First launched in 2012, the Travel Smart Rewards (TSR) programme was modelled after the Incentives for Singapore’s Commuters (INSINC) pilot.

The programme incentivises and encourages commuters to plan their travels outside of peak travel periods. It allows the earning of points and cash rewards at the same time.

The updated version came into effect in April 2017 -- and was touted as an enhanced version of the pilot.

To sign up for the rewards programme, you just need to first register your details and the EZ-link card of your choice with the Travel Smart Rewards site by the Land Transport Authority.

You can change and use a different EZ-link card of your choice later.

Now, what could go wrong?

Well, the devil is in the details.

Travel during non-peak hours to earn points. For every 1,000 points, you get S$1.

 1000 points for S$1. Non-peak hours.  Shouldn't be too hard...right?

But just like a good novel, it ain't that straightforward anymore, after the scheme was "enhanced" in April 2017.

Standardised rates, aggregated off-peak timings

Firstly, instead of giving out more points the further commuters travel, the distribution of points has been standardised.

Previously, commuters would get up to three to six points -- or five to eight points under the corporate scheme -- for every kilometre travelled.

Now, every trip you take during the non-peak timing earns you 10 points, or 15 points if your company is under the corporate tier scheme, regardless of distance.

Hence, this may be great for those who only need to take a few stations to get to their destination, but it is obviously disadvantageous to the rest who travel further.

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There's not even a stipulated off-peak time.

A few years back, the commonly stipulated timings for non-peak hours are 6.15am to 7.15am and 8.45am to 9.45am.

The upgraded TSR no longer has any commonly defined tap-in timings. Instead, your travel patterns will be analysed.

Depending on "how much congestion they are contributing to the rail network", you will receive messages which will either advise you to travel earlier or simply take the MRT train as per your normal schedule.

This means it'll take you some time to figure out your very own non-peak timing... which also means you won't be able to earn points if your timing is off.

More trips to earn points

It's pretty obvious how this impacts the number of points you can get.

Let's say you need to get from Ang Mo Kio to Orchard, and vice versa, pretty regularly.

This is what you're likely to see:

Currently, regardless of distance, it'll take you approximately 100 trips to even earn S$1 -- if you take one off-peak MRT trip a day.

However, the former point system would definitely mean that you required fewer trips to earn S$1.

Given that the distance between the two stations is *roughly* 10km -- with the new system requiring 100 trips to earn S$1 -- the old system takes 34 trips to earn S$1, if you earned three points per km.

Quick expiry

These days, your points expire 180 days (approximately six months) after they are issued to you.

Let's say you manage 10 points a day (i.e. one valid off-peak MRT trip).

That gives you a total maximum of 1,800 points, if you manage 10 points consecutivelyin 180 days, before the first 10 points you got from day one expires.

You would think it wouldn't be a problem after you convert it into cash rewards, but then again, there's another expiry date of 90 days once the points are converted into monetary rewards.

Perhaps if you're a conscientious super-saver and you manage two (or more) off-peak rides a day, this might mean you're able to cash out those couple of dollars a little more frequently than say, a once-a-day rider.

Fewer avenues to earn points

Even so, this means you won't be banking in hundreds of dollars at once.

The S$100 that LTA says users can be rewarded within a year is probably tabulated assuming, of course, if you take public transport off-peak pretty religiously.

Thankfully, points and cash rewards can also be earned from the TSR game, The Ride One, which promises cash rewards up to S$200 if you complete the game successfully.

Sadly, former features such as friend referral points, tiered statuses (Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinium) and the former Spin The Wheel/ Snakes and Ladders game are now a thing of the past, which means even fewer avenues to earn a lot of points at once.

It's kind of weird that they still keep the Friends list function then, where the listed purpose is for spreading the word.

A lucky draw still takes place, where you stand a chance to walk away with S$1,500 under this programme though.

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Better perks elsewhere

WINK+, SMRT's loyalty system in place, might actually offer a more viable alternative to the TSR.

While its main purpose is to reward people on their daily commute, it could serve as a stronger incentive compared to the current TSR system.

Currently, one tap of your EZ-link card is one point, and a QR code scan is worth one to four points. A total of points will be equivalent to one WINK, which is worth S$0.50 in value.

It's entirely possible to earn a reasonable amount of points in a much shorter amount of time compared to TSR, since codes can be scanned once every 24 hours.

The WINKs which are earned can be redeemed during purchases after being converted to eVouchers. These vouchers can be used at the iMOB shop or participating retailers, which are listed here.

It's not perfect. While there's a reasonable selection of shops you can redeem your earned points at, a greater variety of shops and products would definitely be appreciated by WINK+ users.

Still, WINK+ offers a more practical reward system.

Furthermore, points do not expire unless they have been turned into WINKs, and subsequently, eVouchers.

Even then, you definitely have the freedom to collect as many points as you can before you convert them, anyway.

In any case, TSR is something that started out as a noble concept but leaves much to be desired despite being enhanced.

Otherwise, the money earned from dozens of rides becomes a nice afterthought, rather than motivating people to actually do something about their travelling habits.