Kovan MRT station joins LTA scheme to reward commuters for morning off-peak travel

The programme is aimed at encouraging passengers to avoid the busier segments of the MRT network in north-eastern Singapore during the morning rush period. ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO

Lee Nian Tjoe

UPDATED Jul 01, 2025, 01:41 PM

Thanks for sharing!

SINGAPORE – Commuters who tap in at Kovan MRT station during off-peak hours in the morning can now earn reward points to offset their transport fares , with the station newly added to a scheme to ease train crowding .

Tapping in before 7.15am or between 8.45am and 9.45am at the station will earn reward points worth up to 80 per cent of the journey fare, under the Travel Smart Journeys programme by the Land Transport Authority (LTA).The programme is aimed at encouraging passengers to avoid the busier segments of the MRT network in north-eastern Singapore during the morning rush period.

Kovan joins a list of participating stations that includes Punggol Coast, Punggol, Sengkang, Buangkok, and Hougang MRT stations, as well as all Punggol and Sengkang LRT stations.

The LTA announced the inclusion of Kovan MRT in a Facebook post on July 1.

Public transport users are also encouraged to take peak-hour express bus services that offer similar reward points, instead of travelling by train on the North East MRT line.

There are 12 such bus services, including City Direct Service 676, which serves Kovan MRT station.

To qualify for the Travel Smart Journeys programme, commuters must have tapped in at any of the selected train stations between 7.15am and 8.45am on at least six days in the past 30 days. This is to prove that they regularly use the rail lines during the morning peak period.

A SimplyGo account is needed to register for the programme, and redemption of the reward points is done over the SimplyGo smartphone app.

The programme began in 2020 as a trial with residents using the Punggol, Sengkang and Buangkok MRT stations and the Sengkang-Punggol LRT lines heading towards eastern Singapore. It initially focused on encouraging commuters to switch from MRT to bus travel during peak hours, and was expanded to more bus services in 2023.

On Jan 2 this year, additional bus services were added, and the reward point scheme was extended to cover train journeys as well.

Lee Nian Tjoe is senior transport correspondent at The Straits Times, where he also oversees the Motoring section.

More on this Topic

Join  ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.

Thanks for sharing!