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4D/Toto/Score

  Magnetic farecards will no longer be sold or revalued from 16 Nov 2002, Transitlink said yesterday. So far, it has refunded 3.3 million out of more than 8.7 million farecards in circulation before the contactless smart-card system was launched in April 2002. There are about 3.2 million ez-link cards in circulation now. Farecards which are issued, revalued or replaced on or after 1 Aug 2000 are valid for refund for up to four years from the date of issue or last revaluation. (Straits Times 15 Nov 2002) (H4)

  EZ-Link card readers on board 180 buses island-wide crashed yesterday morning, causing delays of between 15 minutes and an hour for commuters on some services. Some 120 SBS Transit and 60 Trans Island Bus Services (Tibs) buses were affected when corrupted data was downloaded into the ez-link system. (Straits Times 4 Oct 2002) (4) 

  Transport Minister YEO Cheow Tong indicated yesterday that there was a "very high" possibility that the three transport executives in the Public Transport Council (PTC) will lose their seats on the panel which, among other things, approves bus fares. He said, "We need not really have them as members. They can still be there as resource people." Currently, three out of the 14-member PTC are top executives of Singapore Mass rapid Transport, SBS Transit and Trans-Island Bus Services. (Straits Times 15 Jul 2002) (3) 

  There will be no U-turn on the bus and train fare hikes. Transport Minister YEO Cheow Tong said in Parliament yesterday his ministry was satisfied that the fare rises were "reasonable and certainly not excessive". (Straits Times 11 Jul 2002) (1)

  Senior citizens can purchase an Interim Senior Citizen ez-link card for use on buses and train from Monday 1 Jul 2002, when fares go up. The interim card, costing S$13 (including a S$3 refundable deposit), can be bought at all all ticket offices in MRT stations and bus interchanges, said TransitLink on Thursday. With the card, they will pay up to two cents less for a journey during non-peak hours, compared to those using the existing magnetic cards. (Straits Times 29 Jun 2002) (H6) 

  Bus and MRT fares will go up by between three cents and 10 cents from July 2002. Public Transport Council (PTC) chairman Eric GWEE said that the council had satisfied itself that operating costs have increased significantly due to inflation and investments in service improvements, despite efforts by the operators to contain costs and improve productivity. For bus rides, adults will pay three cents more using EZ-Link card, five cents more using magnetic card and 10 cents more using cash. For MRT/LRT rides, they pay four cents more using Ez-Link card and five cents more using magnetic card. Monthly concessions for students and NSmen will go up by 50 cents for primary and secondary students, S$2 for tertiary students and S$3 for NSmen. (Straits Times 12 Jun 2002) (1)

  Singapore's first fuel station offering compressed natural gas is up and ready for business. The S$2.6 million facility on Jurong Island is part of a joint pilot project by the Government and the private sector to run vehicles here using the fuel. The first bus here that will run on natural gas is SBS Transit Service 712. (Straits Times 23 Apr 2002) (4)

  Ez-Link card for bus & MRT travel debuts on 13 Apr 2002

  The ez-link fare card system has been given the go ahead to start on Saturday. The cards will be available at all TransitLink counters in MRT stations and bus interchanges from this weekend. For the first six months, the cards will cost S$13 each (S$10 fares, S$3 deposit). After that, they will cost S$15 (S$5 deposit). The existing magnetic fare cards can be used for at least six months after the new card's launch. (Straits Times 9 Apr 2002) (4)

  The public launch of a smart card for buses and the MRT, originally set for this week, has been put off after a computer bug forced the shutdown last week of a trial run on the system. Australian newspapers have also reported that ERG Systems, the firm charged with setting up the system, might go bust but the firm has denied this and pledged that it will be able to deliver as promised. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said yesterday it had pushed back the launch of the ez-link card service to Singapore's more than two million commuters to sometime next month. (Straits Times 28 Mar 2002) (1)

  The Comfort Group, Singapore's largest taxi operator, launched Comfort Bus - a new bus company - yesterday. Comfort Bus, with a fleet of more than 300 buses, provides private transpor, ferrying students and factory and office workers. It also runs charter services. But the company says it is ready to take on SBSTransit and Tibs. (Straits Times 3 Apr 2002) (4)

  The Ang Mo Kio bus interchange was closed yesterday to make way for redevelopment of the area. A new temporary interchange at Ang Mo Kio Ave 8, a five-minute walk away, now serves residents there. About 50,000 passengers go through the interchange each day. By 2006, an air-conditioned bus interchange will be built at the site of the 18-year old bus interchange. It will be the third here to be air-conditioned. The first one will be at Toa Payoh, which will be opened in May, and the other is the Sengkang Terminal, due to be completed by the end of the year. (Straits Times 25 Mar 2002) (H3)

  Commuters can start using the new ez-link smart cards for MRT and bus rides from the end of this month. A six-week trial in January involving 45,000 commuters went well. (Straits Times 6 Mar 2002) (H5)