The board of the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) has approved a 20-baht flat rate fare for the SRT's Red Line and the MRT's Purple Line -- in line with the government's policy to ease the cost of living.
SRT governor Nirut Maneephan said the 20-baht fare is expected to be submitted to the Transport Ministry for consideration next week. If the ministry gives the fare the green light, the issue will be forwarded to the cabinet.
According to Mr Nirut, the Finance Ministry will examine if the proposal is in line with Section 27 of the monetary and fiscal discipline law, which requires a state agency with a project or measures that will affect its revenue to draw up a spending plan, an implementation period and the expected benefits.
He said the SRT will have to hold talks with the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA) and Krung Thai Bank to update the related systems, and it is not clear how long this process will take.
He said the new fare is likely to be implemented in the new year as planned by Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit.
Earlier, Mr Suriya said that a 20-baht flat fare would be piloted on the Red Line and the Purple Line as a "New Year's present" to the public.
Mr Nirut said the SRT is estimated to lose 80 million baht in revenue annually, and the government will be asked to compensate it for the loss, he said.
The SRT governor said the lower fare would also encourage more people to switch to using the mass transit system and increase ridership by 5-20% a year, thus boosting the SRT's income.
The Red Line currently serves approximately 20,000 passengers a day, he added.
The Red Line has two sections -- a 26-kilometre route between Bang Sue and Rangsit and a 15km stretch from Bang Sue to Taling Chan. The Purple Line runs from Tao Pun to Bang Yai in Nonthaburi.