Bangkok: The bill for a unified train ticketing system is being pushed to the Cabinet, proposing a fare range of 17-45 baht for all BTS (Skytrain) lines. The goal is to implement it by January 1, 2027, as a New Year's gift. There are also plans for state ownership of the entire BTS system through the Thailand Future Fund (TFFIF), after discovering that returning concessions would cost over 100 billion baht.
According to Thai News Agency, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport, Mr. Pipat Ratchakitprakarn, discussed measures to reduce the cost of living for the public through a unified fare system for mass transit railways, or a "joint train ticket," to lower travel expenses. He stated that this policy has already been implemented on the Purple and Red lines at a flat rate of 40 baht for an all-day pass. Now, it will be expanded to cover all train lines by bringing them under the control of the Mass Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA). However, the current problem is that the government does not have sufficient funds to acquire non-state-owned operators. Many concessions are expiring in 2029, and a complete acquisition would cost hundreds of billions of baht. Therefore, the "joint ticket" system, priced between 17 and 45 baht, will be implemented with a single initial fee regardless of the number of lines traveled. This proposal will be presented to the Cabinet meeting today.
Further discussions are necessary with the Ministry of Finance regarding how the government will raise funds to take over all the electric train systems from the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA). Initially, the idea is to raise funds through the Thailand Future Fund (TFFIF), a government-established infrastructure fund for the future of Thailand. This process will take at least 1.5 to 2 years. By this method, nationalization of all electric train systems will become a reality. At that time, details will be determined, including separate ticket prices for weekly passes, students, and senior citizens.
Mr. Pipat also stated that they will try to get the integrated ticketing system ready by the end of this year as a New Year's gift, so that it can be implemented on January 1, 2027. This will include the Green Line Skytrain as well. It depends on how much revenue the private sector generates, and the government will have to provide some budget to compensate the private sector for the difference in revenue.
Another important issue is the selection of the financial institution to collect the advance payments for reimbursement to private companies. This is a responsibility of the Ministry of Transport to consider.