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Source:
www.mot.gov.sg |
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1 TO 3 CENTS INCREASE IN BUS
AND TRAIN FARES FROM OCTOBER |
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From 1 October 2006, adult EZ-Link fares for
buses and trains will increase by between 1 and 3 cents. |
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Senior citizen off-peak EZ-Link fares which
are flat fares pegged to the lowest adult EZ-Link fare band will
correspondingly increase by 1 cent. |
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There are no increases in cash fares for
buses, single trip tickets for trains, child/student fares and monthly
student/NS men concession passes. |
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In August 2006, the public transport
operators SMRT Corp (SMRT) and SBS Transit (SBST) had applied to the
Public Transport Council (PTC) for an increase in bus and train fares. |
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The PTC deliberated on the PTOs¡¯ fare
proposals and approved an overall fare increase of 1.7% this year,
taking into account the fare adjustment cap formula introduced in 2005. |
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With the positive economic outlook where the
latest GDP growth forecast for 2006 has been revised upwards to 6.5% -
7.5%[1] and the unemployment rate for June 2006 has been
estimated at 2.9%[2], the PTC assessed that there were no
extenuating circumstances that required it to either vary the fare
adjustment quantum determined by the formula or to reject it. |
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Fare Increase Kept Small For Most
Commuters |
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The PTC approved a tiered increase in
adult EZ-Link fares of 1 to 3 cents depending on the distance
travelled. The tiered increase minimises the impact on commuters
who make short trips or transfers, as the first fare band of both
bus and train fares will see an increase of only 1 cent. |
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Senior citizen off-peak EZ-Link bus and
train fares, which are flat fares pegged to the lowest adult EZ-Link
fare band will also be increased by 1 cent. For example, regardless of
the distance travelled, the revised senior citizen bus fare is 65 cents,
while the revised fare for travel on the East-West and North-South MRT
Lines is 66 cents. |
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Of all the bus and train trips, 6 in
10 will see either no increase (23%) or an increase of only 1 cent
(37%). 24% of trips will see an increase of 2 cents while the
remaining 16% see an increase of 3 cents (refer to Fact Sheet,
paragraphs 8 ¨C 10). |
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Help for Needy Families |
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The PTC has always been concerned
about the affordability of public transport fares. It monitors
affordability for the general public by tracking the percentage of
monthly household income spent on public transport by a
characteristic family in the second quintile (21st to 40th
percentile) household income group which is considered
representative of the average public transport commuter as
recommended by the Committee on the Fare Review Mechanism (FRMC)
in 2005. |
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The public transport affordability
indicator has been on a down-trend from 2003 (7.0%) to 2004 (6.8%)
and 2005 (6.6%), indicating that fares have remained affordable
for the representative household. |
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While public transport fares remain
affordable for the majority of commuters, needy families may need
more help. The approach for helping such families has been to
provide targeted help via community-led initiatives and work
support schemes under MCYS/Community Development Councils. |
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Mr Gerard Ee, Chairman of the PTC
said, ¡°We understand that commuters will feel the impact of a fare
increase, no matter how small. The PTC in approving this fare
increase has taken care to ensure that fares remain affordable for
the majority of commuters relative to their updated income.
However, we recognize that there is a segment of needy households
which will need some help to adjust to the higher fares. |
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I am heartened to hear that the public
transport operators will be contributing resources in the form of
transport vouchers to help needy families in coping with the fare
increase by defraying some of their costs. This is part of the
government¡¯s ¡®Many Helping Hands¡¯ approach where the government,
community/grassroots organisations and the private sector all chip
in to help. |
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The PTC will continue to work with the
public transport operators to ensure that their service levels
continue to improve over time, especially through the use of the
new Quality of Service standards for buses.¡± |
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Please refer to the fact sheet for
more details. |
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Approved Bus and Train Fare
Adjustments |
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The approved bus and train fares,
which represent the maximum fares that the public transport
operators can charge, are set out in Annex A. |
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More..... (Factsheet/Annex A) |
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Source:
www.mot.gov.sg Press Release
12 Sep 2006 |
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Important
Notice |
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FrontPage Edition: Tue 12 September 2006
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