New jobs will emerge with transition to autonomous vehicles: Acting Transport Minister

Straits Times

12 hours ago

(Standing, from right) WeRide chief executive Tony Han explaining to Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow and Senior Minister of State for Transport Sun Xueling how remote operators, like the man who is seated, ensure the safety of the company's autonomous vehicles in Guangzhou. PHOTO: MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT
– There will still be jobs available for drivers in the transport sector, even if the adoption of autonomous vehicles in Singapore becomes more widespread in future, said Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow.
Addressing concerns about the impact of self-driving vehicles on livelihoods, he said that in a steady state, there will be a mix of both autonomous and human drivers on Singapore's roads.
However, the role of professional drivers may change, and it is the Government's job to help drivers make the best of new opportunities, Mr Siow told reporters on June 27.
He was speaking on the sidelines of a two-day visit to Guangzhou to learn how the Chinese city has developed and rolled out self-driving technology. Singapore media were invited to join the delegation on the trip.
'(It) may well be you have somebody on board that does different things,' Mr Siow said , noting that this may be to help load luggage, aid elderly passengers in boarding, or lead a tour group.
New jobs will also emerge from driverless vehicle operations, the acting minister noted.
Visiting several autonomous driving companies in Guangzhou, he said he could already see many young people working as programmers, designers, fleet managers and operations control centre staff.
'These are just at the tip of the iceberg,' he added.
Paying homage to taxi and private-hire car drivers in Singapore and their important role, Mr Siow said that as the industry develops and changes, the Government will make sure they are well taken care of.
'Some of them will transition to these new jobs... Others – we have to see how to help them reskill, to retrain, and to take up other jobs in the economy,' he added.
National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) assistant secretary-general Yeo Wan Ling said the labour movement believes autonomous vehicles will benefit workers.
For instance, self-driving vehicles could help take over late-night shifts and lighten the load on drivers, improving productivity and safety.
Ms Yeo, who advises the National Transport Workers Union, National Taxi Association and National Private Hire Vehicles Association, agreed with Mr Siow that autonomous vehicle adoption will open up jobs in areas such as maintenance and research and development.
It could also attract more young people to the public transport sector, she added.
But Ms Yeo, who was part of the Singapore delegation in Guangzhou, said it is also important for the Land Transport Authority to work with NTUC to map out these career paths, and create upskilling packages so livelihoods are not disrupted or displaced.
One of her takeaways from the trip was the need for a measured and considered roll-out of self-driving technology. 'It's important to provide safety nets as well as a sense of security and safety to people,' the Punggol GRC MP added.
During a visit on June 26 to the Guangzhou Public Transport Group, which deploys self-driving shuttle buses on 12 public routes in the city, Ms Yeo asked a number of questions related to how the company deals with employment and retraining.
In response, the public transport operator noted that road conditions on some of the 12 autonomous bus routes are complex as they run through the city centre. Hence, safety personnel on board are certified to stringent local standards.
The company also said there will be a need for more remote operators in future once these vehicles become truly driverless, and these roles require a lot of experience.
A nother company the delegation visited was WeRide, which has been running an autonomous minibus service in Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), an integrated resort in Singapore, since June 2024.
WeRide, which operates in 30 cities globally , plans to expand its deployments in Singapore. Since January, it has also been allowed to remove the steering wheel from its Sentosa shuttle bus, relying on remote operators monitoring the vehicle from afar and a safety officer on board in case of emergencies.
WeRide Singapore general manager Kerry Xu said the company had trained bus drivers from its partner, Singapore transport operator EZ Buzz, to be safety officers and remote operators.
'Our thinking is that we will work with local operators to upskill their existing drivers and help them transition to a new job, so they don't feel like they will lose their jobs,' Mr Xu said.
'This is another way to boost public acceptance , by helping the local workforce to upskill and transform ,' he added.
(Clockwise from left) Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow, WeRide Singapore general manager Kerry Xu and WeRide chief executive Tony Han in an autonomous bus in Guangzhou on June 27.
PHOTO: MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT
Singapore transport giant ComfortDelGro, meanwhile, has been working with robotaxi company Pony.ai, which Mr Siow also visited during his trip. In March, ComfortDelGro started a two-year trial in Guangzhou, taking part in commercial robotaxi services to learn how to put autonomous vehicles into use.
ComfortDelGro group chief executive Cheng Siak Kian noted that while self-driving vehicles may be autonomous on the road, there are other parts of the operation that still require a human in the loop.
'Ultimately, you still have to clean your vehicles... you still have to fuel the vehicles,' he added.
Mr Cheng said ComfortDelGro will need to think about how to train its people to manage an autonomous taxi fleet , for example, by upgrading safety crew to become remote operators, which is what is happening in China today .
Another consideration is how to price self-driving services so passengers find it attractive, while ensuring that manned taxis and private-hire cars are not undercut by fares that are too low , he added.
Mr Cheng said: 'Ultimately, for Singapore, there's always going to be a constraint in terms of manpower. There will always be a constraint in terms of the actual supply of vehicles... There will be areas that will be underserved. We believe that robotaxis will be able to plug some of these gaps now and into the future.'
Pony.ai's chief executive James Peng said his company wants to start at least a small-scale trial in Singapore by the end of 2025. The firm is also eyeing global expansion in places such as Japan and Australia, and the mass production of its latest robotaxis.
An autonomous seven-seater taxi in Guangzhou.
PHOTO: MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT
Mr Peng said one reason why autonomous vehicles have taken off in Guangzhou is that the government there is open-minded, and it was one of the first to draw up formal regulations to support its development. The population is also tech-savvy.
He said Singapore has these elements too.
Mr Peng noted that public attitudes towards self-driving vehicles have shifted over the years. 'In the early days... especially when they see there's no driver in it, people were shocked. Sometimes, they even try to do something crazy to see how we react.'
But today, Pony.ai's robotaxis complete about 20 rides daily per vehicle, which Mr Peng said is on a par with a typical taxi.
On whether autonomous driving will displace workers, Mr Peng framed it as job transformation, noting that large-scale deployment of autonomous vehicles will take decades.
'Over that stretch, society will find a way. It is just like every other transformation before this, (like) cars replacing horse carriages,' he added.
Kok Yufeng is a transport correspondent at The Straits Times.
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