Singapore to invest S$800 million in transport research under RIE2030
Part of the funding will go towards research into autonomous transport systems.
Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow speaking in parliament on Jul 7, 2026.
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SINGAPORE: Singapore will invest S$800 million (US$619 million) in transport research over five years, more than doubling its previous outlay, as it aims to remain a global transport hub.
About two-thirds of the funding will go towards two priorities: autonomy and digital twins for connectivity. The rest will support sector-specific research in aviation, maritime and land transport.
The funding was announced under the National Research Foundation's Research, Innovation and Enterprise (RIE) 2030 programme, and will support research led by the Ministry of Transport.
Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow announced the funding on Tuesday (Jul 7) during a motion on Singapore's transport strategy, tabled by the Transport Government Parliamentary Committee and led by its chairperson Tin Pei Ling (PAP-Marine Parade-Braddell Heights).
In her speech, Ms Tin said Singapore needed to strengthen its long-term transport strategy to stay globally competitive.
Mr Siow said Singapore needed to be seen as a global thought leader in transport, warning that connectivity could no longer rely on physical infrastructure alone.
"Supply chains are becoming more fragmented and more distributed," he said. "If Singapore is merely a place through which flows happen to pass, then one day these flows will simply pass us by."
He said connectivity would increasingly depend on technology, with shippers and travellers choosing Singapore not because of proprietary technologies, but because the country is more efficient, more connected and "more reliable than the alternatives".
AUTONOMY, DIGITAL TWINS
Minister of State for Transport Baey Yam Keng said the funding would support research into new operating models using autonomous vehicles, vessels and robotics across Singapore's ports, airports and logistics network.
He said greater use of autonomous vehicles, vessels and robotics would let higher volumes be handled more efficiently, while allowing workers to focus on tasks that require human judgment and expertise.
The autonomy workstream aims to enable safer, large-scale and less manpower-intensive transport operations across land, sea and air by combining autonomous platforms, AI and robotics.
Research will include next-generation testing and certification frameworks for autonomous vehicles and unmanned aviation systems, as well as autonomous maritime operations and cargo-transloading using robotics and embodied AI.
“With our high volumes of cargo and supportive regulatory environment, Singapore can serve as a real‑world ‘living lab’ to test and deploy these solutions at scale. Once proven here, they can be adopted internationally,” Mr Baey said.
The digital twins initiative aims to improve the movement of cargo and passengers by integrating transport data across land, sea and air networks, and applying AI-enabled simulations to support planning and operations.
Applications include better weather forecasting to reduce disruption to airport operations and intelligent land traffic management to improve road traffic flows.
AVIATION, MARITIME, LAND TRANSPORT
In aviation, research will focus on using AI to optimise flight movements across airports, reduce flight time and carbon emissions, and mitigate weather-related disruptions while easing air traffic controllers' workload.
AI and automation will also be deployed to enhance the efficiency and safety of airside operations, and to assist workers with physically demanding tasks such as baggage handling.
For the maritime sector, research will centre on autonomous port operations and intelligent, integrated port services, as Singapore looks to serve a growing number of vessels amid tighter constraints on sea space and manpower.
Investments will go towards AI-enabled port efficiency analytics, predictive vessel traffic management and smarter coordination of port services to reduce vessel turnaround times and better synchronise operations.
The funding will also support the sector's decarbonisation efforts, including tools to detect and predict the spread of fuel or chemical leaks to support the safe deployment of alternative fuels.
In land transport, research will centre on next-generation autonomous mass transit technology and automated rail depots, including tests of potential upgrades to improve rail system performance.
Other areas include rail technologies that simplify system design and reduce maintenance needs, and highly automated rail depots that use AI and sensors for predictive maintenance.
RIE2030 builds on RIE2025, which funded separate research programmes for aviation, maritime and urban mobility. The new funding is open to institutes of higher learning and research institutes, with companies able to participate through collaborations with these institutes.
Details on the application process will be announced over the course of RIE2030.
Mr Baey said the efforts would help Singapore "do more with less".
“We will make better use of our manpower in a tighter labour environment, while using less space and emitting less carbon, so that Singapore remains strong as a global transport and connectivity hub,” he said.
