From the coming Monday, 24th June, commuters who take the train during pre-peak hours before 7:45am on working days and exit at 16 pre-destined stations in the city will enjoy free rides. This is part of a one-year trial initiated in April to ease the human congestion during the morning peak period.
Discounted rides will also be given if they get off trains between 7:45 and 8:00am.
In preparation for the trial, SMRT will deploy more trains at stretches of the North-South and East-West lines. Extra buses will also be put on standby at interchanges, so that they can be activated to handle any increase in passengers.
There has been mixed emotions on the effectiveness of the program since. Speaking to The Straits Times, Retail Leasing Executive Darylyn De Silva expressed that she would be keen to try out the scheme. Although it will require the 24-year old to wake up an hour earlier, she hopes that it will be less packed, so that she could go to work "feeling less stressed".
Ernst & Young Country Managing Partner Max Loh said in response to the scheme that his firm has implemented staggered office hours. The plan is to allow staffs to start work between 7:30am and 9:30am.
