Public transport fares will not rise this year amid the Covid-19 pandemic despite transport operators reporting mounting losses.

Under normal circumstances, fares could have increased by up to 4.4 per cent based on the current fare review exercise formula.

But the Public Transport Council (PTC), in its annual fare revision announcement yesterday, instead decided to carry the increase over to the exercise next year. This means that the maximum allowable fare adjustment next year will be this year's 4.4 per cent plus next year's maximum allowable figure.

The PTC, however, assured that there is unlikely to be a drastic increase in fares next year, especially if current economic conditions persist. PTC chairman Richard Magnus said: "The council recognises the exceptional circumstances faced by Singaporeans, and has considered the impact on public transport commuters."

The pandemic would likely lead to a fall in the core consumer price index, wage index and energy index - all factors that make up the fare adjustment formula, he said.

"I doubt very much that we will see a fare increase... a position not unlike this current year's position," said Mr Magnus.

Public transport fares rose by 7 per cent last year - the maximum allowed under the formula for 2019. The figure was the biggest percentage jump since 1998, making this year's decision all the more marked.

The recommendation to not raise fares this year - accepted by the Government yesterday - comes as public transport operators continued to haemorrhage revenue.

Train operators SMRT Trains and SBS Transit had both applied for a fare increase of 4.4 per cent, with both registering more than $10 million each in losses in their last financial year even without taking into account the full impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. On bus operations, Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung said yesterday that as of July, all 356 public bus services in Singapore are unable to generate enough fare revenue to cover their operating costs.

Mr Ong also said in a Facebook post yesterday that while fare revenue will fall very short of operating costs this year, "the PTC took a bold but right step" by freezing the fares.

Falling ridership has not been matched by a reduction in train and bus frequencies. Public transport ridership fell by around 75 per cent during the circuit breaker period from April to June, but services were largely maintained at pre-Covid-19 levels to allow commuters to travel safely and smoothly. Extra funds were also spent on stepping up cleaning regimes amid the pandemic.

Today, ridership remains at about 60 per cent of pre-Covid-19 levels.

PTC said: "With the impact of Covid-19, revenues have fallen further, and we expect government subsidies to be even higher this year."

It did not say how much more money the Government will have to fork out to keep the operators afloat.

The Government was expected to spend close to $1 billion to renew and upgrade rail operating assets, and another $1 billion to subsidise public bus services annually over the next five years. This translated to more than $1 in subsidies for every journey taken.