Simply Go, leave Singapore’s travel technology alone and don’t blame commuter traffic for a useless payment system

My late grandfather had a lot in common with the SimplyGo system. Although it was technically possible to display the final balance to the customer, it was not possible. Fortunately, he had a punching bag handy for this failure. myself.

When I was a teenager, I worked at my grandfather’s cafe. A construction worker worked there who liked to beat up teenagers who asked for change. My grandfather, a café owner, refused to invest in a cash register that would a) calculate the final cost of two eggs, two sausages, bacon and tomatoes, or b) display the final cost on the screen.

Instead, he left me at the counter with a notepad, a pencil, and a line of Irish workers wondering what violent action to take if my amount didn’t match.

I once asked a truck driver for half a week’s wages for two eggs on toast. He lunged over my counter.

Of course, Singapore doesn’t indulge in such antics. We leave angry comments on Facebook instead, which makes sense in this instance. The Land Transport Authority’s decision to abolish ‘point-of-transaction’ balance display on transport cards from 1 June was surprising (and I’ve always loved this terminology). (If we were discussing fluctuating sexual behavior, we would) We call this the “transaction point.” )

As an exercise in breaking things that didn’t need to be repaired, we’re moving from the EZ-Link model to the SimplyGo model, and my grandfather switched from Heinz baked beans to a horribly cheap brand. A factory worker spits out baked beans. He looked like he was vomiting himself.

Eventually, my grandfather relented, and Heinz baked beans were back on the menu. No such luck with the EZ-Link card. It follows the same path as the Sentosa Monorail. This will be mused on in a future exhibition at the National Museum of Singapore. In most countries, residents visit national museums to find out what life was like in the last century. In Singapore, we stop by to find out what life has been like for the past few weeks.

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How busy are Singaporeans due to being delayed by SimplyGo?

Look, I understand. Time does not wait for Luddites. So let’s use the SimplyGo program, Grandpa. From June 1, his EZ-Link card and NETS FlashPay card for adults will no longer be usable on public transportation. Either you SimplyGo or you don’t. According to LTA, the old card-based ticketing (CBT) system for adult commuters is “at the end of its operational life”, but again, this is a technicality, but it doesn’t bother me. yeah. (As my testosterone declines with old age, my wife may let me know that I have “reached the end” of my manhood.)

While we’re on the topic, thankfully the upcoming EZ-Link system has been given its own three-letter abbreviation just in time. A “CBT system” saves us a whole syllable by stopping us from saying “card-based ticketing system.” Let’s be honest, how busy are we?

I’m currently imagining exhausted commuters showing up at the office and saying, Luckily, my new SimplyGo card no longer shows the balance on exit. Otherwise we would have been further delayed. ”

Because that is obviously the fundamental reason for the technical adjustment. In response to public criticism over SimplyGo no longer displaying balances, LTA noted that while the system could display those balances, the process would slow commuters in and out. By how long? The second? Minute? About two weeks? Once again, how busy are we?

Or more appropriately, how busy do we need to be? Data analysis probably supports that claim, but it still feels like we’re unwittingly contributing to a Monty Python sketch of extreme Huxleyan efficiency. What I’m missing is, “I thought about displaying the balance on a regular card, but that would slow each human digit down by 0.1 seconds. Each human digit saves 0.1 seconds until he realizes that there is no value left in . When he is in line and the other human digit aunty hits him with an umbrella, it takes him 17.6 seconds. Masu.”

I took the plunge and installed mini trampolines at every ticket gate and had commuters jump over the devices, awarding extra points in the loyalty program for both the extra time saved and the best front handspring. Sho, I say.

Commuters young and old are suffering from SimplyGo

The obvious counterargument, of course, is Luddism. Or age discrimination. Or Luddite age discrimination. Choose what you like. Recent reports suggest that 2 out of 3 adult commuters will have already adopted SimplyGo by December 2023, so perhaps the online whining and ranting of analogue columnists is a sign of the digital revolution. It may just be an unhelpful complaint from a vocal minority who are still struggling or refusing to accept it. .

Let’s take both ends of the spectrum. Last year, my daughter and I were stopped at a ticket machine at Orchard MRT station by a friendly and handsome young man (according to my daughter) who encouraged us to switch to the SimplyGo system (which comes with a $2 cashback incentive). (so I didn’t change it). You need to tell it twice. )

My daughter is painfully fashionable when it comes to apps and views Facebook like a rotary phone. However, she quit her SimplyGo within a week. She is a teenager obsessed with losing face and terrified of being humiliated on her bus. She wants to check the balance on her card.

And then there are the older generation of Singaporeans. Honestly, these people must wake up at night in a cold sweat and shout, “Skill up!”

This is certainly a first world problem, and may be an example of Singaporeans falling victim to their own efficient success, but we have never been more skilled than our great and pioneering generation. Are there people who have been asked to do this? Jobs? skill up! Do you pay for meals and shopping with your mobile phone? Improve your skills! Do you want to get rid of the card that once paid for almost everything and showed you an up-to-date balance every time you travel, and replace it with one that has fewer features, fewer benefits, and requires yet another app or local ticket machine? skill up! …wait…what?

Even if they can download an app or go to the ticket machine regularly, do they have to? Their obsession is to shave milliseconds off their commute by just playing a little with their grandchildren. Is it not possible to leave it to us?

Retiring the EZ-Link and NETS FlashPay cards on June 1st will not only mean no balance display or the introduction of another app that is not particularly wanted, but will also mean that hard-working residents will not be able to move around. It’s also a disgusting sign of being expected to keep going. Never slow down. We value efficiency. Stay productive. always.

Can you stop and smell the roses? In Singapore? I can’t even stop and check my MRT card balance.

Neil Humphries is an award-winning football writer and best-selling author who has covered the English Premier League since 2000 and written 28 books.

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