E-ticketing - Articles and news items

Go North East is phasing out paper bus tickets

Industry news, News / 18 April 2013 / Go North East

The region’s largest bus company, Go North East, is phasing out traditional weekly paper bus tickets after 100 years. (more…)

e-Ticketing up close

Issue 1 2013 / 28 February 2013 / Horst Stammlet, Chairman, Kontiki e.V.

Given the pervasiveness of wireless networks, the explosion of mobile computing and communications devices of all forms, and the fundamental requirement for mobility, it is no wonder that multi-application, inter – operability, man-machine-interaction or intermodal public transport is now at the core of so many strategic plans. Just as life without mobility would be unpleasant at best, public transportation companies and networks that are not optimising their customer and communication systems and services will be operating at a distinct disadvantage. Access to information resources on an anytime/anywhere basis is today the key to productivity and an advantage no matter what the mission. (more…)

Riga keeps on modernising public transport and electronic services

Issue 6 2012 / 22 January 2013 / Leons Bemhens, Chairman of the Board, RP SIA Rīgas satiksme

During the last two years, Rīgas satiksme (the Riga public transport company) has continued its programme of significant changes by successfully developing the potential of electronic payment services, expanding the fleet of low-floor trams as well as achieving the best passenger satisfaction results in the last 14 years.

Riga keeps on developing electronic payments

On 1 May 2009, the Riga public transport company fully implemented a unified electronic payment system which enabled passengers to pay their fare electronically by means of e-tickets. The new payment system allows personification of customers with a much wider variety of tickets, as well as enabling payments via the internet. The implementation of the e-ticket resulted in new types of tickets, which immediately gained popularity among pass – engers (particularly those to be used for 10 or 20 trips). There is a wide range of e-tickets available to passengers: blue personalised and non-personalised plastic smartcards, yellow cardboard tickets, whose design is changed twice a year, and paper tickets sold by drivers, which are most frequently bought by nonfrequent public transport users and tourists. The latest version of the e-ticket, introduced on 21 November 2011, is valid for 50 trips. The ticket can be loaded onto blue (personalised and non-personalised) e-tickets. (more…)

Riga upgrades public transport services and rolling stock

Issue 6 2010 / 15 December 2010 / Leons Bemhens, Chairman of the Board, Rīgas satiksme

Riga’s public transport has undergone significant changes in recent years. The electronic payment system has been introduced successfully, and after the renovation of the bus fleet, tram and trolleybus renovations have now started, accompanied by modernisation of the infrastructure.

Transfer to e-ticket The 1 March 2009 was a remarkable day for Riga. On this day, Latvia’s capital city started using the unified electronic payments system in public transport, or the transfer to the e-ticket, known in Riga as ‘e-talons’. A rather short period of time, just two months (March and April), was given to replace the old system with the new one, and the new payments system was fully operable as of 1 May 2009. (more…)

eTicketing in Europe – active support from the Kontiki Working Group

Issue 6 2010 / 15 December 2010 / Dr. Manfred Ritschel, Past Chairman of the Kontiki Working Group

The Arbeitskreis für kontaktlose Chipkartensysteme für Electronic Ticketing (Kontiki – Working Group for contactless smartcard systems in electronic ticketing) was founded in 1998 and sees itself as a product- and systemindependent platform for electronic mobility systems based on contactless media. The focus of its work is on the use of contactless smartcard and other mobility systems in the field of public transportation. (more…)

The rollout of Smartcard by Centro across the West Midlands

Issue 6 2010 / 15 December 2010 / Michael Wevill, Smartcard Development and Implementation Manager, Centro

Centro, the Integrated Transport Authority for the West Midlands, celebrated the end of our Smartcard Rollout on more than 2,200 buses across the West Midlands at the beginning of November 2010. Virtually all the buses and depots belonging to the region’s bus companies have now been fitted with new Electronic Ticket Machines (ETMs) and back office computer equipment.

Local Transport Minister Norman Baker marked the achievement at a launch event held at West Bromwich Bus Station.

Mr Baker said: “The benefits of smart ticketing are clear – quicker, easier and potentially better value journeys on trains, buses and trams.” (more…)

e-Ticketing in Germany

Issue 4 2010 / 19 August 2010 / J. (Sjef) A.L. Janssen, Managing Director, VDV-Kernapplikations GmbH & Co. KG and Hartmut Loerch Head of IT Management, VDV-Kernapplikations GmbH & Co. KG

Public transport in Germany is crucial for the economy of the country. Passengers use the system more than 10 billion times a year while the frequency of use has been growing steadily for two decades now. The increasing demand for public transport is fuelled by changes in the job market framework conditions. Growing distances between home and place of work, transition to flexible work places and continuing growth of metropolitan regions are also key elements of this change. In addition, the awareness of the population in terms of environmental protection and cost has increased significantly. (more…)

Riga implements one of the most progressive payment systems in public transport

Issue 4 2009, Past issues / 20 September 2009 / Leon Bemhens, Chairman, Rigas satiksme

Nowadays, many local authorities take increasing care of their residents’ comfort in public transport, and hundreds of cities worldwide have already implemented and are operating electronic payment systems. One of the latest and most progressive systems was launched in Riga, the capital of Latvia, which, together with its suburbs, is home to almost one million people, potential users of public transport and customers of Rigas satiksme.

Rigas satiksme, as it is now, was established in 2005, after Riga municipality achieved one of its goals – to create an integrated public transport company. Rigas satiksme provides public transport services in the city of Riga, offers various types of transport for rent, as well as manages municipal parking-lots in Riga (3,120 in total). Rigas satiksme runs 252 city trams on 11 routes, 346 trolleybuses on 20 routes and 478 buses on 54 routes and employs 5,108 staff1. As of 1 May 2009, only electronic payments are accepted in the Riga public transport system.

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Developments and projects of eTicketing for European public transportation

Issue 5 2008, Past issues / 11 November 2008 / Hansjörg Röhrich, Vice Chairman, Kontiki Working Group

When Thor Heyerdahl decided to cross the Pacific Ocean from South America to Tahiti in 1947 in order to prove that what had hitherto been considered impossible could indeed be true, he named his balsa raft Kon-Tiki. Many years later, this name was perfect for reviving the same ideas in the world of electronic fare management: the idea of exploring the possibilities and applications of contactless ticketing in the future.

Within an unbelievably short period of 10 years (as long as the Working Group Kontiki has been in existence) electronic fare management (EFM) has successfully advanced into nearly every area of our society. To be sure, the founding idea of the Working Group Kontiki was to bring card manufacturers, banks, system integrators and producers of background systems together on a national level for an exchange of experiences and standards in order to find the best possible solution for contactless ticketing in many different areas of life. Thus, today we naturally think of European-wide solutions. The requisite applications have been developed and implemented in European countries at a varying pace. Whether VDV Core Application (Verband Deutscher Verkehrsunternehmen), ITSO, Calypso, among others – they have all contributed to keeping the round table within a European context.

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TLS: Leading the way

Issue 6 2007, Past issues / 7 December 2007 / Jeroen Kok, CEO of Trans Link Systems (TLS)

The Netherlands is the first country in the world to introduce a nationwide electronic payment system for public transport. Smart card transport systems are not new. However, the Dutch are the first to roll out such a system (OV-chipkaart system) for an entire country and for all modes of domestic transport; train, tram, bus and ferry.

Trans Link Systems (TLS), a joint venture based in Amersfoort, was founded in 2001 by the five largest Public Transport Operators in The Netherlands; Connexxion (the trans-regional bus service), GVB (Amsterdam’s public transport operator), HTM (the public transport group for The Hague), NS (Dutch Railways) and RET (Rotterdam’s public transport operator). TLS, as an independent governing body, facilitates the introduction of the national OV-chipkaart system in The Netherlands. The OV-chipkaart is a contactless smart card for public transport costs that can be used on any bus, train, tram and subway within The Netherlands.

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German eTicketing ready for implementation

Issue 4 2005, Past issues / 6 December 2005 / Dr.Till Ackermann, Economics and Tariff Manager, German association of transport companies and authorities and Head of VDV Core Application company, Cologne

Demands on interoperable standards for electronic fare management are at their highest in Germany,with its dense,multi-centred transport network.

The transport companies and authorities organised in the Association of German Transport Undertakings (VDV) carry some 27 million passengers every day. The majority of customers travel in integrated public transport systems under the motto: one ticket, one timetable, one fare. Most passengers use season tickets such as monthly passes, semester tickets, annual season tickets or job tickets. In addition, since the late 1960s, platform entry barriers have been removed for cost reasons; companies use an open system. These facts demonstrate that the public transport system in Germany offers an attractive service level, and that changes in the area of fares and sales must be very carefully planned due to their intense effects.

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Major advances in eTicketing

Issue 4 2005, Past issues / 6 December 2005 / ET

KreisVerkehr Schwäbisch Hall ready to pioneer a trailblazing system.

The Kreisverkehr utility in the district of Schwäbisch Hall covers an area of approx. 190,000 inhabitants and a transport network more than 4,000 km in length.With a total of 1000 stations and train stops, the transport utilities deliver a transport performance of 116,000 person-kilometres and more than 15 million passenger trips per annum.

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