Loh Kean Yew falls short of gold after historic Asiad badminton final; Public transport fares to rise 7% from 26 Dec, steepest increase in years: Singapore live news

Singapore's Public Transport Council (PTC) said Tuesday (29 Sept) that bus and train fares will rise by an overall 7 per cent from 26 Dec, with adult card users paying 12 to 13 cents more per journey, following the council's 2026 Fare Review Exercise. PTC chairperson Janet Ang said the increase, while the steepest in cash terms in recent years, remains below the maximum allowable adjustment, according to reports by the local media.

Ang said the fare adjustment formula's higher output this year was driven mainly by a sharp rise in energy prices linked to the Middle East conflict, with energy costs climbing by an average of 21 per cent between July 2025 and June 2026, according to AsiaOne. "We recognise that commuters are managing increases in their day-to-day expenses, and we therefore wanted to avoid imposing the full adjustment at one go," Ang said.

The fare adjustment formula generated a quantum of 5.3 per cent for 2026, up from 1.5 per cent the previous year, and when combined with a 9.4-percentage-point quantum carried over from prior exercises, produced a maximum allowable adjustment of 14.7 per cent. PTC opted for the smaller 7 per cent increase, leaving a deferred fare quantum of 7.7 per cent to be considered in future exercises.

Adult card users traveling up to 3.2 km will pay 12 cents more per trip, while those traveling farther will pay 13 cents more. Concession card holders, apart from Workfare Transport Concession Card holders, will pay 5 cents more, while cash fares will rise by 20 cents for adults and 10 cents for concession groups.

The government will provide close to $200 million in additional subsidies in 2027 to help cover the deferred fare adjustment quantum, on top of more than $2 billion in existing annual operating subsidies. Separately, the government will raise the value of Public Transport Vouchers to $80 from $60 and expand income eligibility from $1,800 to $2,100 per person, extending eligibility to about 60,000 more households, or roughly four in 10 households.

SBS Transit Rail and SMRT Trains will be required to contribute 30 per cent of their expected increase in fare revenue for this year's review, amounting to a combined $23.94 million, according to AsiaOne. Ang said the council's approach reflects a broader balancing act: "Ultimately, our responsibility is to keep public transport affordable for commuters today, while ensuring that our public transport system is of high-quality and is financially sustainable for the years ahead," she said.

Prices of all monthly travel passes will remain unchanged, and PTC encouraged frequent commuters to consider passes to manage expenses, noting that monthly pass ownership has more than doubled from 56,000 in 2023 to 126,000 in 2026. Average monthly savings for pass users compared with card fares have also risen, from $11 to $26 over the same period.

Singapore's Loh Kean Yew was beaten 21-12, 21-16 by Thailand's Kunlavut Vitidsarn in Tuesday's (29 Sept) Asian Games men's singles badminton final, settling for silver in what is still Singapore's best-ever result in the sport at the Games. The 29-year-old, who had already guaranteed Singapore's first individual Asian Games badminton medal, said afterward: "I am happy to get silver and to create history. But at the same time I am a bit sad I couldn't get the gold medal as well," according to ActiveSG Circle.

Loh entered the final against Kunlavut, an Olympic silver medallist and former world champion, with an 8-2 head-to-head deficit. The pair's last meeting in a major Games final came at the delayed 2021 SEA Games, where Kunlavut also denied Loh gold.

There had been hope Loh could repeat his January victory over Kunlavut, when he came from behind to win their India Open quarterfinal meeting. Loh said he studied video of that match beforehand, but noted, "it has been quite a while, and he would also have seen the videos and tried to make changes, so it was down to how we played today".

Loh said he felt a strain in his abdominal muscles toward the end of the second set, having only recently recovered from a similar injury sustained in June. Despite the finish, he said he "played well" overall and called reaching the final "an achievement" and "a privilege" in representing Singapore.

Loh credited Kunlavut following the loss, saying, "He's a very strong opponent and tough to beat, and today he played very well. Huge credit to him". The two exchanged praise for each other in post-match interviews at Ichinomiya City Municipal Gymnasium.

Loh's campaign began on 26 Sept with a win over world No 14 Lakshya Sen, followed by victory over Malaysia's Justin Hoh, before he beat South Korea's Yoo Tae Bin in the semifinals and then-world No 1 Jonatan Christie in the quarterfinals. His silver marks only the second Asian Games badminton medal in Singapore's history, following the women's team bronze won in 2006.

"I trained very hard for this, and I was hoping to perform… I didn't win the gold, but I am happy to make the final," Loh said.

Cardiff City defender Perry Ng has been granted Singapore citizenship, moving him a significant step closer to representing the Lions at international level. The 30-year-old, who was born in England, announced the development in a Sunday Instagram post showing him holding a Singapore passport, writing: "Proud to share that I'm now a Singapore citizen. Singapore has always been part of my family's story and over the years it has become home for me too," CNA reported.

Ng is eligible to play for Singapore through his late paternal grandfather James, who was born in the country before moving to Liverpool. His citizenship was announced by Football Association of Singapore (FAS) president Forrest Li at the association's Annual Congress on Sunday (27 Sept).

Li said the FAS takes a "disciplined approach" when assessing players who could strengthen the national team, with sporting ability representing only one part of that consideration. "Players must show that they can integrate into our society, and are prepared to take up the responsibilities that come with citizenship," Li said, adding that Ng had demonstrated those qualities.

Despite receiving citizenship, Ng cannot yet be fielded for Singapore, with the FAS still finalising the necessary FIFA eligibility procedures, according to Goody Feed. He will not feature in Singapore's ongoing FIFA ASEAN Cup campaign in Indonesia, since that squad list had already been finalised before his clearance came through, The Straits Times reported.

If FIFA approves his eligibility, Ng's first opportunity to debut could come at the 2027 AFC Asian Cup in Saudi Arabia, where Singapore opens against Australia. The Lions' group also includes Tajikistan and Iraq, as the team aims to reach the tournament final.

Ng, who signed a new two-year contract with Championship side Cardiff City earlier this year, previously received Singapore permanent residency in March 2025, according to CNA. Because Singapore's rules generally restrict automatic citizenship by descent to those with a parent born in the country, Ng's application was processed under Singapore's Foreign Sports Talent scheme.

Other footballers who obtained Singapore citizenship through the same scheme include Agu Casmir, Mustafic Fahrudin and Shi Jiayi, while Lion City Sailors' Song Ui-young and Tampines Rovers' Kyoga Nakamura were separately naturalised after meeting FIFA's five-year residency requirement.

City Developments Limited (CDL) announced Sunday (27 Sept) it is targeting $6 billion in divestments over the next three years while deploying $5 billion in growth capital, mostly in Singapore, under a new strategy following a year-long strategic review, according to reports. Shares in the property group fell sharply on the news, opening down from $8.25 to an intraday low of $7.74 before recovering slightly to $7.91 by 10:0am, making CDL the biggest loser on the Straits Times Index (STI) that morning.

Branded "GET+," the three-year roadmap covering FY2027 to FY2029 targets divestments across commercial, hospitality, legacy residential and living sector assets, with nearly half, or 45 per cent, expected to come from commercial properties and about 30 per cent from hotels, according to the Business Times. The plan sets four measurable outcomes: more than $1 billion in profit after tax and minority interests from divestment gains, a net gearing target of around 55 per cent by FY2029, a dividend payout ratio of at least 35 per cent of reported profit annually, and $10 billion in assets under management, effectively doubling CDL's fund management platform from about $5 billion as of 30 June.

CDL said Singapore will remain its principal market for new investments, with a planned geographic split of 60 per cent in Singapore, 30 per cent in China and Japan, and 10 per cent in other markets. The group's global hospitality portfolio, comprising 165 hotels with around 48,000 rooms, including 88 owned hotels, will be optimized under the plan.

CDL executive chairman Kwek Leng Beng said the review "builds on these strengths, while sharpening our priorities and setting a clear direction for the group," referring to more than six decades of the company's diversified real estate and hospitality portfolio, according to The Edge Singapore. Group CEO Sherman Kwek said the strategy "marks our next chapter of value creation, with a three-year execution roadmap marked by a sharper focus around where we deploy capital, how we manage our portfolio and where we can unlock value".

The strategic review, first flagged by Sherman Kwek in February, followed a period of leadership tensions within the group in 2025. Separately from the $6 billion divestment target, CDL said it expects more than $6 billion in cash inflows from existing property development sales between FY2027 and FY2029, supported by contracted sales and projects in Singapore and China.

The announced $6 billion divestment figure fell short of some analysts' expectations of around $7 billio. CDL clarified that its 35 per cent dividend payout commitment represents a minimum floor rather than a fixed target, with actual payouts still subject to financial performance and board approval.

Popular homegrown patisserie LUNA, known for its intricate cakes and tarts, announced it will close on 31 Dec, citing rising operating and ingredient costs. The brand made the announcement in an Instagram post on Monday (28 Sept), saying, "It's difficult to put this into words, but with very heavy hearts, we're sharing that LUNA will be closing its doors on 31 December 2026," The Straits Times reported.

A LUNA spokesperson told Straits Times that rising operational and ingredient costs had made it increasingly challenging to operate the brand sustainably. "At the same time, we have not been able to find a suitable physical space that would allow us to house and grow LUNA in a way that feels right for the brand," the spokesperson said, adding, "It was not an easy decision, but we feel this is the right time to close this chapter while we can do so on our own terms," according to The Straits Times.

LUNA opened its first physical store on Amoy Street in 2020 before leaving the location in 2025, and currently sells its desserts online as well as at Lucine by LUNA, a cafe it opened at 111 Somerset in 2024.

The spokesperson said Lucine will not be affected by LUNA's closure and will continue operating independently at 111 Somerset, which remains under a separate lease agreement with the mall.

Customers can continue purchasing LUNA's cakes online and at Lucine's outlet until 31 Dec, with the brand saying it plans to bring back "crowd favourites and classic creations" ahead of the closure. "If there's something you've always wanted to try, or a favourite you'd love to have one more time, this is your chance," LUNA said on Instagram.

LUNA thanked its customers in the same post, saying, "To everyone who has ordered, celebrated, returned, recommended, and believed in us – thank you. We'll always be grateful that you gave LUNA a place in your lives". The brand also said it would like to hear from anyone who has "ever dreamed of carrying the brand forward".

Customers responded to the announcement on Instagram with expressions of sadness, with one saying their family "lives for" LUNA's orh nee cake as a birthday tradition,.

VisionPower Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (VSMC), a joint venture between Taiwan's Vanguard International Semiconductor (VIS) and Dutch chipmaker NXP Semiconductors, opened its first 300-millimetre wafer fabrication plant in Tampines on Monday (28 Sept), a US$7.8 billion investment expected to create about 1,600 jobs, according to reports. The partners said they are betting on rising demand for chips that support "physical AI," where artificial intelligence moves beyond the cloud into vehicles, robots, factories and infrastructure, the Business Times reported.

The facility will support process technologies ranging from 130 nanometres to 40 nanometres for mixed-signal, power management, analog and interposer applications, serving high-performance computing, mobile, automotive, industrial and consumer markets. NXP President and CEO Rafael Sotomayor said engineering trust into edge devices is "the only way our society will allow physical AI to scale in the real world".

The plant has entered risk production after achieving yields above 99 per cent on its first sample lot, with volume production scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2027. At full capacity by 2029, the fab is expected to produce about 44,000 wafers a month, Channel News Asia reported.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Singapore's Minister for Trade and Industry Tan See Leng said the global semiconductor industry is projected to double in size to US$1.6 trillion by 2030, adding that while much attention focuses on advanced logic chips powering AI, "specialty semiconductors are just as essential," according to the Business Times.

VIS and VSMC chairman Leuh Fang said the joint venture is considering a second chipmaking plant in Singapore that could produce more advanced chips than the first facility, as customer demand has already filled the new plant's available capacity, according to Bloomberg. "The supply shortage will last for a while," Fang said, adding, "Our existing capacity is stretched well beyond its limits."

No timeline, investment figure or site has been disclosed for the potential second facility, with Fang citing undecided technology choices, according to Nikkei Asia and BigGo Finance. The current workforce stands at about 1,000 employees, with plans to expand to roughly 1,600 as production ramps up.

The opening adds to Singapore's decades-old specialty chip industry, with VIS having acquired an 8-inch fabrication plant from GlobalFoundries in 2019 and NXP separately sharing ownership of another Singapore facility, Systems on Silicon Manufacturing Company, with TSMC. Separately, United Microelectronics' new US$5 billion fab at Singapore's Pasir Ris wafer park also entered commercial production in 2026, lifting its Singapore capacity to 1.3 million wafers annually.

Malaysia deported approximately 1,500 Myanmar nationals, including children, on Tuesday (29 Sept) as part of a refugee repatriation programme, defying objections from the United Nations (UN) and dozens of human rights groups, according to Reuters. The group returned reportedly included 1,370 men, 79 women, 20 boys and 7 girls, aged between 8 and 60, citing a Malaysian home ministry official.

Tuesday's deportation marks the first phase of a broader plan agreed with Myanmar that could ultimately see as many as 5,000 people returned, according to Reuters. Dozens of buses accompanied by security vehicles arrived at a stadium near the Lumut naval base in Malaysia's Perak state on Tuesday morning, before moving to a port where two Myanmar naval vessels and a hospital ship had docked, Reuters witnesses reported. Journalists were barred from the grounds, according to Al Jazeera.

Malaysia's Home Ministry said the repatriation was part of a government effort to reduce the number of asylum-seekers in the country, noting that Myanmar nationals make up more than 95 per cent of the country's refugee population, according to Reuters. "For decades, this issue… has dragged on without a strong solution. This lapse has led to a huge financial burden on the country, triggered a serious social crisis and introduced a real security threat in Malaysia," the ministry said.

The UNHCR said current conditions "do not support the safe and sustainable return of refugees from Myanmar" and stated it had not been involved in identifying those being returned,. Rights groups separately questioned how those deported were identified and whether any measures existed to ensure their safety once back in Myanmar, warning that "a meaningful refugee protection framework... cannot be a system designed to fast-track unlawful deportations," Reuters reported.

James Bawi Thang Bik, who represents refugees from Myanmar's Chin community in Malaysia, said he was aware of several asylum-seekers among those deported, including a UNHCR card holder, based on information gathered by community leaders. "We fear that they may be forced to fight on the frontlines of the conflict. For many it is akin to sending them to a death sentence in their own home," he said, citing accounts from refugees previously deported who faced forced conscription or detention, The Independent reported.

Malaysia hosts around 193,000 registered refugees from Myanmar as of February, with roughly two-thirds identified as ethnic Rohingya, according to UNHCR data cited by Reuters. Myanmar has been in turmoil since a 2021 military coup triggered a civil war, with the military continuing to fight armed groups across multiple frontlines, Reuters reported.

Malaysia has stepped up immigration enforcement in recent years amid rising local hostility toward refugees, particularly Rohingya Muslims, many of whom fled a 2017 Myanmar military crackdown that remains the subject of a genocide case at the International Court of Justice, according to Reuters. A wave of online hate speech and misinformation this year has led to increased harassment of the Rohingya community in Malaysia, including widespread school closures.

Formula 1 returns to Malaysia's Sepang circuit this weekend for a one-off event hosting the Bahrain Grand Prix, marking the track's first appearance on the calendar in nine years. The arrangement stems from the cancellation of Bahrain's original April race date due to the ongoing war in the Middle East, with Bahrain opting to pay hosting fees to attach its name to the Malaysian event instead, The Independent reported.

Bahrain's race in April, along with the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, was cancelled due to regional unrest following the start of the US-Iran war at the end of February. With the conflict still ongoing, the staging of season-concluding races in Qatar and Abu Dhabi also remains in doubt.

Sepang hosted Formula 1 from 1999 to 2017 before withdrawing from the sport when it could no longer match required hosting fees, though the circuit has continued hosting other motorsport events such as MotoGP. Its proximity to Singapore, which hosts its own race on 11 Oct, made Malaysia a feasible option once F1 sought to fill its 22-race calendar after the two cancelled April events.

Under the compromise reached, the race will be held in Malaysia but staged under the title of the "Bahrain Grand Prix," with Bahraini organisers covering the hosting fees while the arrangement offers a financial boost to the Malaysian venue through ticket and hospitality sales.

The cancellation fits a broader pattern of regional disruption to motorsport this year: the FIA canceled Rally Saudi Arabia, originally scheduled for 12-15 Nov in Jeddah as the World Rally Championship's season finale, citing "ongoing regional developments". FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem said, "Ongoing regional developments mean that the WRC element of Rally Saudi Arabia will not proceed this year," adding, "These are never easy decisions, particularly after the significant work undertaken by everyone involved in preparing for the event".

Imola, in Italy's Emilia-Romagna region, has been lined up as a contingency to end the F1 season should the planned Qatar and Abu Dhabi races be scrapped, likely on the weekend originally set for Abu Dhabi. F1 had set a rough deadline of the end of September to assess and finalise the plan, even as Abu Dhabi organizers announced a musical lineup including The Script, Lewis Capaldi and Imagine Dragons, suggesting preparations were still underway.

Bahrain is separately set to host the 2027 season-opener in March, with Australia ruling itself out as a replacement host should the Middle East still pose too great a risk by then.

A 66-year-old Singaporean tourist died on 16 Sept in room 21 of the Rifugio Sapienza, a historic hotel on Sicily's Mount Etna, with carbon monoxide later detected in the same room after other guests fell ill five days later, according to reports. Italian media identified the Singaporean tourist Vincent Lee Kim San, in translated reports, as an architecture professor who had also worked at Australian universities and was passionate about cycling, described in his obituary as a "travelling vagabond", according to La Sicilia.

His death was initially hypothesised to be linked to altitude effects at the hotel's 1,910-metre elevation, before the Catania prosecutor's office ordered an autopsy to clarify the circumstances. On the night of 20 Sept into 21 Sept, guests at the same hotel began falling ill, with at least nine of 32 guests affected by carbon monoxide poisoning, prompting an evacuation of the property, according to Mothership.

Firefighters detected carbon monoxide in the deceased tourist's former room following the wider poisoning incident. Some of the poisoned guests, including an elderly woman with significant cardiac symptoms and a young couple with milder symptoms, underwent treatment in a hyperbaric chamber at Cannizzaro Hospital in Catania.

A technical report by Italy's fire department later traced the carbon monoxide to a malfunction in the exhaust system of an LPG-powered boiler located in the kitchen beneath the affected guest rooms. Investigators confirmed the presence of carbon monoxide in several areas of the facility, with particularly high concentrations recorded in one of the rooms.

The Catania prosecutor's office, coordinated by Deputy Prosecutor Fabio Scavone, opened two separate cases – for manslaughter and negligent assault – currently registered against unknown persons. Prosecutors ordered the preventive seizure of the property, and the hotel's legal representative has since been placed under investigation.

The tourist's family has appointed a lawyer in Catania to oversee the investigation. His body was released following the autopsy, with expert witnesses appointed by the prosecutor's office set to conduct a further inspection of the property, La Sicilia reported.

Malaysia's Transport Minister Anthony Loke Siew Fook said Tuesday (29 Sept) he will remain in his post until former prime minister Najib Razak actually begins serving his sentence under house arrest, tying his resignation to that specific moment rather than an immediate date. Loke, who is also secretary-general of the Democratic Action Party (DAP), said he submitted his resignation letter to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Monday, following discussions on setting a clear timeframe, according to reports.

Loke said Anwar had asked him to continue his duties for now while he considers the resignation, prompting Loke to propose the house arrest's start as the trigger point instead. "He will make a decision, but I said that there also needs to be a timeframe. So, the timeframe is that when Najib returns home, my resignation will take effect," Loke told reporters after officiating Malaysia Maritime Week 2026 in Kuala Lumpur, according to AsiaOne.

Loke said he does not know exactly when Najib will be transferred from Kajang Prison to house arrest, noting the timing remains outside anyone's control. "Maybe he will be released tomorrow. Who knows? How would we know? I also do not know when he will be released," he said, according to Malay Mail.

Loke said his resignation reflects a DAP decision to register the party's opposition to Najib's conditional pardon, following a DAP Central Executive Committee meeting on 19 Sept. He reiterated that DAP will remain part of the federal unity government, with its other ministers and deputy ministers continuing to serve in Cabinet.

Malaysia's king, Sultan Ibrahim, consented on 18 Sept to a conditional pardon allowing Najib to serve the remainder of his sentence in the SRC International case under house arrest until 23 Aug 2028. The arrangement is subject to Najib paying a RM50 million ($15.6 million) fine, a condition that has yet to be fulfilled, with Najib still held at Kajang Prison.

Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad said his wife of 70 years, Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali, appeared "quite well" the night before she died, telling Pahang's former king in a video shared on her social media, "I didn't expect her to die". Siti Hasmah, 100, died Monday (28 Sept) at the National Heart Institute and was accorded a state funeral before being laid to rest at Pusara Negara in Putrajaya, Malaysiakini reported.

Mahathir's remarks came during a brief conversation with Sultan Abdullah of Pahang, who traveled to pay his final respects accompanied by his consort, Tunku Azizah, and son, Crown Prince Tengku Hassanal. The former king responded, "Allah SWT loves her more," and urged Mahathir to take care of himself, saying, "Tun kena jaga diri," Malaysiakini reported.

The couple's third son, Mokhzani Mahathir, said the family had been with Siti Hasmah at the National Heart Institute, where she remained in good spirits the night before her death, but her health took a sudden turn for the worse the following day.

Daughter Marina Mahathir said her father was "in good health" but "feeling lonely" following the loss of his lifelong companion, with family members taking turns to stay by his side, according to the South China Morning Post and Malay Mail. "Of course, my father is sad. She was his partner for 70 years. He is just feeling lonely, so we are all trying to spend as much time with him as possible, day and night," Marina said.

Marina said the loss was deeply felt across the family, adding, "We all miss mother. We were so used to seeing her at home, and now it is hard to believe she is no longer with us". She said hundreds of condolence messages had poured in through WhatsApp and other channels, making it impossible to respond to each individually.

Marina said many Malaysians regarded Siti Hasmah as a mother figure in her own right, making the tributes especially meaningful for the family. Among those paying tribute publicly was granddaughter Meera Alyanna Mukhriz, who wrote that Siti Hasmah "was strong yet gentle, lenient but firm and always the glue that kept our large family close".

Singapore's current and former leaders paid tribute to Siti Hasmah following her death on Monday, joined condolences expressed across the region.

Singapore's air quality improved gradually throughout Tuesday (29 Sept), with one-hour PM2.5 concentration readings easing into the normal-to-elevated bands, even as the 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) remained in the unhealthy range across most of the island by evening, according to reports. At 6pm, the central region recorded the highest 24-hour PSI reading at 153, down from a seasonal peak of 167 at midday.

The improvement followed the haze season's worst reading yet, with the 24-hour PSI breaching the unhealthy range across all five regions early Tuesday for the first time in two weeks. Central Singapore's PSI climbed steadily from 155 at 7am to 164 at 10am, before peaking at 167 at noon, surpassing the previous seasonal high of 154 recorded on 15 Sept, Straits Times reported.

By 6pm, one-hour PM2.5 readings had eased to a range of 36 to 63 micrograms per cubic metre, according to the National Environment Agency's (NEA) own advisory. AsiaOne separately reported a 6pm range of 44 to 76, with only the eastern and western regions still registering in the elevated band by that point.

Conditions continued to ease overnight, with one-hour PM2.5 readings at 6am Wednesday remaining elevated only in the central (64), eastern (67) and western (67) regions, while northern and southern Singapore had dropped to normal-range readings of 53 and 52 respectively.

Despite the improvement, NEA said in its Tuesday advisory that the 24-hour PSI over the next 24 hours was forecast to remain in the "high moderate to mid-unhealthy" range. The agency said moderate to dense smoke haze from fires in Kalimantan continued to drift toward Singapore, with additional haze observed from southern Sumatra.

While showers were forecast over Singapore and surrounding areas on Wednesday, NEA said a risk of smoke haze reaching Singapore remained under prevailing easterly or southeasterly winds, with dry conditions expected to persist over southern Sumatra and parts of Kalimantan.

Singapore's government said Tuesday (29 Sept) it will provide close to $200 million in taxpayer subsidies to cover the cost of deferring the full allowable public transport fare adjustment, backing the Public Transport Council's decision to cap this year's fare increase at 7 per cent, according to the Ministry of Transport (MOT). The ministry said the 7 per cent hike represents "less than half the maximum allowable fare adjustment quantum" and reflects a calibrated balance between fare affordability and the sector's financial sustainability.

MOT said it recognised that public transport fares had remained unchanged even as energy prices rose sharply earlier this year due to the conflict in the Middle East. "Sustaining a reliable and efficient public transport system requires shared contribution from commuters, the government and public transport operators," the ministry said, adding that fare increases are also necessary to ensure the public transport workforce continues to receive fair wages and annual increments.

Combined with more than $2 billion in existing annual operating subsidies, the additional funding means commuters will receive more than $1 in fare subsidies for every journey taken on public transport, according to MOT. The government also said it will continue investing around $5 billion annually over the next five years in new and renewed transport infrastructure, including $1 billion committed to strengthening rail reliability and a $1 billion Bus Connectivity Enhancement Programme already benefiting 300,000 commuters daily.

To cushion the impact on lower-income households, the government will raise the value of Public Transport Vouchers from $60 to $80 per household and adjust the income eligibility ceiling from $1,800 to $2,100 per capita. About four in 10 households will now qualify for a voucher, an increase of roughly 60,000 households.

The government will keep card fares unchanged for lower-wage workers on the Workfare Transport Concession Scheme, according to MOT. In line with the PTC's decision to cap card fare increases at 5 cents per journey for other concession groups, the government said it will apply the same 5-cent cap for Persons with Disabilities.

The new fares will take effect from 26 Dec 2026, with the ministry directing members of the public with questions about concession schemes, eligibility or the application process to a dedicated hotline or the SimplyGo website.

Click here to read article