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Dig around in your wallet right now and fish out that slightly battered MRT card you've been tapping through station gates for years. Take a good look at it, because its days are numbered. If you’re feeling kind, you could take it to Death Fest.
The MRT rail system is pulling the plug on those familiar cards, with the old MRT and MRT Plus versions heading into retirement by the end of March. The whole thing is part of a shift towards the government's new joint ticketing system, designed to let you hop between trains, buses and eventually even boats with a single card.
Here's how the phase out works. From April 1 onwards, you won't be able to top up your MRT or MRT Plus card anymore, through any channel. The stations are switching over to EMV cards instead, which use the same chip technology as your debit and credit cards. Think of it as one card to rule all your commuting needs across the city's public transport network.
But don't bin your old card just yet. You can still use it to get through the automatic gates until May 31, giving you a couple of months to sort yourself out. After that date hits, the system stops accepting both card types at stations completely. No more tapping through from June 1 onwards.
If you've still got credit sitting on your card when everything wraps up, you've got options. You can swap your MRT or MRT Plus card for a Mangmoom EMV card without paying any issuance fee. Or if you'd rather just cash out, head to any station on the Blue Line or Purple Line to claim back whatever balance remains.
For regular commuters who qualify for discounts, nothing changes on that front. Elderly passengers still get their 50 percent fare reduction using tokens or the new EMV cards, while students keep their 10 percent discount when travelling with MRT EMV or Mangmoom EMV cards under the usual conditions.