Initiative looks to distribute peak hour public transport demand in Singapore

Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) has introduced a new initiative called Travel Smart Journeys (TSJ) to help distribute peak hour public transport demand by encouraging commuters to adopt alternative modes of travel. 

TSJ has commenced as a trial, which will reportedly benefit passengers who need to get to their workplaces in eastern Singapore. Commuters who currently take trains on the North East Line from Punggol, Sengkang and Buangkok stations or the Sengkang-Punggol LRT lines, heading towards Paya Lebar and Macpherson, can stand to receive cash rewards if they switch to bus Service 43e for their commute instead. This express bus is said to take them directly to major employment centres.

To be eligible and participate in this initiative, commuters must sign up for an account on the SimplyGo portal. They can then start to earn 150 points per trip, equivalent to $1.50, when they take Service 43e from in the morning rush hour on weekdays. Commuters who participate consistently in the TSJ trial should reportedly be able to cover at least half of the express bus fares by converting their points, according to the LTA. 

Over the coming weeks, commuters can also take part in LTA’s roadshows at Punggol and Sengkang MRT stations to better understand how to participate and earn rewards through TSJ. LTA will review the results of the trial to evaluate if it should be continued or expanded to other bus services and areas.