100 levy, you replied that no amount of levy will deter compulsive gamblers and that exclusion measures serve as tripwires that will identify and detect those who are at risk or are already addicts. You have also mentioned that you do not want to micro-manage a person with too many anti-gambling measures and have trust that the majority of Singaporeans can assume personal responsibility to manage their own expenditures. The social safeguards your ministry have implemented are already strict and too much regulation will undermine the viability of the IRs. Since you have made this speech, you would surely know that the termination of the shuttle buses is not a good deterrent to the gamblers but would instead deprive non-casino visitor from using the free shuttle services.
You have also raised up the fact that the shuttle buses operated very long hours, up to 10.30pm on weeknights and up to 2.30am on weekends and the eves of public holidays and assumes that the late hours meant that most of the facilities at the RWS would be closed, except for the casino.
Please see the list below entertainment/shopping/dinning facilities and their operation hours。
Asias Ultimate Mixed Martial Arts Fighting Championship 8pm
Voyage de la Vie I have seen this show and it runs till 10plus for the 8:30pm show
The show runs on Wednesdays, Thursdays & Fridays, 8:30PM, Saturdays & Sundays, 5.30PM & 8.30PM
Universal Studios After Hours 7:00pm to 10:00pm every Friday and Saturday
Lake of Dreams Every Night, 9pm at FestiveWalk
Hersheys (The Bull Ring, Level 1) 10:00am 10:00pm (Daily)
Victorias Secret (Galleria Level 2)
11am-10pm (Thur-Sun) 11am-10:30pm (Fri-Sat)
BreadTalk (The Forum)
8:00am 11:00pm (Mon-Thurs) | 8:00am 01:00am (Fri Sat)
Garrett Popcorn (The Bull Ring)
10am 10pm
Chilis Grill & Bar (The Bull Ring)
11am-10pm (Mon Thurs) | 11am 11pm (Fri-Sun)
Hard Rock Cafй (The Forum)
11:00am-1:00am
As you can see from above, most of the shops open at 10am and closes at 10pm, which coincides with the operation timings of the shuttle buses.
Although the shuttle bus runs till 2:30am on Fridays, Saturdays and eves of public holidays, it is not unusual for people to stay out later during the weekends to unwind after a long week of work.
You can see that the operational hours of the shuttle buses are not unusual and coincide with the business hours of numerous non-gaming amenities and services. We would like to instead raised our concern regarding service NR1 and NR6 which starts from 11:30pm until 4:30am when almost all the other facilities besides the casinos are closed. It is obvious that the sole purpose of these 2 services are to ferry Singaporeans from the heartlands to the casinos and they should be stopped instead.
The free shuttle buses provided by RWS are no different from other free shuttle buses provided by shopping mall like IMM /Plaza Singapura or both IKEAs. These buses provide incentives for their customer to visit and shop at their premises. We hope that you would seriously reconsider the shuttle bus ban as it might seem as anti-competitive behaviour and impeding the growth of the business which setup shops in RWS.
We are very grateful that you have taken a stand against gambling as a vice and are especially concerned about heartlanders in particular. We would like to take this opportunity to raise up the issue of the more than 300 4D,ToTo and soccer betting stations operated by Singapore Pools that have mushrooms all over the heartlands. These betting stations are an even greater threat than the casinos as they are walking distance from where many Singaporeans live. If left uncontrolled will cause even more social problems for Singapore are they are very accessible and there is no levy to prevent anyone from placing a bet. The bet amounts are also small which might entice many Singaporeans to try their luck, some which might have a taste of winning will bet in even greater amount and will in no time at all become an addict.Last but no least, the gambling menace at the heartlands are not confined to the betting stations, there are numerous social clubs including NTUC Club that operate jackpot machines located within the heartland. A levy should also be imposed on those visiting these social clubs for the purpose of betting on the jackpot machines. These one-arm bandits cannot be under estimated as there are many which have already fallen prey to them.
We call upon MCYS,CRA and PTC to accept our just and fair demand to bring back the Free Shuttle Bus to Resort World Sentosa. And to focus their energy to tackle the immediate gambling threat cause by the betting stations and social clubs.
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We, the customers of Resort World Sentosa would like Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA) and Ministry of Community Development, Youth and Sports (MCYS) and Public Transport Council (PCT) to bring back the free shuttle buses to Resort World Sentosa.
The Government's main rationale for granting licenses to the two gaming operators was that they would build integrated resorts where the majority of amenities and services would be non-gaming in nature.
The Government should not stop the free shuttle buses on the grounds that Singaporeans are visiting the casino which consist of less then 5\% of Resort World Sentosa.
We, the customers of Resort World Sentosa wants to have our free shuttle buses back so that we can enjoy the other 95\% of the amenities and services which are non-gaming in nature.
If the Government is truly concern about it's citizen taking up gambling and losing their life savings away, we want to suggest the following options that will affect the gaming patrons of the casino directly and not to penalize the rest of it's customers.
1. Raise the casino levy to an obscene amount like S$500-S$1000 per day and to eliminate the option of having a yearly casino levy. This will effectively stop all lower/middle income patrons from visiting the casino.
2. The Government should also mandate that all patrons should have a minimum annual income of $S30,000 to ensure that in event the casino patrons are truly addicted to gaming, they have a means to support their gaming habits. Their monthly casino expenditure should also be capped based on their monthly income. The number of times a person can visit the casino should also be capped based on their monthly income.
3. Should the Government find that the steps outline above are still not sufficient to curb the gaming habits of Singaporeans, We, the customers of Resort Worlds Sentosa will support the Government in an outright ban on all Singaporeans from entering the casino.
The PTC has also made a stand that IRs should remain accessible by public transport and agree with our opinion that apart from casinos, there are also other attractions within the integrated resorts. Despite what you have said in your parliamentary speech, the free shuttle buses are indeed part of Singapores public transport network. The free shuttle buses are licensed by PTC under the category of Special Bus Services and according to LTA which have also provided the approval of the shuttle buses, the shuttle buses are allowed to use public bus stops for passenger service. As Sentosa is generally not as accessible as other parts of Singapore, the shuttle buses are a boon to commuters visiting RWS to enjoy its numerous non-gaming amenities and services. But I would say that unlike other forms of public transport in Singapore, the shuttle buses provided by RWS arrived at the pickup location on-time as well as arrive at the destination on time. The drivers of the shuttle buses also ensure that the buses are not overcrowded and standing on the bus is not allowed. It is a shame that we are deprived of this excellent mode of public transportation due to a misguided attempt to dissuade gamblers from visiting the casinos.
In your parliamentary speech dated 21st July 2005, you said that the $100 levy is to signal that gambling is an expense and not a way to make money and will discourage casual gaming. When ask by other MPs about increasing the $100 levy, you replied that no amount of levy will deter compulsive gamblers and that exclusion measures serve as tripwires that will identify and detect those who are at risk or are already addicts. You have also mentioned that you do not want to micro-manage a person with too many anti-gambling measures and have trust that the majority of Singaporeans can assume personal responsibility to manage their own expenditures. The social safeguards your ministry have implemented are already strict and too much regulation will undermine the viability of the IRs. Since you have made this speech, you would surely know that the termination of the shuttle buses is not a good deterrent to the gamblers but would instead deprive non-casino visitor from using the free shuttle services.
You have also raised up the fact that the shuttle buses operated very long hours, up to 10.30pm on weeknights and up to 2.30am on weekends and the eves of public holidays and assumes that the late hours meant that most of the facilities at the RWS would be closed, except for the casino.
Please see the list below entertainment/shopping/dinning facilities and their operation hours。
Asias Ultimate Mixed Martial Arts Fighting Championship 8pm
Voyage de la Vie I have seen this show and it runs till 10plus for the 8:30pm show
The show runs on Wednesdays, Thursdays & Fridays, 8:30PM, Saturdays & Sundays, 5.30PM & 8.30PM
Universal Studios After Hours 7:00pm to 10:00pm every Friday and Saturday
Lake of Dreams Every Night, 9pm at FestiveWalk
Hersheys (The Bull Ring, Level 1) 10:00am 10:00pm (Daily)
Victorias Secret (Galleria Level 2)
11am-10pm (Thur-Sun) 11am-10:30pm (Fri-Sat)
BreadTalk (The Forum)
8:00am 11:00pm (Mon-Thurs) | 8:00am 01:00am (Fri Sat)
Garrett Popcorn (The Bull Ring)
10am 10pm
Chilis Grill & Bar (The Bull Ring)
11am-10pm (Mon Thurs) | 11am 11pm (Fri-Sun)
Hard Rock Cafй (The Forum)
11:00am-1:00am
As you can see from above, most of the shops open at 10am and closes at 10pm, which coincides with the operation timings of the shuttle buses.
Although the shuttle bus runs till 2:30am on Fridays, Saturdays and eves of public holidays, it is not unusual for people to stay out later during the weekends to unwind after a long week of work.
You can see that the operational hours of the shuttle buses are not unusual and coincide with the business hours of numerous non-gaming amenities and services. We would like to instead raised our concern regarding service NR1 and NR6 which starts from 11:30pm until 4:30am when almost all the other facilities besides the casinos are closed. It is obvious that the sole purpose of these 2 services are to ferry Singaporeans from the heartlands to the casinos and they should be stopped instead.
The free shuttle buses provided by RWS are no different from other free shuttle buses provided by shopping mall like IMM /Plaza Singapura or both IKEAs. These buses provide incentives for their customer to visit and shop at their premises. We hope that you would seriously reconsider the shuttle bus ban as it might seem as anti-competitive behaviour and impeding the growth of the business which setup shops in RWS.
We are very grateful that you have taken a stand against gambling as a vice and are especially concerned about heartlanders in particular. We would like to take this opportunity to raise up the issue of the more than 300 4D,ToTo and soccer betting stations operated by Singapore Pools that have mushrooms all over the heartlands. These betting stations are an even greater threat than the casinos as they are walking distance from where many Singaporeans live. If left uncontrolled will cause even more social problems for Singapore are they are very accessible and there is no levy to prevent anyone from placing a bet. The bet amounts are also small which might entice many Singaporeans to try their luck, some which might have a taste of winning will bet in even greater amount and will in no time at all become an addict.Last but no least, the gambling menace at the heartlands are not confined to the betting stations, there are numerous social clubs including NTUC Club that operate jackpot machines located within the heartland. A levy should also be imposed on those visiting these social clubs for the purpose of betting on the jackpot machines. These one-arm bandits cannot be under estimated as there are many which have already fallen prey to them.
We call upon MCYS,CRA and PTC to accept our just and fair demand to bring back the Free Shuttle Bus to Resort World Sentosa. And to focus their energy to tackle the immediate gambling threat cause by the betting stations and social clubs.
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Goal
50 signatures
Goal: 100
Latest Signatures
6 September 2015
50.
Poor C
|
Don't take away the free shuttle. The move to ban the free shuttle will make us poor citizens suffer and deprive us a convenient mode of transport to Sentosa (NOT casino). Spare a thought for poor citizens.
5 June 2015
15 February 2015
12 January 2015
10 November 2014
3 September 2014
30 August 2014
29 July 2014
10 June 2014
27 May 2014
41.
Oh Tengs
|
The logic is flawed! You can bring down the RWS shuttles on one hand and yet let Singapore Pools continue running their outlets in neighbourhoods on the other hand? Stop using contradictory measures and bring back the usefulness of free shuttles instead!
4 April 2014
8 March 2014
2 November 2013
10 August 2013
37.
Alan W
|
Dear Minister, If you do not have the guts to address the concerns, please don't lie to the public.
29 June 2013
25 April 2013
16 March 2013
22 December 2012
20 September 2012
15 March 2012
27 January 2012
8 January 2012
6 October 2011
9 February 2011
29 November 2010
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