Commuters and drivers either love bus lanes or hate them. Bus commuters and bus drivers love them since they pave a smoother ride for them. Motorists and taxi drivers hate them as filtering into them too far before a turn, or for cabs to pick up a fare, could mean a fine.

Bus lanes were introduced in 1974 to give buses the right of way during the morning and evening peak hours. As buses can carry more commuters per unit of road space compared with passenger cars, it makes sense to enable them to enter and exit bus stops more smoothly and to provide a faster ride for commuters.

To entice more people switch to public transport, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) launched the full-day bus lane scheme in October 2005 as a method of improving bus speeds, which would make the idea of taking a bus more attractive.

The first full-day bus lane was introduced along Orchard Road as an attempt to improve traffic flow in the shopping belt. It has proven successful and the scheme has been extended to other busy roads.

You can’t miss the extra red line painted alongside the yellow line demarcating the normal bus lane. Motorists cannot drive in this lane from 7.30am to 8pm on weekdays and Saturdays, except public holidays.

If you are caught driving or leaving your vehicle in a bus lane during restricted hours, you can expect a fine of $130.

Since the implementation of the full-day bus lane scheme in Orchard Road, average bus speeds have improved, with non-peak bus speeds increasing by 10 per cent on weekdays, and 23 per cent on Saturdays.

The scheme was extended along five stretches in the city in 2007 and more were added in 2008, brining a total of 22km of full-day bus lanes.