Full adoption push for SimplyGo a 'judgment error', EZ-Link system to stay until at least 2030: Chee Hong Tat

SINGAPORE: The push for full adoption of the SimplyGo payment platform for public transport was a “judgment error” and the older ticketing system will be in place until at least 2030, Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat said on Friday (Jan 26).

Mr Chee told reporters that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) had “underestimated” the strong preference of some commuters to be able to view the fare deductions and card balances at station gates and bus card readers.

“This was a judgment error on our part, and I apologise to our commuters for what happened. We will learn from this and we will do better in future,” he said at an interview organised for some media outlets.

The minister added that the card-based ticketing (CBT) system for adult commuters will be in place until at least 2030.

The issue has been in the spotlight since Jan 9 when LTA announced that it plans to phase out the older ticketing system from Jun 1 in favour of SimplyGo, noting that around two-thirds of adult public transport fares are currently paid through SimplyGo EZ-Link cards or bank cards.

Concession cardholders did not need to make the change.

The older CBT system allows commuters to see their fare deductions and card balances at fare gates and bus card readers. They are currently not able to do so using SimplyGo cards.

Days after the announcement, LTA said it was “technically possible” to show such information at station gates and bus readers, but it would slow down the entry and exit for commuters.

Less than a month after the initial announcement to phase out the older ticketing system, LTA reversed its decision on Jan 22.

"I apologise on behalf of MOT (the Ministry of Transport) and LTA for the delays commuters experienced when they tried to convert their existing EZ-Link cards. This could have been avoided with better preparation," Mr Chee had said in a Facebook post.

S$40 MILLION TO KEEP OLDER SYSTEM

In deciding not to sunset the CBT system for adult commuters, an estimated S$40 million will be spent so commuters can continue to use EZ-Link cards and NETS FlashPay cards.

Mr Chee explained on Friday that the S$40 million is needed to buy new hardware, as well as to maintain and operate the older ticketing system.

He said the existing CBT system for adults is reaching the end of its shelf life this year, and LTA had to decide if it would continue with the system or not.

“It is a cost that LTA wanted to try and avoid incurring by sunsetting the CBT system for adult commuters.

“However, we realised that this was not in line with what many commuters want. This was not in line with the feedback that many commuters were telling us. We decided we will not proceed with this decision (to sunset the CBT system),” said Mr Chee.

He added that the S$40 million is “not going to be part of public transport fares”, and that the sum will be borne by the government.

This means there will be three systems: The account-based ticketing system SimplyGo, the CBT system for adults, as well as the CBT system for concession card holders.

He said the government will look at whether it is possible to “progressively integrate” the two CBT systems over time.

The minister has also tasked LTA to improve the features of SimplyGo.

"This is something which we want to do, because I think it is important to provide this to our commuters who want to be able to see their fare deductions and card balances at the fare gates and bus card readers.

"At the moment, there is no technical solution for this, both here and overseas. The worry is that if you do this and there is a long delay, it will cause long queues and slow down the flow of commuters," he said.

He added that the authorities will “decide later” whether to extend the CBT system beyond 2030.

A key factor would be whether a solution can be found to overcome the technical difficulties of displaying fare deductions and card balance information at station gates and bus card readers.

CONSULTATION PROCESS

Some commuters questioned the consultation process after LTA made the announcement earlier this month to phase out the older system.

Mr Chee said LTA conducted a series of consultations with different groups of commuters from 2020 to 2023. This included focus group discussions and a trial with more than 1,000 commuters.

LTA decided not to shift concession cardholders to the SimplyGo system because some seniors said they were not familiar with the new system and preferred to check their fares at card readers.

The Transport Minister said: “If we had consulted more widely, and gathered views from a wider group of commuters before we made the decision and the announcement on Jan 9, we would have come across the stronger reactions and preferences that some commuters had expressed, which is, that they want to keep the current feature of being able to view the fare deductions and card balances at the fare gates and at bus card readers.

“I understand where commuters are coming from. We respect their preferences. We understand that because they are familiar with this feature, they are used to it and they find it useful.”

In response to a question on what would be a good number of respondents for such a survey, Mr Chee said it “would have been useful” for the authorities to consult more widely and hear a wider range of views and concerns before making a decision.

“This is on hindsight. We learn from it and we hope we are able to do better in future,” he added.