Mr. Siripong Angkasakulkit, Deputy Minister of Transport, revealed after the 2/2026 meeting of the Joint Ticketing Policy Committee chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport Mr. Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, that the meeting reviewed progress on the shared ticketing fare policy of 17-45 baht. The committee set directions following Cabinet resolutions by expediting the drafting of secondary laws and related announcements, as well as negotiating with all operators without affecting concession contracts. The government currently has no plan to buy back the concessions.
The principle is to avoid duplicated entry fees, with fares starting at 17 baht and capped at 45 baht. Agreements on cross-system fare calculation methods, revenue allocation, and compensation criteria for fares normally exceeding 45 baht are still needed. The state will fairly consider compensation burdens by distinguishing natural passenger growth from growth due to the fare reduction policy, to avoid undue financial strain on the government, while ensuring operators do not gain excessive benefits.
Meanwhile, the meeting assigned the Ministry of Transport to swiftly consult the Ministry of Finance in selecting an agency to operate the clearing house. An open tender may not be feasible due to the limited timeframe, as the measure must cover all electric train lines starting 1 Jan 2027. The preferred approach is to invite experienced entities, with Krungthai Bank tentatively favored given government shareholding and its experience managing EMV systems for various mass transit networks. However, further discussions with the Ministry of Finance are required, and all actions must comply with legal frameworks.
Mr. Siripong stated that the Ministry of Transport aims to complete key processes by November 2026, conduct system testing in December, and officially launch on 1 Jan 2027. Of the remaining approximately 16 secondary laws, about 10 have received preliminary approval. Ministry announcements are expected by September and ministerial regulations by October 2026. Issues related to rights transfers or PPP contract amendments must follow legal procedures.
Additionally, the meeting directed the secretariat and the committee under Section 31 to proceed with negotiations with each transport operator, adhering to the Cabinet policy of fares between 17 and 45 baht without affecting concession contracts, since the government has no plan to buy back concessions. Initially, the government may need to provide partial assistance or compensation to enable the shared fare policy until some concession contracts expire, after which fare structures and strategies can be reviewed.
Mr. Siripong said that initial compensation is estimated at about 4 billion baht per year, which is more cost-effective than buying back the BTS concessions that could cost around 200 billion baht plus 2% interest, or about 4 billion baht annually—close to the estimated compensation budget. Therefore, the approach chosen is to support or subsidize fares during the transition to the 17-45 baht shared fare system, with a plan to review the structure once concessions expire.
However, it was confirmed that the 17-45 baht fare benefit is exclusively for Thai nationals, who may verify their identity via EMV cards without complicated registration. Passengers might pay full fare upfront, then the clearing house calculates and refunds the difference according to rights, similar to the Red Line commuter train model. The policy is preliminarily expected to increase passenger numbers by more than 30%, but baseline growth rates for each route must be established to determine the state's share of the burden and how to allocate benefits from increased ridership due to the policy. The goal is to reduce public burden, ensure efficient use of budget, and maintain balance between the state and operators.