SBS Transit Announces Leadership Change
SBS Transit will promote the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of its Rail Business, Mr Jeffrey Sim Vee Ming, to Group CEO with effect from 1 January 2023, as part of its planned succession programme.
He will take over from Mr Cheng Siak Kian, who will be appointed Managing Director/Group CEO of parent company, ComfortDelGro Corporation, with effect from the same date.
Mr Sim, who will continue to helm the Rail Business, will serve as a Non-independent Executive Director on the Board and sit as a member of three Board committees - Service Quality, Sustainability and Tenders - while Mr Cheng will continue as Deputy Chairman but in a non-independent, non-executive capacity.
SBS Transit’s Chairman Mr Bob Tan said, “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank SK for his leadership, invaluable contributions, and dedication. Notably, he has steered the Company to be more focussed in delivering positive travel experiences for our passengers and in becoming a more caring and inclusive public transport operator. During the pandemic, he successfully galvanised our employees into a cohesive team to continue to deliver reliable public transport services for our passengers and kept staff morale high. I am delighted he has agreed to remain on the Board.
“I am also pleased to congratulate Jeffrey in his new appointment as Group CEO and look forward to his further contributions, in particular, in delivering our public transport services with a sharper focus on sustainability. I have every confidence that he will rise to his new role and continue to make a positive difference in our passengers’ travel experiences,” he said.
SBS Transit’s out-going Group CEO, Mr Cheng Siak Kian, said: “I have been very fortunate to have worked with so many dedicated colleagues as well as the Union during the past three-and-a-half years. They have given me their full support and co-operation, and with the guidance of the Board, we have achieved much. I deeply appreciate their commitment and hard work, which have made the difference for me, and am immensely proud of Team SBS Transit!”
On his appointment, Mr Sim said: “I am very honoured by the trust that has been placed in me to lead SBS Transit to its next phase of growth in an extremely challenging environment. I have big shoes to fill but I am determined and together with the resolute and passionate people at SBS Transit, and the strong support of the Union, we will build on our strengths to scale new heights to make every journey sustainable and a delight for our passengers.”
Mr Sim, 46 years old, has been with SBS Transit since 2015. He had assumed various positions in rail engineering and rail development and was Acting Head of Rail before he was appointed CEO of its Rail Business in January 2022. Under his watch, the Downtown Line (DTL) achieved the distinction of being the most reliable MRT line in the world, clocking more than four million train-km in Mean Kilometres Between Failure (MKBF) in 2021 and year-to-date 2022. MKBF is the measure of reliability used globally by railway operators.
He was also involved in discussions with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) to enable DTL to successfully transition to the New Rail Financing Framework Version 2 for financial sustainability.
A Fellow and Chartered Engineer accredited by the Institution of Engineers, Singapore, he sits on the Board of LTA’s Singapore Rail Academy and is also an Industry Advisory Committee Member of the Singapore Institute of Technology's Sustainable Infrastructure Engineering Programme.