‘Fare Adjustment, not Fair Adjustment’: Singaporeans unhappy over 12- to 13-cent fare hike from Dec 26

The Public Transport Council (PTC) announced on Tuesday (Sep 29) that public transport fares in Singapore will rise by 7% from Dec 26, 2026. This decision was made due to the significant increase in energy prices, primarily driven by the conflict in the Middle East. Adult card users will face a fare hike of 12 to 13 cents, whereas seniors, students, and persons with disabilities will pay an additional 5 cents.

However, those under the Workfare Transport Concession Scheme (WTCS) will not experience any change in their card fares, as the government will cover the adjustment for 190,000 WTCS cardholders. For cash fares, adults will see a 20-cent increase, while students, seniors, and persons with disabilities will pay an extra 10 cents. Monthly passes for all categories remain unchanged.

Council chair Janet Ang acknowledged that every fare adjustment is significant to commuters, particularly during times of higher day-to-day expenses. The PTC aimed to keep the increase manageable while ensuring the continued quality and reliability of the public transport system amidst higher costs. The announcement has met with considerable displeasure from many Singaporeans, particularly as it follows a period of rising inflation.

In August, core inflation reached nearly a two-year high of 2.2%, with food inflation at 2.3% and electricity and gas inflation at 8.7% due to earlier global energy price spikes.

The PTC's decision has been criticized as "Fare Adjustment, not Fair Adjustment." Facebook users lamented that salary increases do not align with fare hikes, while another user questioned what the next increase will be. On Reddit, a post titled "We keep making cars harder to own, but public transport fares keep going up" highlighted that commuters are already subsidizing public transport through taxes, and now, they are burdened with higher fares.

This trend has been ongoing since 2021, with fares increasing year after year, each increment seemingly insignificant but collectively causing substantial strain.