SBS Transit have installed new EZlink readers on at least 2 buses as of this post date. These new readers are more aesthetically pleasing than the old design, and most of the familiar features of the current EZlink readers are rearranged and refreshed. One of the buses to recieve this new EZlink system is SBS8991M.
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| SBS8991M is one of the two buses as of this post publish date to recieve the new readers. |
SBS Transit had changed the default blue cover for their readers to purple/red for their own readers, while SMRT Buses continues using the default blue cover. It seems that the purple/red covers are more heat tolerant than the default blue covers which some were warped with the readers getting quite hot at times during long hours of operation.
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| The current EZlink readers found on majority of the public buses. This reader is in its sleep mode. |
The new design sees a refreshed/updated layout.
- The current monochrome screen is now a new colour LCD screen that the information can be easily seen at a glance. Information such as time/date and distance is displayed more prominently at its permanent location of top and bottom of the screen, while the centre showing the necessary information for EZlink card transactions, all in distinct colours.
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| The new layout is attractive and pleasing to the eye. The new design's sleep mode is shown here. |
- The LCD screen is larger than the scanning area for the EZlink card, which should easily direct the commuter to the scanning area at the lower part of the reader.
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| New colour graphics that shows the fare in eye-catching green boxes. |
- The three "traffic" lights, red, yellow and green are now more prominently displayed at the top of the ezlink reader for better visibility. The new reader's sounds are also slightly more sharper.
Comparison of the front entrance's readers.
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| The current readers at the entrance. |
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| The new readers onboard SBS8991M |
Comparison of the exit door's readers.
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| The current exit door readers |
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| The new exit door readers. |
Comparison of the bus captain's console for the EZlink readers.
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| The current bus captain's console. |
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| The new bus captain's console. |
The new EZlink readers and console now has a modern and fresh look, 9 years after its introduction in December 2002 into Singapore's public transport system as a
convenient and hassle free method of travelling on public transport. Its uses have been expanding to include payment for other various services such as food & beverage and Electronic Road Pricing.
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The new reader displays Fare-Distance in very small fonts and this is disadvantage to passengers who need to verify it before tapping. SMRT has this reply on the fragile ticketing system:
ReplyDelete"...the card readers may unexpectedly experience data corruption while updating the soft data automatically and hence, the correct fare mode or distance may not be displayed correctly. The driver cannot intervene with the system and may not be aware and thus is unable to inform passengers accordingly. We sincerely seek your understanding that as with any mechanical or electrical equipment, technical faults do occur.
In the event if an overcharging has occurred then TransitLink will be the handling agent for any refund of bus/train fares and passengers are able to verify their bus/train fares discrepancies with them."
Hence, the new console benefits only the bus company as passengers would not be able to easily view the Fare-Distance and Time on the display. Hence, passengers would become easier victims to over-deduction due to fare-distance error.
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