SINGAPORE - A solar-powered colour electronic paper display, which looks like ink on paper, is being trialled in Singapore – a decade after an earlier version of the technology was tested.

The Land Transport Authority said during the first trial in 2016 that e-paper was meant to be easier to read than other displays that use light-emitting diode (LED) technology.

However, the trial then found that the display faded under strong sunlight.

As the technology has advanced, LTA is again testing its performance in displaying transport information for commuters under outdoor conditions. LTA is also testing the effectiveness of solar and battery systems to sustain low-power display devices, it said.

It is partnering with tech services firm NCS to test the e-paper display from April to October 2026, at a bus stop outside Little India MRT station. LTA did not say how many other bus stops will have the e-paper display during the trial.

When The Straits Times visited the bus stop in Little India on a sunny Monday evening at 6pm, it was observed that the bus information screen was smaller and the colours were duller than those on an LED display. The bus stop surroundings were also reflected on the e-paper screen, making it harder to read the information on it.

NCS, which manufactured the colour e-paper display, declined to disclose how much the display costs, compared with other bus displays currently in use, when asked by ST.

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Commuters are encouraged to share their feedback by scanning the QR code on the trial panel.

SINGAPORE – School bus operators will receive additional funding in May and June, covering 20 per cent of transport fare revenue. They will also be given the flexibility to increase fares to a certain point if fuel prices remain elevated in July, the Ministry of Education (MOE) said.

In a reply to media queries, MOE said on May 15 that it had earlier provided temporary support to such operators from April, owing to an increase in operating costs as a result of higher fuel prices.

At that point, this funding covered 13 per cent of transport fare revenue.