Fares, Payment Structure, Journey Planning

Under the distance-based fare structure introduced in 2010, commuters pay fares according to distance travelled from origin to destination, for up to five transfers made within a journey.

Learn more about the Travel Fares.

It is important for our public transport system to be financially sustainable. The public transport system is funded by both Government subsidies and commuter fares. Neither can be raised beyond the ability of taxpayers to bear nor commuters to pay. Operators have to be incentivised to be efficient and to make productivity improvements to generate viable revenue streams, rather than to rely solely on fare increases and subsidies to cover increases in operating costs.

PTC conducts a Fare Review Exercise annually to ensure that fare adjustments will not overburden commuters, while taking into account adjustments to costs. It is guided by a fare formula which protects the interests of commuters by capping the fare adjustment, rather than allowing operators to pass on full operating costs to be borne by commuters.

Learn more about the Fare Regulation Framework.

We provide targeted concession schemes to keep fares affordable for select groups of commuters, including lower-wage workers, persons with disabilities, seniors, full-time national servicemen (NSF) and students. These commuters enjoy per journey fares that are up to 70 per cent lower than standard adult fares, or discounted monthly concession passes that provide unlimited bus and/or train rides. Children below 7 years old can also travel for free.

Learn more about the Fare Structure.

Commuters can save up to 50 cents when they tap in before 7.45am at any rail station on weekdays (except Public Holidays). This scheme, introduced in December 2017, encourages more commuters to travel before the morning peak hours to spread out the passenger load.

Learn more about the Morning Pre-Peak Fares.

Travel Smart Journeys (TSJ) was introduced in February 2020 to distribute peak hour public transport demand, by encouraging commuters to adopt alternative modes of travel.

 

Eligible commuters receive points per ride that can be redeemed for travel credit, when they take select buses during the weekday morning peak from Punggol, Sengkang, Buangkok, or Hougang to popular destinations such as Paya Lebar or the Central Business District.

 

Since 2 January 2025, TSJ has been enhanced:

 

• More bus services: LTA has extended the TSJ scheme to include more bus services.

• Inclusion of rail network: LTA has expanded the TSJ to also provide incentives for NEL commuters who shift their morning travel time on the rail network to pre- or post-peak hour periods.  

• Higher fare discounts: The enhanced scheme now offers fare discounts of up to 80% on journey fares.

 

Learn more about Travel Smart Journeys.

Launched in 2019, this payment system also known as SimplyGo, allows commuters to travel by tapping their contactless bank cards (AMEX/MasterCard/NETS ATM/Visa) or mobile wallets on bus fare readers or train fare gates, instead of carrying an additional card.

Adult EZ-Link and concession cardholders may also choose to convert their existing card-based ticketing cards to account-based ticketing cards to enjoy benefits such as being able to perform top-ups for family members via the SimplyGo mobile application without having the card physically present, and to block lost cards quickly so as to protect the stored value in the account.

Learn more about the Account-based Ticketing Payment.

 

The Public Transport Council (PTC) decides how public transport fares are adjusted. The PTC’s goal is to balance keeping the public transport system financially sustainable and keeping fares affordable for commuters.

 

The PTC reviews fares annually using a formula that tracks the cost of providing public transport. The PTC also considers current economic conditions and how much households are spending on public transport. Taking into consideration these factors, PTC will determine how much to adjust fares.

 

In recent years, the PTC has not been adjusting fares solely based on the formula. Even though the formula has reflected much higher cost of providing public transport, the PTC has moderated fare increases to address cost of living concerns. The portion of cost increases not passed through into fares by the PTC has been covered by the government.

 

In 2026, Government will provide an additional subsidy of more than $200 Million, in addition to the regular $2 Billion in annual operating subsidies for our public transport system.

Our fares are distance-based and standardised across the network regardless of the mode or line used. Operators receive the same fare for ferrying a commuter the same distance. If we adjust public transport fares to try to punish one operator, all public transport Operators will be affected. This would not be fair on the Operators. It would also be unfair for commuters to pay different fares depending on which lines they use, especially if they weren't affected by service issues.

 

Instead, LTA regulates the public transport system's performance and reliability. It can and has imposed penalties on and withheld incentives from operators who cause disruptions and fail to meet service standards. Because fares are set by PTC, and not the Operators, the Operators cannot pass these costs on to passengers. In fact, penalties are paid into the Public Transport Fund, which funds Public Transport Vouchers for lower-income households.

 

Meanwhile, the PTC continues to set fares based on what is necessary to cover rising operating costs. This allows rail operators to continue investing in maintenance and capabilities, so that they can improve their performance.

 

In our system, rail operators collect fares directly from commuters*, while bus operators receive service fees from the Government.

 

Our rail operators are not making big profits. In recent years, there have been years where they are operating at a loss. In the most recent financial year, their total profit is less than 1% of the total fares collected. And this is after considering Government grants provided to support the operators’ efforts to improve rail reliability.

 

Meanwhile, like other businesses, rail operators have faced rising labour, energy and maintenance costs. Our rail network is also expanding to serve more passengers. Without regular fare adjustments to match these rising costs, operators will struggle to keep services running smoothly and pay competitive wages to public transport workers, much less make a profit.

 

Even with fare adjustments, commuters can be assured that rail operators will not make big profits, as their total profit is effectively capped at 5% of their revenue as part of their rail license. Additional profits, if any, will be channelled back towards renewing rail systems.

 

*with the exception of the Thomson-East Coast Line, which currently operates on a service-fee model.