Public transport fare hike: Adult card fares to increase by 9 to 10 cents per ride from Dec 27

SINGAPORE: Adults will pay 9 to 10 cents more per journey for card fares on public buses and trains from Dec 27, the Public Transport Council (PTC) announced on Tuesday (Oct 14).

Overall, public transport fares will be hiked by 5 per cent overall, which is lower than last year’s 6 per cent increase.

For concession card journeys beyond 3.2km, fares will increase by 3 to 4 cents — also lower than last year’s increase of 4 cents per journey. 

More than a third – about 450,000 – of such journeys are currently 3.2km or shorter, commuting to school, work or nearby amenities, said the council in a press release.

Cash fares will also increase by 5 cents for students, 10 cents for seniors and those with disabilities, and 20 cents for adults and other commuters. 

This reflects the higher operating costs of handling cash, the PTC said, adding that less than 1 per cent of all public transport journeys were paid in cash and that such fares were last adjusted in 2023.

In a press conference on Tuesday, PTC chairperson Janet Ang said that while the council seeks to keep fares affordable in a system which sees an average ridership of over seven million daily, there are other considerations at play.

These include the wages of public transport workers, the increasing cost of operations and maintenance of the public transport network, and having sufficient resources to expand and improve the accessibility of the network, she said.

“The council recognises that any fair adjustments can be challenging for commuters in an economic climate of uncertainty. Hence, in the past few years, as you know, the council has not granted the maximum allowable fare quantum,” said Ms Ang.

PTC also announced that it will change the time period it looks at to calculate annual fare increases – the council previously looked at economic data from January to December in the previous year.

From the next fare review exercise onwards, the council will change its 12-month reference to the period spanning from the previous year’s July to June of the current year instead. 

This is so as to reduce the gap between the cost changes for operators and the adjustment of fares by six months, the PTC said. 

Fare changes are usually implemented in December after the annual fare review exercise, which meant that PTC’s decision would be based on data from at least a year ago.

To facilitate this shift, this year’s review will take in the 18-month stretch from January 2024 to June this year.

PTC chief executive Leow Yew Chin said during a press conference that the council had identified the time lag issue three years back.

“We could have done it earlier, but we were still studying the issues then. So I think this is a better time for us to do it, now after looking at the data available,” he said in response to a question from CNA.

OTHER FARE CHANGES

For the first time, the surcharge for express bus services will be raised. These services provide commuters with faster journeys from the heartlands to city areas and key employment centres.

Due to the higher costs of running such services and to improve financial sustainability, the PTC said it will increase their fare difference over basic adult bus and train fares by S$0.40 for adults and S$0.20 for concession groups, for card payments. For cash payments on these services, fares will be increased by S$0.60.

The difference in fares between express and basic services has not been adjusted since 2010.

It cost operators about 1.5 times more to operate express services, said Mr Leow.

“Hopefully, in doing so, the LTA will also have more room to introduce even more City Direct Services to benefit commuters," he said.

A lot more at https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/public-transport-fare-increase-rail-trains-buses-smrt-sbs-5400781

Given his advanced age, he should consider attempting less strenuous exercise in the future, like collecting cardboards😬