By 2017, almost the entire fleet of buses in SBS Transit will be wheelchair-accessible.

SBS Transit has placed orders worth $311 million for 665 Euro V buses, all of which come with wheelchair-friendly features. The newest addition comprises 250 single deck Mercedes Citaro buses and 415 double deck Volvo B9TL Wright buses. Of the new buses, 296 will be funded by the Government under the Bus Service Enhancement Programme (BSEP).

Said Mr Gan Juay Kiat, Chief Executive Officer of SBS Transit: "We have committed around $1.3 billion to purchase more than 3,000 buses since our fleet renewal programme began in 2006. By 2017, we would have replaced almost the entire fleet, and expanded the fleet by more than 36%."

Delivery of the latest purchase is scheduled to begin in mid-2015. By 2017, when all the new buses have been delivered, more than 90% of around 3,800 buses will be Euro IV-compliant and above, and almost the entire fleet will be wheelchair-accessible.

Mr Chwee Meng Chong, a wheelchair user who takes services 131 and 141 regularly to go for medical checkups and to visit his friends, welcomes the news.

"With the delivery of more wheelchair-friendly buses, more services will become wheelchair-accessible. I look forward to taking these new services to go to more places in Singapore," said the 85-year-old retiree.