No additional charges for transfers between different rail lines by the year end
Commuters at Stevens station on the Downtown Line. TODAY file photo
SINGAPORE — At the end of this year, commuters will no longer have to pay an additional boarding charge when they transfer between MRT or LRT stations on different lines within 15 minutes.
The move to treat the rail network as an "open system" comes as it becomes denser, with more rail lines slated to open in the coming years, said Public Transport Council (PTC) chief executive Tan Kim Hong at a media briefing to announce the new fare formula for the next five years.
The new rule means that for commuters who wish to cut their travel times by walking between 18 pairs of MRT stations that are located within 1km of each other, their commute will be considered as one journey, for which they will pay a distance-based fare without additional boarding charges.
For example, a commuter can save 77 cents if he chooses to tap out and walk from Rochor station to Jalan Besar station – which are nine stations apart on the Downtown Line (DTL) but only a 7-minute walk apart – to complete a journey from Little India to Bendemeer. He would also cut his train journey by five minutes.
This is because of a DTL loop in the downtown area. Instead of sitting through the stretch of the journey, commuters can save time by making walking transfers.
"With the expansion of the rail network, it is possible to have more of such feasible walking paths," said the PTC.
At least 6,000 trips daily are completed with such time-saving transfers and the number could grow with more flexible transfer rules.
The review to address additional fares incurred by commuters when they switch between different MRT lines was first mentioned by Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan last October at a ceremony to mark the completion of the DTL.
All other existing transfer rules will remain, said the PTC on Thursday. For instance, all journeys must be completed within two hours of the first boarding, and commuters can only make a maximum of five transfers within a journey.
Should the commuter need to take a bus ride between two rail lines, he will also be charged only one boarding fee under the revised transfer rule, if he makes the transfer between the rail and bus services within 45 minutes.
The change will take effect when the PTC announces the fare adjustment for the year in the last quarter of the year in its annual fare review exercise.
Transport expert Tham Chen Munn, director of business development at traffic solutions firm PTV Asia-Pacific, told TODAY the tweaked rule complements the rising popularity of shared bicycles.
"On top of just walking, there are more choices now. The rule change makes it easier for commuters to choose how they want to move around more seamlessly," he said.
Mr Lee Yue Soo, 41, an engineer with the Defence Science and Technology Agency, was among commuters who urged PTC to change the transfer rule.
His mother, 65, lives in Choa Chu Kang and heads to his home in Simei once or twice a month. She takes a feeder bus to DTL's Bukit Panjang station and alights at the Upper Changi station.
Mr Lee and his mother once exited Rochor station and walked to Jalan Besar station to continue the ride. Although it saved time, Mr Lee said the additional boarding charge made the effort "not economical".
A transfer is also possible between the Circle Line's Bras Basah station and DTL's Bencoolen station, which are "right next to each other", Mr Lee added. But "to transfer between the two different lines, I will need to take one more station to Dhoby Ghaut which, to me, does not make sense as we are penalised for helping to ease the public transport load," he said.
The rule change will mean "greater possibilities" when the new Thomson-East Coast line opens in phases from 2019, he said.
The greater flexibility will also allow commuters to switch lines during train disruptions without incurring additional costs, other commuters pointed out.
