Taipa LRT ticket fares set between MOP6 and MOP10

The Macau government has revealed today that the fare for the Taipa Light Rail Train will be set between MOP6 (US$0.7) and MOP10, with reduced prices for children, students, and the elderly.

According to a release at the Official Gazette, the fees will be calculated per every three stops, with MOP6 charged until three stops, MOP8 until six and MOP10 until ten stops.

The Taipa LRT was inaugurated today at 11:00 am by the Macau Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On, with the first carriage to depart the Taipa Ferry Terminal at 3:33 pm.

The service will be free of charge until December 31 after which the fares mentioned will be implemented.

After 16 years of planning and construction and almost MOP11 billion (US$1.3 billion) spent, the 9.3 kilometres long Taipa LRT will operate between 11 stations, namely, Taipei Ferry Terminal, Airport, MUST, Cotai East, East Asia Games, Lotus checkpoint, Cotai West, Pai Kok, Stadium, Jockey Club, and Ocean.

The new line will operate from Monday to Thursday between 6:30 am and 11:15 pm., and from Friday to Sunday and public holidays between 6:30 am and midnight. Carriages will depart every 5 to 10 minutes.

Fares will be charged through the following methods: 1) single-use plastic coins per trip for general passenger use, which may correspond to different fare values; 2) Prepaid electronic cards for general passenger use; 3) Prepaid electronic student cards; 4) Electronic cards for the elderly; 5) Electronic cards for people with disabilities.

LRT main depot

Prepaid student electronic cards can be provided to students attending local educational institutions or residents of the Macau SAR who have been studying abroad for a period of one year or more.

Children under one metre tall – who can only travel with an adult – as well as elderly or disabled who hold an LRT e-card will be exempt from the future tariff.

Children under the age of 12, people aged 65 and over, people with disabilities who are not holders of an electronic card and holders of a prepaid electronic card are entitled to a 50 per cent reduction in tariffs.

Meanwhile, holders of a prepaid student LRT e-card are entitled to a 75 per cent reduction in the fare.

The first LRT cards will be issued free of charge, while e-cards for the elderly and for the disabled as well as prepaid electronic cards for students can only be used by their holder.

Local authorities also published today certain regulations concerning the LRT, such as, the passenger service must operate a minimum of 16 hours daily, with a normal frequency of a carriage every five to ten minutes, which may be increased or reduced over weekends, holidays or in exceptional situations.

The operator will also have to inform the public at least two days in advance in case of changes in the opening hours of the public passenger transport service by light rail and must keep information on the frequency of movement of light meters at stations and updated on its website.

The Macau government has signed a 10-year concession contract with Macao Light Rapid Transit Corporation Limited, the public company which will be responsible for the concession, operation, and maintenance of the light rail system.

The creation of this company led to the Transportation Infrastructure Office (GIT) – the company created to be in charge of the LRT development – to be closed down on October 1, with its Director, Ho Cheong Kei, assigned to head Macao Light Rapid Transit Corporation Limited and with GIT employees able to choose if they wanted to transition to the new public company.

However, a MOP5.8 billion contract was granted to Hong Kong’s MTR Corporation Limited to be in charge of the Taipa LRT operations for almost seven years.