Why junior had to pay full fare Staff tried to help: SMRT
To enjoy concessions, eligibility must be proven
Letter from KATHRYN LAU Assistant Corporate Communications Manager TransitLink Letter from KUEK CHOR LING Manager, Corporate Marketing and Communications, SMRT
WE REFER to the letter, "An Adult ticket for my 7-year-old?" by Darren Lee Siak Fei (Jan 29).
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We understand Mr Lee's concern and appreciate the opportunity to share that concession fares are privileges extended to eligible commuters only. Commuters may enjoy concession fares only if they can verify their eligibility.
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The School Smartcard, similar to other types of photo-personalised concession ez-link cards, is electronically encoded with the child's name and Birth Certificate or passport number so that the child is not required to show his or her Birth Certificate or passport for identification when taking public transport.
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The issuance of a single-trip ticket for child concession travel would not be feasible, as the commuter would have to show his Birth Certificate or passport for verification each time he purchases a single-trip concession ticket. This is in place to discourage misuse of the concession card by commuters who are not eligible.
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In Singapore, public bus and train services are provided on a commercial basis. All concessionary fares are effectively cross-subsidised by full-fare paying commuters. Thus, TransitLink and the public transport operators have to exercise prudence when granting travel concession.
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For information on travel concession, commuters may log on to the TransitLink website at www.transitlink.com.sg or call the toll-free TransitLink Hotline at 1800-2255 663. We thank Mr Lee for his feedback.
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I refer to the letter, "Ms Wong's MRT ordeal", by Leo Chen Ian (Jan 29).
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We are sorry to hear of Ms Wong's experience at Newton MRT Station. SMRT staff offered immediate assistance at Newton MRT Station upon receiving news that a visually-impaired passenger needed help. Our staff also sought help from colleagues at Novena MRT Station to keep a lookout for Ms Wong to provide the necessary help when she alighted at the station. They had the good intention of helping Ms Wong and we apologise if their approach had caused some misunderstanding.
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With regards to Mr Leo's comment on using closed-circuit cameras to monitor such situations, we would like to clarify that the closed circuit television system is used by station staff to get a quick view of a particular area to assist them in their duties. From time to time, averted unpleasant incidents in the course of their duty thanks to the cameras.
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However, it is not possible to monitor every part of the station at all times. We therefore appeal to all passengers to alert the station staff of any unusual incidents so that our staff can attend to them immediately. We thank Mr Leo for his feedback.
