TICKETING & FARE COLLECTION
Paul Monk, project and systems engineering manager at Cubic Transportation Systems, discusses the ticketing trends we will see in 2012.
G
lobal transport ticketing is currently in a state of flux – as it has been for some time - and the UK is no exception.
There are several types of ticketing media in operation in the UK, with paper, smartcard, barcode and open payment technologies now competing for operator and passenger use. Smartcards have been incredibly successful in recent years. However, despite successes such as the Oyster scheme – which has seen 50 million cards issued – transit-specific smartcard schemes are being increasingly challenged by new technologies such as mobile ticketing and open payment systems which are vying for a share of the market.
With the success of smartcards and the emergence of mobile ticketing and open payment systems, the UK is well on the way down the road to paperless ticketing. Increasingly, smartcard schemes are being launched by various transport operators primarily on bus and train routes. This trend is reflected globally, where tram, ferry and taxi services are also getting in on the act.
Two of the major ticketing trends that we will see in the UK in 2012 will move the UK even closer to paperless ticketing. Firstly, regional areas are increasingly introducing ITSO smartcards on localised train and bus routes, which are currently operating as standalone systems. Those train operators that run into London will interface with the Transport for London system later this year, which will represent a significant step forward in achieving integrated ticketing for the UK, and Cubic are proud to be the Systems Integrator for this.
Secondly, the open payment system being introduced on London’s 8,000 buses will see the groundwork being laid for a wider open payments scheme that can be rolled out to other transport modes. Again, Cubic are the underlying technology partner for this project and this represents the foundation for the next generation of ticketing projects.
Advocates of open payment systems believe that they have numerous benefits for transport operators and passengers alike.
Transport operators’ management and
operating costs are reduced as the bank cards are provided and managed by the banks themselves, and there is no pressure for operators regarding fulfilment – the cards are already sitting in passengers’ wallets.
more data means that transport operators can provide more tailored ticket products to better match the modern travelling patterns; traditional Monday to Friday season tickets are becoming less relevant as working patterns change and transport operators need to offer more flexible, better value propositions to attract customers.
Despite the benefits outlined above of open payment cards, there is some hesitation on the part of the issuers. A lot of investment was put into the original chip and pin card rollout, which has helped to reduce the fraud liability represented by cards. Not all issuing banks are keen on investing in another technology migration to new contactless cards system if it is not guaranteed to be a huge success, and recent economic factors have delayed some investment programmes.
To realise the benefits of the new technologies, the key issue is whether such systems can be integrated across the various transport operators. In the UK ITSO is working towards a solution architecture that will enable transport operators throughout Britain to link up so passengers only have to use one secure payment smartcard no matter what bus, train or route they are using. This requires investment from the transport industry and centralised support infrastructure to deliver the proposition. Similar infrastructure and services are required to achieve integrated open loop payment schemes and it remains an open question as to how open payments and ITSO may co-operate to achieve the best end results for the passengers.
Transit smartcard schemes are typically card- based, rather than account-based, so decisions need to be made based on the data held on the card. These cards are inherently limited as they can only hold a certain amount of information on their chips. As stations need to move passengers through gate lines as quickly as possible, putting any more information on a smartcard other than enabling relatively simple rules such as daily fare capping and acknowledging whether it is a monthly or weekly travel pass would slow card presentation times significantly. This can then have the knock-on effect of causing queues at stations.
In contrast, open payment systems typically utilise back office systems to perform the journey logic processing. This removes the dependency on holding all of the detailed journey history on the card and therefore facilitates more creative ticketing. Access to
The crucial thing to note with regards to all these advancements is that it shouldn’t be about pushing a technology for technology’s sake. Cubic is working with major banks and other ticketing and security experts to gain an unrivalled understanding of all the possibilities out there: it’s imperative to understand that not every customer has the same problem, or demands the same solution.
Andy Alder FOR MORE INFORMATION
Cubic Transportation Systems Ltd, AFC House, Honeycrock Lane, Salfords, Surrey, RH1 5LA T: +44 1737 78 2548 E:
carl.jenkins@
cubic.com
rail technology magazine Feb/Mar 12 | 41
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