SINGAPORE: Train services on the East-West line have been disrupted since 9:30 am on Wednesday, which has made the daily commute more difficult for thousands of Singaporeans.
In a show of goodwill, ride-hailing service Grab offered a 15 per cent discount on its rides on Thursday (Sept 26).
The discount was good for rides including JustGrab, GrabCar, GrabFamily and GrabPet for passengers who keyed in the promo code “TAKEGRAB.”
The promo has a S$4 cap and was limited to one redemption per user.
As the company’s announcement said that it was “valid for today only”, it’s unknown whether the promo still stands.
The disruption is not yet over, however. Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat explained the extent of the problem in a video, saying that fixing it would take some time.
As of Friday, train services had not yet been restored, though the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT said they hoped for at least a partial restoration of services by Friday through shuttle train service between the Boon Lay and Queenstown stations.
However, this plan was not pushed through as it would delay the complete repairs necessary.
Monday (Sept 30) is the new projected date for the full restoration of train services, according to the authorities.
The disruption began at around 9:30 am on Wednesday (Sept 25). SMRT explained on its Facebook account that a KHI train in service for more than 35 years encountered a fault and emitted smoke while en route to the Ulu Pandan Depot.
Unfortunately, it affected the Green Line, which is used by thousands of commuters.
Reactions to Grab’s discount
Local Reddit users reacting to Grab’s offer of a discounted ride were not overly thankful.
One wrote, “Their rush hour pricing is easily 15 to 20 per cent higher than Tada and Gojek, so no thank you.”
Others laughed off the discount as negligible, given that the surge prices meant customers would pay more for their rides than usual.
“$4 off $80 surge pricing lol,” a Reddit user wrote.
A commenter quipped, “It’s called ‘capitalism’ 😂.”
A commuter told Mothership that Grab rides surged after the train services were disrupted, with a JustGrab ride from International Plaza in Tanjong Pagar to Nanyang Technological University near Boon Lay fluctuating between S$58 and S$64 from 5 pm to 9 pm.
A Reddit user chimed in, “It was $68 from BV back to Sengkang when I checked yesterday at the end of the workday. Not that I take Grab regularly at that hour but woooooow was it sky high.” /TISG