The Public Transport Fare Adjustment 2014 sees an overall 3.2% increase in bus and train fares with effect from April 6, 2014. Ez-Link card fares for buses and trains are set to increase by 4 to 6 cents, and cash fares are set to increase by 10 to 20 cents per journey.
This is the second fare adjustment for the Distance-Based fare structure, with the last fare adjustment in 2011. The current fare hike follows applications by SBS Transit and SMRT to adjust fares by 6.6%, and as such, expected to receive a gain of S$53.5 million (or 3.2%) in revenue. However, part of this will be contributed back to a fund meant to shield the poorest households from fare hikes.
The fare hike is offset by a slew of new concessions made available, which are expected to benefit up to a million commuters. These include special schemes for Low-wage workers and People with disabilities, cheaper monthly concessions for Students & Full Time NSmen, and a new hybrid concession pass for Adults & Senior Citizens.
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The Fare Review At A Glance:
From April 6:
- All Commuters
Fares will go up by 3.2%.
Adult card fares will go up by 4-6 cents per trip, depending on distance.
Blank - Children below 7:
Free travel for all.
Currently, only those below 0.9m in height can travel for free.
Blank - Students:
Cheaper monthly concession passes.
Primary student: $42.50 → $41 for hybrid pass
Secondary student: $52.50 → $51 for hybrid pass
Polytechnic student: $52 → $27.50 for bus pass; $45 → $25 for train pass; $97.50 → $51 for hybrid pass
University student: $97 → $85 for hybrid pass
Blank - Full-Time National Servicemen
Cheaper monthly concession passes.
$61 → $52 for bus pass; $50 → $45 for train pass; $111 → $85 for hybrid pass
Blank - Adults
New hybrid concession pass available at $120 a month.
Blank - Senior Citizens
New hybrid concession pass available at $60 a month.
From July 6th:
- Low Wage Workers
New concession of 15% off adult fares.
Applicable to Workfare Income Supplement recipients below 60 years old.
Blank - People with disabilities
New concession of 25% off adult fares.
Fares capped at that for travel under 7.2km.
New monthly hybrid passes available at $60 a month.
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A: Fare adjustments for Adults
Regular commuters paying adult fares will see a 4 to 6 cent increase in card fares for both bus and train fares from 6 April 2014. Cash fares will increase by 20 cents.
A consolidated list of new fares can be can be found at our attached file.
Furthermore, Singapore residents and non-concession card holders who travel frequently on public transport will benefit from a new monthly travel pass. Priced at $120, the pass allows for unlimited travel on basic bus services and trains.
Individuals who wish to apply for this pass need to first apply for the Adult Monthly Travel Card, which comes at a price of $128, including the cost of the card ($5 non-refundable) and a personalization fee ($3 non-refundable).
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B: Fare adjustments for Children below 7:
Children under the age of 7 can now enjoy free travel on any basic bus service and train service.
Previously, children above 0.9m in height were required to pay child/student fares when travelling, and children under 0.9m traveled for free. Now, a new Child Concession Card is available for children below 7 years old and not in Primary School. The card will be valid for use until 30 April of the year the child turns 7 years old (where student concession cards would already be issued to them).
Application for the Child Concession Card can be done here. More details can be found at Transitlink’s hotline and website.
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C: Fare adjustments for Students:
Full-time students from Primary, Secondary and Tertiary institutions currently eligible for Student concession fares will see a 2 cent increase in card fares for both bus and train fares from 6 April 2014. Cash fares will increase by 10 cents.
A consolidated list of new fares can be can be found at our attached file.
Furthermore, prices of monthly concession passes has been brought down, making it more affordable for students. For polytechnic students, prices of concession passes have been cut by more than 40%, bringing them on par with secondary and tertiary students. Monthly train and hybrid pass holders now enjoy unlimited train rides, up from the previous limit of 4 rides per day.
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D: Fare adjustments for Senior Citizens:
Senior Citizens paying senior citizen fares will see a 2 to 3 cent increase in card fares for both bus and train fares from 6 April 2014. Cash fares will increase by 10 cents.
A consolidated list of new fares can be can be found at our attached file.
Furthermore, Singapore citizens and Permanent Residents aged 60 years old and above are eligible for a new monthly travel pass. Priced at $60, the pass allows for unlimited travel on basic bus services and trains.
Individuals who wish to apply for this pass need to first apply for the Senior Citizen Concession Card. The card comes at a cost of $13 ($3 personalization fee and minimum $10 travel value), and existing card holders need not re-apply. The monthly pass can be purchased in a similar manner to similar to student monthly concessions, available at any TransitLink Ticket Office, TransitLink AVM+, General Ticketing Machines and Passenger Services Centre with effect from 6 April 2014.
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E: Fare adjustments for Full-Time National Servicemen:
Full-time NSmen will continue to pay adult fares subject to the fare increases in Section A. However, they will enjoy cheaper monthly concessions priced similar to university students.
Revised concession pass rates can be found here on the second page.
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F: Concessions for the disabled and low-wage workers
In the first direct travel subsidy of its kind, the Government will fork out $50 million a year in tax revenue to help defray the cost for two groups: low-wage workers earning up to $1,900 a month, and people with permanent disabilities. Starting July 6 2014, about 400,000 low-wage workers and 50,000 persons with disabilities are expected to benefit from these two schemes in the first year.
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New concession schemes |
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| Concessionary discount | Eligibility Criteria | |
| Workfare Transport Concession Scheme – WTCS (For low wage workers) |
15 per cent off adult fares | Recipients of Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) payments from Dec 1, 2013 |
| Concession scheme for Persons with Disabilities – PWD | 25 per cent off adult fares, with fare amount capped at 7.2km, $60 monthly concession pass for unlimited bus and train rides | Beneficiaries of existing disability schemes and services, members with permanent disability of relevant VWOs under the SG Enable framework |
Exact fare tables for each concession scheme can be found in PTC’s News & Publications.
Comprehensive details on both concession schemes such as eligibility, applications and validity can be found at the TransitLink website here.
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G: SBS Transit Non-Basic Fare Adjustment
Fare revision for SBS Transit’s non-basic bus services – Nite Owl, Parks, Chinatown Direct and Premium services – were implemented from Sunday, 3 August 2014.
Adult fares for the six Nite Owl services will increase by between 10 and 20 cents while Senior Citizen Concession fares will increase by between 5 and 10 cents. Student Concession fares will increase by 5 cents.
For Parks Service 408 and the three Chinatown Direct services, adult fares will see an increase of 10 cents, while Senior Citizen and Student Concession fares will increase by 5 cents.
On the other hand, children below the age of 7 who are currently charged a fare on these 10 non-basic bus services will now get to enjoy free travel. Those who are taller than 0.9m will need a valid child concession card to enjoy this benefit.
For the 31 Premium bus services, which provide guaranteed seating from the heartlands to the Central Business District, fares will increase by between 20 and 70 cents.
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H: SMRT Non-Basic Fare Adjustment
From 3 August 2014, fares for SMRT Premium, Weekend Bus Service 926 and Bus-Plus services will be adjusted to reflect the rising cost of operations. Premium services will see a 50 cent to 1 dollar fare increase, while Service 926 will adopt a simpler flat fare structure charging either $1.20 or $1.90 for different fare groups.
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Gallery:
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External Links & References:
- Public Transport Fare Review – TodayOnline
- Bus and Train Fare Hike – Straits Times
- History of Fare Adjustments – PTC
- News and Publications – PTC
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