Lessons from Initial Roll-out of Plan to Transit Commuters to SimplyGo Platform and Breakdown of Expenditure Arising from Extension of Timeline
Ministry of TransportSpeakers
Summary
This question concerns the transition to the SimplyGo platform, with Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song asking for a breakdown of the $40 million expenditure for the card-based ticketing system and Ms He Ting Ru inquiring about feedback regarding invisible fare deductions. Mr Edward Chia Bing Hui sought information on lessons learned and public engagement, while Ms Yeo Wan Ling questioned the feasibility of providing real-time fare data on readers. Minister for Transport Chee Hong Tat addressed these queries by referring the Members to his comprehensive reply from the 5 February 2024 Parliament Sitting regarding the facilitation of the transition to SimplyGo.
Transcript
56 Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song asked the Minister for Transport (a) what is the breakdown in the expenditure of $40 million to extend the card-based ticketing (CBT) system which allows the continued use of EZ-Link and NETS FlashPay cards on public transportation; and (b) what are the projected total additional costs per year to maintain and run both the CBT and SimplyGo account-based ticketing systems in parallel.
57 Ms He Ting Ru asked the Minister for Transport since the pilot of the Land Transport Authority (LTA)'s account-based ticketing system in 2017 (a) how many cases of feedback has been received by LTA in relation to the new system; and (b) how many times were concerns raised about the inability to view fare deductions and card balances at station fare gates and bus readers.
58 Mr Edward Chia Bing Hui asked the Minister for Transport (a) in light of the public's reaction towards the change in decision to transit to SimplyGo, what lessons have been learned from the initial roll-out plan; (b) whether the Ministry has engaged the public and evaluated feedback during the implementation of this policy; and (c) what steps are being taken to ensure that future policy changes in the transport sector will more effectively gauge public opinion and user experience from the outset.
59 Ms Yeo Wan Ling asked the Minister for Transport (a) whether it is possible to code and provide real time fare deduction information on public transport fare readers in the use of SimplyGo EZ-Link cards; and (b) if not, why not.
Mr Chee Hong Tat: I thank the Members for their questions. I have addressed them in my reply a 5 February 2024 Parliament Sitting. [Please refer to "Facilitating Transition to SimplyGo Fare Platform", Official Report, 5 February 2024, Vol 95, Issue 120, Oral Answers to Questions section.]