Kovan MRT station joins LTA scheme to reward commuters for morning off-peak travel

SINGAPORE – Commuters who tap in at Kovan MRT station during off-peak hours in the morning can now earn reward points to offset their transport fares, with the station newly added to a scheme to ease train crowding.

Tapping in before 7.15am or between 8.45am and 9.45am at the station will earn reward points worth up to 80 per cent of the journey fare, under the Travel Smart Journeys programme by the Land Transport Authority (LTA).

The programme is aimed at encouraging passengers to avoid the busier segments of the MRT network in north-eastern Singapore during the morning rush period.

Kovan joins a list of participating stations that includes Punggol Coast, Punggol, Sengkang, Buangkok and Hougang MRT stations, as well as all Punggol and Sengkang LRT stations.

The LTA announced the inclusion of Kovan station in a Facebook post on July 1.

Public transport users are also encouraged to take peak-hour express bus services that offer similar reward points, instead of travelling by train on the North East MRT line.

There are 12 such bus services, including City Direct Service 676, which serves Kovan MRT station.

To qualify for the Travel Smart Journeys programme, commuters must have tapped in at any of the selected train stations between 7.15am and 8.45am on at least six days in the past 30 days. This is to prove that they regularly use the rail lines during the morning peak period.

A SimplyGo account is needed to register for the programme. Each reward point is worth one cent, and points can be redeemed in blocks of 500, equivalent to $5, through the SimplyGo app.

Tapping in pre-peak (before 7.15am) or post-peak (between 9am and 9.30am) will earn commuters points worth up to 80 per cent of the journey fare.

For trips between 8.45am and 8.59am, or between 9.31am and 9.45am, commuters will earn points worth up to 40 per cent of the fare.

The programme began in 2020 as a trial with residents using the Punggol, Sengkang and Buangkok MRT stations and the Sengkang-Punggol LRT lines heading towards eastern Singapore. It initially focused on encouraging commuters to switch from MRT to bus travel during peak hours, and was expanded to more bus services in 2023.

On Jan 2 this year, additional bus services were added, and the reward point scheme was extended to cover train journeys as well.

Sengkang resident Winnie Ng, 51, who has been using City Direct Service 671 since moving to the estate a few years ago, said that the initiative to get commuters to tweak their travelling patterns is attractive, but only for those who have the flexibility at their workplace.

Ms Mindy Loo, 44, who lives near Kovan MRT station, will assess her travel patterns when she starts her new job next week – she will need to clock in at 8.30am – before deciding if she will sign up to the programme.

The engineering consultant said that when she was using the train at around 8.30am, the cars are not actually too crowded. “It is people hogging the space at the doors because they want to get out at Serangoon station. There is usually space at the centre of the car.”