KUALA LUMPUR: More than 50% of public transport users in the Klang Valley have taken the digital option for the My50 pass, says Anthony Loke.
The Transport Minister also said that the government subsidises RM100 per month for every public transport user who uses the My50 pass, which comes up to RM1,200 per commuter annually.
Loke was speaking to the media on Thursday (Feb 5) after launching the My50 Savings Tracker and the digitalisation of Rapid Kota & Rapid Kembara passes at the Ampang Park LRT station.
Also present at the event were Prasarana Malaysia Bhd Group CEO Amir Hamdan, Chief Digital Officer Eamon Chee, and Touch'n Go CEO Praba Sangarajoo.
"We previously implemented the digitisation of payments from being available only at payment counters to using the Touch‘n Go eWallet. Users no longer need to queue every month to renew their monthly passes, instead, they can use the Touch‘n Go eWallet to renew.
"Based on figures seen up to Jan 25, the number of users using the Touch‘n Go eWallet has surpassed those using payment counters. According to Prasarana’s data, 86,094 users used counter services, while 103,280 users used the Touch‘n Go eWallet.
"This means more people are choosing the digital option," said Loke.
He added that the figures showed that more than 200,000 users subscribing to the My50 initiative monthly, with more than 50% using the digital option.
"This is an encouraging development. What we want to see is users receiving seamless service - no need to queue every month, no need to wait at counters, and no long waiting times to renew their passes. This also helps ease congestion at our stations," said Loke.
Under the My50 savings upgrade, users can now renew at any time using their eWallet by simply tapping their card, another initiative or new feature within the eWallet.
Loke added that users' journeys on public transport would be recorded so that they could track how much they were paying for public transport.
"If their recorded journeys have not yet reached the RM50 value, they will be informed how much more is needed to reach the break-even point.
"This encourages users to use our services wisely so that their payments are worthwhile. We encourage them to make as many trips as possible so that public transport becomes their main mode of transport," said Loke.
"We also want users to understand the extent to which the government subsidises this initiative. This is so users do not take for granted that the cost is only RM50. The actual cost for one My50 pass is RM150 per month. Users pay only RM50, while the government tops up RM100 every month," said Loke.
He reminded commuters that the government had spent nearly RM300mil to ease their burden by paying Prasarana to cover these costs.
"We hope users utilise this initiative optimally and understand their individual monthly savings.
"We know that the cost to finance this initiative was almost RM300mil last year, and it may be higher this year. Although the Finance Ministry allocated about RM200mil to the Transport Ministry, last year we had to pay an additional RM136mil.
"We expect the number of users to continue increasing, especially this year with the opening of the LRT3. The government is committed to continuing this initiative, but we also want the people to truly feel and appreciate how much they save each month from this government initiative.
"Therefore, I would like to congratulate Prasarana together with Touch‘n Go Digital for this strategic collaboration, which allows users to evaluate and experience added value.
"This was something I proposed when My50 first began. However, due to the need for extensive data integration, we are only able to launch it today," said Loke.
"We are confident more users will adopt digital payments. This is a positive trend, but physical counters will still remain as part of Prasarana’s overall strategy.
"We will continue subsidising the My50 pass. We know that My50 has increased ridership over the years and encouraged more people to use public transport in the Klang Valley. This is a very important initiative, and we are committed to continuing it.
"In terms of other digitalisation efforts, we encourage Prasarana to expand digital options not only for My50 but also for daily and tourist passes. Tourists currently still need physical cards, but with eWallets, they can pay digitally without queuing at stations. This is a value-added feature, and we hope more tourists will adopt it," said Loke.
Chee, meanwhile, said that the feature will notify users so they know how to optimise the RM50 payment and ensure that the value of their trips exceeds RM50.
"Once they exceed RM50, we also want them to be aware of how much they are saving each month - over 30 days - how many trips they have taken and how much value or savings they have gained from the My50 initiative.
"This also raises user awareness that using public transport can reduce their personal burden and lower their transportation costs," said Chee.
