Free SMRT Rides to CBD starting from 24 June 2013

The free rides to Singapore CBD area campaign initiated by SMRT started from 24 June 2013 to 24 June 2014 was launched officially yesterday. To the best of my knowledge, there was about 9% lesser crowd during 8 PM to 9 PM yesterday. It has given me the impression that this project has taken impact more than what I had expected.

Frankly speaking, if the public transport system in Singapore can be improved further, there will be more people who are working in CBD area willing to stay at the sub urban area such as Jurong, Woodlands or even Pasir Ris or Punggol. The traveling hour from Woodlands to CBD area could be cut short to as little as 30 to 40 minutes after the Upper Thompson MRT line is completed targeted on Year 2020.

However, we must bear in mind that the employers also play a vital role in reducing the amount of commuters during peak hours by providing flexible working hours and "Work From Home" scheme. As a mobile remisier, I can now stay mobile and not in a fixed place which I think is quite convenient.

I also notice that there is a review on the monthly travel card which is priced at $190 currently. It definitely can help the heavy travelers to reduce their financial burden in traveling. The COE can be decreased further and we can see a moderate CPI later.

Nonetheless, the current concern on public transport still remains on its operating efficiency. The Singaporean are getting lesser tolerance on the train break down / delay any more. However, I believe that Singapore government is working hard to ensure that most Singaporean are happy with the world class public transport service which I think is still one of the best in the world.

Will it help to improve the SMRT shares performance? Let's wait and see for a concrete result later. In initial stage, I would think that it may reduce the train service related revenue by about 2% (e.g. I just guess that there is about 20% of commuters working in CBD area and only 10% of them are willing to take part on this campaign) but will definitely reduce the possibility of train breakdown later on.