Singapore to spend US$30 million to keep EZ-link cards after SimplyGo ‘judgment error’, transport minister says

Chee Hong Tat said authorities ‘underestimated’ the preference of some commuters to view fare deductions and card balances at station gates and bus card readers

The transport minister also said the government would need to spend US$30 million to upkeep the older ticketing system

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Singapore’s Transport Minister said the adoption of a new payment platform for public transport was a “judgment error”. Photo: Reuters

Published: 8:00am, 27 Jan 2024

The push for full adoption of the SimplyGo payment platform for public transport in Singapore was a “judgment error” and the older ticketing system will be in place until at least 2030, Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat has said.

Chee told reporters 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 on Friday organised for some media outlets.

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

The LTA announced on January 9 that it planned to phase out the older ticketing system from June 1 in favour of SimplyGo, noting that around two-thirds of adult public transport fares were currently paid through SimplyGo EZ-Link cards or bank cards.

Concession cardholders did not need to make the change.