From Sunday, Hong Kong residents aged 60 and over will need personalized JoyYou cards for the HK$2 fare
Hong Kong residents aged 60 or over will be required to use personalized JoyYou cards from Sunday to receive a fare subsidy of HK$2 (26 U.S. cents) under a public transport discount program, authorities said.
The MTR Corporation said on Tuesday that it would gradually deploy additional staff at some stations, especially those frequently used by the elderly, to promote the new policy and hand out application forms for the cards.
“As the JoyYou card application process takes approximately four weeks, eligible persons who have not yet applied for the card will not be able to enjoy the HK$2 discounted fare this Sunday,” a spokesperson said.
“MTR Corp would like to remind eligible individuals who have not yet applied to submit their applications for the JoyYou card as soon as possible.”
The government launched the JoyYou Card application program in 2022, which allows residents aged 65 and over and people with disabilities to receive discounts on public transport fares.
After a two-year transition period, the Ministry of Transport reminded the public on its website that the cards are required for those wishing to benefit from the discount from Sunday.
If passengers aged 65 or over continue to use their existing senior and personalized Octopus cards to travel on the MTR, the discount will be only half the adult fare.
Passengers aged 60 to 64 must pay the full fare without a JoyYou card.
The spokesperson also urged all JoyYou card holders to top up their card value and switch before Sunday to avoid queues.
First-time users of the JoyYou Card need to top up at least HK$50 to activate the HK$2 discounted fare, he added.
