BTSC justifies its decision to make maximum fare on Green Line most expensive

[webfact]

BTSC justifies its decision to make maximum fare on Green Line most expensive

By The Nation

 

 

The Bangkok Mass Transit System (BTSC) insists that the Bt65 maximum fare on the BTS Green Line is reasonable, while the Transport Ministry is ready to explain the fare calculation at a meeting with the prime minister and Interior Ministry.

 

Surapong Laoha-Unya, BTSC chief operating officer, said it had discussed this fare with the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) when the concession for the BTS Green Line was being mulled.

 

He said the maximum fare includes the cost of civil work, electric train management and revenue that BTSC has to share with BMA annually.

 

“The maximum fare for the Green Line cannot match that of other lines because of the difference in costs,” he said.

 

Transport Minister Saksiam Chidchob said the ministry was waiting for an answer from the BMA and Interior Ministry on the fare’s implementation and if there may be any legal disputes.

 

"I believe we still have a lot of time to consider this issue thoroughly because the concession will expire in 2029,” he said, adding that this issue will not affect commuters.

 

Saksiam went on to say that his ministry has already prepared information regarding fare calculation, and that Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha will discuss this issue with the Interior and Transport ministries soon.

 

"The ministry has gathered information from the Department of Rail Transport and Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand [MRTA], who was granted the concession for the MRT Blue Line, and found that the fare calculation was based on Consumer Price Index [CPI]," he added.

 

The Transport Ministry said it has checked BTSC and BMA's fare calculations and found that they were based on the Commerce Ministry’s CPI, which includes the food and beverage category.

 

"If the BTSC and BMA did not include the food and beverage category in their calculation, the maximum fare for the Green Line would drop by 20 per cent,” the ministry said, adding that the MRTA did not include this category in its calculation.

 

A source from BTS operator said the private sector can cut the fare to ease commuters’ burden provided they receive support from the government.

 

"Once the BTS Green Line is extended, BTSC will have to bear about Bt100 billion in civil work costs and share about Bt300 billion in revenue with the BMA, so this line costs a lot more than other lines, where the operators only had to bear concession fees,” the source said.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30399051

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-12-04

 

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[bodga]

2 minutes ago, webfact said:

adding that this issue will not affect commuters.

wow  so theyr e  going to pay the increase  themselves........well  done  chaps

[lopburi3]

So more expensive than Singapore max fare and almost as much as New York City.  Welcome to the first world.

[Estrada]

1 hour ago, lopburi3 said:

So more expensive than Singapore max fare and almost as much as New York City.  Welcome to the first world.

I have been involved in both systems from the 80s and 90s. The max fare in Singapore converted to Thai Baht is B65 for 40kms and over and the maximum fare for the BTS is B65 for 59kms. Both systems offer similar discounts for frequent users. Not many passengers would be travelling all the way from Samut Prakarn to KhuKhot. When I was on the advisory panel for the MRTA in 1994, I advised that the Government should subsidise the fares so that it would be a true mass transit system. However, I know realise that some stations could not handle the increased number of low income passengers. One reason they have adopted the same fare strategy as Singapore.

Edited December 4, 2020 by Estrada

[hotchilli]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

The Transport Ministry said it has checked BTSC and BMA's fare calculations and found that they were based on the Commerce Ministry’s CPI, which includes the food and beverage category.

Just add a carriage at the back with a nice lady selling her "buns" that'll sort that out.

[lopburi3]

1 hour ago, Estrada said:

I have been involved in both systems from the 80s and 90s. The max fare in Singapore converted to Thai Baht is B65 for 40kms and over and the maximum fare for the BTS is B65 for 59kms. Both systems offer similar discounts for frequent users. Not many passengers would be travelling all the way from Samut Prakarn to KhuKhot. When I was on the advisory panel for the MRTA in 1994, I advised that the Government should subsidise the fares so that it would be a true mass transit system. However, I know realise that some stations could not handle the increased number of low income passengers. One reason they have adopted the same fare strategy as Singapore.

So four times more expensive for average income in Bangkok of 25k but in Singapore 100k per month in baht.  Sounds great for operator - not quite as good for customer.

[khunjeff]

3 hours ago, Estrada said:

When I was on the advisory panel for the MRTA in 1994, I advised that the Government should subsidise the fares so that it would be a true mass transit system. However, I know realise that some stations could not handle the increased number of low income passengers. One reason they have adopted the same fare strategy as Singapore.

 

So they maintain high fares in order to keep passenger numbers down? That's an interesting strategy for something that purports to be a mass transit system.