Fares & Ticketing Systems

Good ticketing must:-
Be readily available.
Be easy to use.
Represent good value for money
Cover the entire journey.
Be flexible.
Be fair.

Readily available means that it is should be easy to purchase a ticket - not just for regular passengers but also for occasional users and visitors. The inability to purchase a ticket at point of travel discourages honest irregular travellers and encourages (or at least gives a ready excuse for) fare evasion.

Be easy to use means that the fares system should be simple to understand, so that passengers have a reasonable chance of buying the correct ticket for their journey.

Cover the entire journey means that the same ticket, bought at or before the start of a journey will cover the whole journey, even if this journey requires several changes (bus to train, and then to tram, etc). There also needs to be a mechanism whereby passengers who decide to alter their journey whilst en-route can pay any additional fare without being seen as willful fare dodgers.

Represent good value for money is perhaps a subjective issue as one persons' concept of a reasonable fare will differ from another's. However most would agree that the policy whereby fares are raised to such a high level that they are barely affordable simply cannot represent good value for money and instead either encourage attempts at fare dodging or lead to more people choosing to go by car. Part of the issue here is that some British train operating companies now use the "market forces - as high as people will pay" principle as their primary ticketing philosophy. As a contrast many European railways base their fares using a distance - travelled fares chart, although they do have discounted off-peak offers too.

For urban travel the situation is often not much better, and with trains on many routes suffering peak hour overcrowding in some locations rail fares are kept high to encourage passengers to switch to other transports. Off-peak fares however are usually more reasonable, and in some conurbations the 'pay-once ride-at-will' tickets offer extremely good value for money.

In some countries they charge sales tax (VAT/GST) on public transport fares. The EU wants us to do the same here in Britain and it suggests that if, as a result, fares are too high then they should be subsidised. Experience in Switzerland (in 1995) showed that when 6.2% tax was added to fares the Federal Railways saw traffic fall by 5.5%, and revenue by 7.3%.

(Bureaucrats like subsidies because it creates extra work for more bureaucrats. This increases their self importance and in effect can be likened to a form of 'breeding' with ordinary people [ie: taxpayers] having to foot the bill. The financial implications of this never concern the bureaucrats because not only are they not democratically accountable but they are so highly paid that they just do not need to care! - witness the fact that in 2008 it was announced that for the 14th year in a row the EU's budget could not be ratified because too much money was going astray, leaking away...where to I wonder? - - and since Britain is one of the few net contributors its mostly our tax-payers money that is being siphoned off. For more information follow this link [which opens in a new window]
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2008/11/10/nosplit/dt1001.xml#head1).

Be flexible means to offer the same 'turn up and travel' flexibility as the private car. Many people only decide to travel at the last minute - often after having seen the weather forecast - this flexibility is partly what attracts so many people to their cars, so to be competitive public transport MUST offer similar flexibility too.

In the days of the state-owned British Railways passengers were offered a choice of leisure tickets which included both discounted 'book-ahead' fares and discounted 'saver' & even 'super-saver' off-peak fares which could be bought for immediate "walk-on" travel (no seat reservation required) and were valid on most trains after 9.30am weekdays plus all day weekends. (OK super-savers could not be used on summer Fridays or Saturdays).

An unwelcome phenomena since privatisation is that many train operating companies have been eroding their 'walk-on" tickets by significantly increasing the prices, stiffening the restrictions on when they can been used (particularly by delaying the weekday "travel-after" times), and even abolishing them completely - forcing walk-on passengers to pay the full fare, which on many services have risen far more steeply than the official rate of price inflation. Instead it has become policy to try to force passengers to book train travel like air travel - that is tickets are only valid on nominated trains and must be booked 7-14 days in advance.

Granted that there are some very good bargains to be had the whole point about train travel is that it should offer a 'turn up and go' service - after all no-one ever has to book a week in advance to use their private car when it is sitting in their driveway!

This 'nominated trains only' policy takes no account of the fact that the days' activities events can end early / over-run or that for some travel (especially day trips) unpredictable factors such as the weather can sometimes help when making the decision whether to return at 5pm (its raining) or 7pm (warm evening, very pleasant to be outside). Whilst inflexible ticketing systems may work well on the airlines (which have much more limited passenger capacities) the unfortunate reality is that some passengers have found their travel costs have risen by over 100% - effectively pricing them off the trains and into their private cars.

Be fair in this context the word fair means equitable - in the sense that it is only right that passengers should feel they are dealing with an honest organisation. However, the reverse is also true and for passengers who - despite being able to do so - simply fail to purchase a ticket valid for the entire journey in advance of travelling the charging of a pre-set 'penalty' fare is not unreasonable. Persistent willful fare dodgers still end up in court.

Sometimes though passengers fall foul of the rules through no fault of their own - for example... in Strasbourg, France passengers must validate their tickets before use. I failed to do this as I joined the system at an underground station where it was so dark (most of the lights were not working) that I just did not see the ticket validators located on the platform. Thankfully I was not caught by the roving ticket inspectors!!! I validated my ticket at a surface station when I saw other people validating their tickets and thereby realised my error.

Regular inspection is an essential element of all ticketing systems, otherwise the situation could arise as happened in Amsterdam, Holland, where the fares system became so lax that an American tourist guide book advised visitors that the trams were free to ride!

Part time ticket sales.

In some areas it is not unusual for station ticket offices to only be opened for part of the day. This is because the cost of staffing the stations and heating & lighting the ticket offices is often deemed to be too high. In instances such as this special permit to travel machines are usually made available so that passengers can pay some / all of their fare in advance. These machines give paper receipts which can be shown to a ticket inspector whilst en-route or ticket collector at the end of the journey. In this way the passengers will have proof that they were not trying to avoid paying for their journey.

Typically the normal station entrances are closed at the same time as the ticket offices and passengers will be directed to use alternative station entrances, such as a side gate. If there are electronic ticket barriers then these too will not be being used at this time (just left open) - although in areas where there are smart card ticketing systems electronic card readers should still be available.

With the fragmentation of our national railway system following privatisation there sometimes arises a situation where different train operating companies run competing services serving the same stations and travelling over the same sections of track.

In many such locations the different train operating companies also charge different fares, with these generally being based on the logical principle whereby faster / more comfortable trains are dearer, and slower, more spartan, trains are cheaper. Whilst there are some 'full fare' tickets which can be used on any normal timetabled train (typically these tickets are the more expensive tickets) the railway companies usually also offer discounted tickets which are restricted to their services only. Typically these tickets require advance booking and on the faster 'longer distance' services will be for fixed time trains. As with air travel it is usual that passengers with these restricted tickets who miss their timed train - or take the wrong train - will have to buy a fresh ticket.

However when the railways were privatised the government decided to prohibit what is known as ticket interavailability on the route between London and Gatwick Airport so that all passengers must decide which railway company to use and then buy a ticket that can only be used on their trains. There is a choice of three --

The Gatwick Express provides non-stop services into London Victoria Station. It uses air-conditioned trains and charges a premium fare.

SouthCentral also uses Victoria Station, but operates local services serving many destinations in Southern England as well as South London; its fares are lower, its trains are less plush, stop at some other stations en route and are slower.

Thameslink also uses 'suburban' style trains, and its services link Gatwick with North London via London Bridge Station, London's financial district and Kings Cross / St. Pancras stations.

Problems arise because between East Croydon and Gatwick Airport the Thameslink and SouthCentral services are interleaved - using the same tracks and station platforms - yet Thameslink charges a higher fare. Even a London-wide travel-at-will 'Travelcard', if purchased at Gatwick Airport, is priced differently depending on which of the two train companies' services a passenger wishes to use; this makes for extreme confusion for passengers who just want the first 'normal fare' fast train heading towards London.

For the sake of completeness, there are also motorcoach services linking London and Gatwick Airport.

Many urban railway systems have replaced human ticket checkers at entry / exit points to the platforms with automated ticket gates which passengers must pass through at the start and end of their journey. Primarily this is done in an attempt to prevent 'fare dodging', or in other words, travelling without paying.

However, until recently stations (or the just the relevant platforms in larger stations) served by longer distance InterCity services have not been similarly equipped, with primary ticket checking being performed by the on-train staff walking through the train.

But that policy is changing and with the enthusiastic encouragement of politicians and other decision makers many larger stations have had / are having similar platform gates installed which all passengers will need to pass through.

This has not met with universal approval from the passengers, who are concerned about factors including:-

• The closure of secondary entrances and exits will result in significant changes to established walking patterns (see below),
• Gates restricts access to shops and other retail outlets - reports suggest that some have seen sales fall by 10%,
• A possible negative affect on the character of the station,
• Some train operators allow (or even encourage) passengers to pay their fares on the trains and the need to find a security guard to open the gates will make reaching their trains more difficult,
• Not all passengers are supplied with gate-compatible tickets - this especially applies to longer distance travel and passengers (perhaps from overseas) who are using airline sized paper tickets.
• Also not gate-compatible are the mobile telephone e-tickets and print at home tickets which some train operating companies encourage passengers to buy on the Internet,
• Because they restrict passenger throughput at busier times barriers can be a source of delays,
• Some late arriving passengers stand a higher risk of missing their trains,
• Even with extra wide gates life is made less easy for passengers with baggage, children in pushchairs or who use wheelchairs,
• Aggravation for meeters and greeters who are concerned about being at the mercy of ticket gate jobsworths (see below).

With ticket barriers there is a need for staff to be on constant duty to monitor their use and be ready to offer assistance where required. At times when there are no staff available (this is quite common in the evenings) the barriers have to be left open - which somewhat negates the stated reasons for installing them. Apparently at some stations the barriers are only monitored by closed circuit TV, which means that passengers who need assistance can be forced to wait an unreasonable time period for such assistance to arrive. Long enough to miss their train, perhaps?

Significant changes to established walking patterns.

An issue faced at some stations - which even includes the London Underground - is that whether by design or default parts of some stations which might be expected to be within the 'fare paid area' and therefore only be accessible to passengers who have valid tickets have become public walking routes, linking different parts of the local community, and as a result local people have complained most vociferously against proposals for ticket gates on the basis that these would impede their freedom of movement. At some stations a solution which the station operators have suggested is for people who need access to be supplied with free passes, and sometimes this has been found to be acceptable.

Changes to walking routes can also affect railway passengers too, making them walk much longer distances around stations than they previously needed to. For instance, station car parks sometimes benefit from side entrances into the station which with the introduction of electronic ticket barriers are sealed off (ie: closed) - forcing these passengers to walk the longer way round via the main entrance.

Two cities where campaigning has been especially vocal are Sheffield and York.

In Sheffield the proposals include closing off to all but railway ticket holders a footbridge which is both the primary interchange walking route between the tram and bus stations on opposite sides of the railway station and also acts as a direct route between various residential parts of the city and the city centre. The bridge is wholly within the station and despite being used as such is not officially a public right of way.

In both cities local government planning applications need to be approved before work can proceed, and with both cities rejecting the planning applications so November 2009 saw plans to gate the stations in both cities being cancelled - or at least that is what some people thought - as after (in February 2010) human ticket checkers were used to blocade the pedestrian route in Sheffield it became known that despite the planning application defeat the desire to install the ticket barriers was still very much alive...

More information about the situation in Sheffield can be found at the Residents Against Station Closure website, which opens in a new window. http://www.rasc-sheffield.com.

Gates in: Fares Income Up.

Although exact financial data is restricted as being 'commercially sensitive', the train operators say that when platform barriers are introduced ticket sales at that station rise noticeably - which suggests that fares evasion really is a problem. Although after a while the number of people buying tickets at the specific stations then fall - which is being attributed to them buying at other stations or online - they claim that despite the high cost of installing and staffing the barriers the financial outcome is that the investment is cost effective. Ultimately fares revenue is the lifeblood of the railway system, without which either the taxpayer will have to provide revenue support or the system closes down.

The need for Platform Tickets.

Because those who control the ticketing system have said that it would "add another layer to an already complicated ticket-pricing structure" (in other words, it is 'too difficult' for us to achieve) few stations sell platform tickets, which effectively prevents relatives and friends from seeing passengers off and greeting their arrival. Whilst officials suggest that ticket gate staff will use their discretion to provide platform passes, experience with how petty officials and 'jobsworths' often get things wrong suggests that it would be better to have a solution which they cannot stifle.

One would have thought that if the publicly-stated aim of installing ticket barriers was to prevent 'fare dodging' then the railways would be equally keen to make it easier to purchase tickets. However, whilst it is true that many stations usually have several self-service ticket machines and that it is also possible to buy tickets online (Internet) the reality is that some people have special requirements (or are just not happy dealing with machines) and therefore need to visit a ticket office to see a real human being. Too often passengers complain that the queues to be served are very long, often suggesting that the railway company is not employing enough people and therefore de facto encouraging passengers to travel without tickets. It is easy to repeat the oft-spoken mantras that passengers should always arrive early and allow plenty of time, but (for instance) what about the person who allowed extra time only to be heavily delayed - through no fault of their own - on their way to the station?

Other reasons for ticket gates.

In addition to ensuring that all passengers pay their fares, ticket gates can perform other often applauded functions too, such as making trains and travel in general safer by keeping out anti-social people whose intentions towards other travellers are sometimes less than welcome. In theory it would be nice to keep the drunks out too. Of course these reasons fall flat when the anti-social people also have valid tickets so are entitled to access the platforms and travel on the trains.

Another excuse which is often used in Britain is that since the 7/7 bombing incidents in London it is felt desirable for stations to have restricted access points which are monitored by 24/7 camera surveillance systems. Of course this is just about the worst possible non-excuse which actively tarnishes everything else official spokespeople say and creates the impression that in reality they do not care about fare dodging but are desperate for ticket gates for some reason other than what has been said so far. The fact is that the perpetrators of the 7/7 events passed through a station which had ticket gates, were filmed by the CCTV cameras, and even had valid tickets. Furthermore, there are many stations on the national railway system which are 'open' where people with ill intent could gain access to the transport system. It could also be asked why similar reasons were not advocated during the IRA bombing of the 1970's? - when the railways were sometimes the intended targets.

In many ways the use of terrorism as an excuse has to be seen as little more than a 'red herring', with the real aim being the introduction of more 'police state' ways of controlling the massed population and keeping people in fear of dangers which whilst certainly most terrible are very rare - unlike the daily tally of people who suffer ill health and untimely death from illnesses caused by preventable causes - such as air pollution - and about which decision makers are doing very little to resolve. A report by the Parliamentary Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants found that air pollution hastens the deaths of between 12000 and 24000 British people a year and is associated with 14000 and 24000 hospital admissions and re-admissions - causing sufferers and their families untold amounts of misery and costing our health service & taxpayers £billions. In addition because of urban air pollution the EU is prosecuting our Government - yet all our politicians are doing is to ask for derogations, which means 'more time'! The real tragedy here is that there are proven viable modes of transport which if adopted could help act as being part of the solution to urban air pollution but they are being spurned (electric trams and trolleybuses). This topic is looked at in greater detail on the Advocating Electric Transport for London and Electric Buses pages.

The essence of multi-modal through ticketing is that as far as possible one ticket should cover the entire journey. To the passenger the advantages of not having to buy individual tickets are:-

saved time,

less hassle,

transport that is easier to use

the creation of the impression of a 'seamless' journey - even though there may be one (or more) changes required.

Transport operators benefit from multi-modal through ticketing too. The less handling of money / processing of 'plastic' card transactions plus shorter queues equates to lower demand on staff and an overall saving in the cost of maintaining ticketing facilities.

The only real 'disbenefit' is that by not selling any point-to-point tickets it becomes harder to update services in response to changes in long term passenger travel patterns.

As a general theme multi-modal through ticketing is usually considered as being for local / urban journeys within one city and its conurbations or a series of urban centres in a regional ticketing scheme. Some British long distance rail companies also offer combined rail + local bus / tram ticketing for certain routes and whilst this is commendable what is really required is a scheme such as in Holland where there is a national local transport ticket that can be used A N Y W H E R E in the country.

There is no reason why airlines cannot also be involved in multi-modal through ticketing travel - some airlines on business routes already give their passengers travel tickets for use in the destination city, they do this because they know that it makes life easier for business people on busy schedules by saving them time and hassle on arrival at their destination.

Seen in 1983 this Rotterdam tram is promoting the Dutch National Strippenkaart, which is a multi-journey paper ticket (for local journeys only) which can be used anywhere in the country. One Country, One Ticket. Maybe this would sound radical, but such has existed - and been found viable - in one European country for several decades. To put it simply, it would make life for British people visiting different towns and cities much simpler if there was one ticket which every urban / local transport operator accepted. The Dutch have benefitted from this for many years. Maybe its time that we in Britain did too? The good news is that something similar to this already exists. Known as Plusbus this system allows railway passengers in mainland Great Britain (sorry, not N.I.) to buy ride-at-will bus tickets for their destination town or city. Many, but not all bus companies have agreed to accept Plusbus, plus in several conurbations Plusbus can be used on the trams too! There are just a few simple rules, such as having to hold valid rail tickets and a requirement to be travelling to a different town or city than the place of departure - more information can be found on the Plusbus website at http://plusbus.info/ (link to an external site which opens in a new window)

Experience in London has proven that multi-modal ticketing attracts passengers.

For many years public transport use in London was in decline. Almost every journey required a separate ticket and although period tickets were available they operated on a direct 'point to point' (nominated station) basis with little interavailability between the modes. This changed with the introduction of the Travelcard which allows passengers to travel as much as they like by almost all rail and bus transports but only pay once. The London Travelcard is a zonal pay-once and then 'ride-at-will' period ticket that is based on daily / weekly / longer time frames. A list of the few services which do not accept them can be found in the section which looks at Londons' fare system in greater depth further down this page.

Within a few years of its introduction transport experts recognised that by changing the ticketing system the resulting increase in passenger levels more than covered any possible loss in fare receipts caused by passengers not paying separate fares. Furthermore, the resulting reduction of time it took passengers to board buses and show their passes (instead of fumbling in their pockets / purses to find the cash to pay the fare) helped improve bus service reliability by reducing the delays that are synonymous with 'pay on entry' buses.

Amazingly the Travelcard almost did not happen - in 1983 the dedicated 'left-wing' leader of the Greater London Council (Ken Livingstone) faced much opposition to bring the scheme into being - at one stage even taking London Transport to court to force them to implement this new ticketing system. When in 1986 the right-wing national Government abolished the Greater London Council it took much public lobbying before the Travelcard's retention was assured - the Government wanted to replace it with a stored-value card where the value of each and every individual journey is deducted separately. This would have killed the "pay a flat fare just the once and then ride at will" aspect that makes the Travelcard so successful. The electronic ticketing system known as Oyster 'pay as you go' may yet result in this happening - see below.

London's Three Fares Scales.

Passengers not using a pay once / ride at will Travelcard are still able to pay for journeys individually, although it is usually significantly less expensive to do so using the electronic Oyster ticketing system (as described below) than by paying cash.

Unlike many cities in the developed world, London's buses and trains have very different fare systems, with the various railway networks being further sub-divided between those controlled by the local government body 'Transport for London' (TfL) ie: the Underground, London Overground & the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) and the other railway services.

London's railway system is split into 6 fares zones (plus 3 outside of London / to the north of the city) and although for passengers using Travelcards the fares are harmonised within the zones - so it does not matter which railway service a passenger uses - different fares are charged for individual 'single ticket' journeys depending on whether a person is using railway services where TfL set the fares or a mainline railway 'train operating company' (TOC) sets the fares. (Where the Underground and mainline railways serve the same transport corridors fares are mostly harmonised with tickets being valid on any service; trams use a slightly modified bus fare scale - see below). In other words, passengers without prepaid day or season tickets travelling on the mainline railway are financially penalised because (as a general theme) they are charged according to a different (typically higher) fares table than if the same journey had been made on an Underground / Overground / DLR service. This applies even when exactly the same fares zones are being travelled through.

In sharp contrast to the railways, London's buses charge a simple flat fare, for (virtually) any journey, of any length, within zones 1-6. (Some journeys outside of the London local government / political area are charged differently). Because the buses treat London as just one large fare zone so bus passengers are permitted to use all Travelcards throughout London, irrespective of the advertised zone(s) of validity. On Croydon's Tramlink Travelcards are accepted only if they are valid in any one (or more) of railway zones 3,4,5 or 6, these being the zones through Tramlink services are operated.

London's transport chiefs freely admit that rail fares are being pushed up much higher than bus fares in order to encourage modal shift out of private cars / away from overcrowded trains - and on to the buses. They also say that another reason for higher rail fares is that the train operators have to cover the infrastructure costs of the system - whereas buses use the public highway where local and national governments cover the infrastructure costs.

Fares for children vary depending on whether they are under 5, 6-10, 11-15 or 16+, travelling by bus, TfL controlled rail services or other rail services, how many children are travelling, whether with an adult, whether they have a special child photocard and specially enabled Oyster card, (Oyster is looked at further down this page) where they live (in London?) and even if they have misbehaved whilst on the public transport and had their child privileges withdrawn!

DANGER! The pay-once 'ride-at-will' Travelcard is still under threat of replacement!

Although at present unable to fulfill this, there are some transport operators who still see a benefit in mutating the Travelcard into a stored value ticket which keeps the multi-modal aspect but increases revenue by charging 'something' for every journey. (Stored value tickets are further explained below). It is only through constant vigilance and awareness of future possibilities that this can be averted.

2011 pay-once 'ride-at-will' Travelcard Retrenchment.

As part of the 2011 fares revision some types of Travelcard zonal combinations were withdrawn, with the cited reason being that not enough people were using them. In every case the changes have seen significant fares increases for those passengers who did use them, giving the impression that revenue generation was the real motivation.

In addition the availability of paper one-day Travelcard tickets was very significantly reduced, with the network of local shops called Ticket Stops no longer selling them. No doubt the reduced availability will result in reduced sales - so that within a few years the same excuse could be used to completely kill-off the one-day version of the Travelcard.

These actions increase concerns that the Travelcard itself also remains under threat.

Instead of the one-day Travelcard the decision makers advise passengers to use the electronic ticketing and fares capping (see below) instead, however this ticketing option is a different solution which operates in significantly different ways and although actual fares are claimed to be harmonised the reality is that passengers can find themselves being charged significantly more than one-day Travelcards without understanding why / or even without being at fault. It may yet require a passenger who has been caught out in this way to become involved in a court case where the theme is that the electronic ticketing is 'not fit for purpose' to ensure the survival of the paper one-day pay once / ride-at-will Travelcard.

To reduce the time buses spend at bus stops and avoid the extra costs of employing bus conductors (to collect the fares) passengers using buses in Central London and on selected suburban bus routes (who wish to pay cash fares) are now required to pay their fare (aka: buy their tickets) before boarding.

To facilitate this ticket machines have been installed at many hundreds of bus stops. These sell single tickets which must be used within an hour of purchase and only on journeys involving one bus commencing at the bus stop where the ticket machine is located. These machines accept all gold & silver (but not copper) coloured coins & instead of giving change will allow passengers who do not have the correct money to overpay (that's er, um, nice!) They do not accept paper money.

Unlike many North American & European cities there is no facility to transfer to a second bus (or other mode of transport) if this is required to complete an overall journey - effectively this means that in London passengers who need to interchange en route must pay a second fare to continue their journey. Slightly different arrangements apply to Croydon Tramlink feeder buses.

Passengers using the electronic Oyster ticketing benefit from cheaper bus fares and an arrangement whereby after four bus journeys no more bus fares are charged during that day. (Oyster is described in the Other Ticketing Systems section below).

There are also innovatively shaped light-bulb shaped pre-pay bus tickets which until September 2008 could be bought from local shops, travel information offices and underground stations. These were sold in 'books' of six at a price which was heavily discounted when compared to tickets bought at bus stop ticket machines or (where permitted) from the driver when boarding a bus. The individual tickets within each book could be given to family and friends, with each ticket being for one person to make one journey, without transfer. Despite no longer being available to buy these tickets are still accepted as a form of payment for bus fares (but not on the trams). Nowadays passengers are encouraged to use the electronic Oyster ticketing system.

In Europe public transport is seen as a social service which exists for the common good. For this reason it is usual for fares to be subsidised - especially ride-at-will season and day tickets - as part of environmental programmes designed to encourage more public transport usage. In Britain we have a very different approach; here the transport is seen as just another business that exists to make a profit and pay dividends to shareholders - it is just 'coincidental' that the main activity of the companies involved is passenger transport. Britain also differs on investment policy as the government will only allow investment in transports that will be profitable enough to both pay their way and raise sufficient funds to repay their construction costs. No matter how socially beneficial the investment might be.

In many European towns and cities it is normal for passengers to be expected to buy their tickets in advance of travel. Often this can be done from self-service ticket vending machines located at the bus / tram stops or railway station entrance. However even though in many European countries the bus (etc.,) stops are typically further apart than here in Britain (so relatively fewer machines would be required) installing and maintaining these machines does still require a major financial investment. Usually ticket machines will accept payment by coin (albeit not always the lowest value coins) sometimes also it is possible to pay by 'plastic card' and or 'paper' money. One 'problem' with automated ticket vending machines is that they sometimes run out of change, so that people buying tickets must either pay with the correct money or accept that if they overpay (pay too much) then they will effectively be making a donation of the surplus funds to the transport operator. It is rare for these ticket machines to offer credit notes which can be redeemed at a transport authority's enquiry office at a later time.

In addition to automated vending machines it is also usual for tickets to be available at other locations too, such as newsagents / other local shops, staffed ticket sales windows at local urban railway stations (less likely with long distance railway stations) and the transport operator's enquiry offices in the city centre (if they have any). Some airlines / the Eurostar 'Channel Tunnel' railway service and hotels will sell local area transport tickets to their patrons too - typically with airlines / Eurostar this will only be for the destinations they serve / to which that journey is travelling. In Germany one hotel chain even includes free travel on the local transports as part of the accommodation package.

The reason for encouraging advance purchase / 'off-vehicle' ticket sales is that for street-based transport the system whereby passengers must queue to enter and pay the driver is known to cause significant delay to the transport service. It is not for nothing that 'pay on entry' buses are also known as 'mobile traffic jams'. Therefore in many towns and cities the driver will not sell tickets, or if (s)he does they will be at a higher price than if they had been bought in advance of travel. 'Heavy' railway operators usually also encourage the advance purchase of travel tickets, although usually with these the driver's responsibilities will not extend to any aspects of the ticketing system.

In some areas street-based ticket vending machines are frequently attacked by thieves looking for an easy source of cash. This represents a severe problem for transport operators. Different cities have adopted different solutions to this, with the solutions including the reintroducing the age old 'conductor' (sometimes affectionately also known as a 'clippie') who travels on the bus or tram collecting fares, or simply relying on the other ticket sales options, as detailed above. This latter option can result in 'would be' passengers being unable to travel for want of finding somewhere where they can buy a ticket.

Usually advance purchase tickets will require validating before use. This entails (partially) inserting them into a machine that stamps a date, time & location marker which a roving inspector can read to ensure its validity. Locations for these validators vary from city to city but for services in the street environment they will either be the at bus / tram stops or on the vehicles, whilst for trains (and trams / light rail operating in 'off-street railway mode') the ticket validators will usually be at the entrance to the station platform. However, in all situations passengers caught without validated tickets can expect to pay a high penalty fare.

There are two video clips showing different aspects of this type of fares system.

* This link will download a 53 second video clip named 'Bus-all-doors320.mpg' showing passengers using all the doors to board and alight from the trolleybus (of an older high floor design) as seen in the image above left and a new low floor trolleybus not otherwise seen on this page.

* This link will download a 73 second video clip named 'Boarding-Bus-Laying-Over-At-Terminus320.mpg' showing passengers boarding a low floor trolleybus which is at its city centre terminus and waiting the next journey out to the suburbs. Whilst similar actions would be considered 'normal' for trains and trams, one of the purposes here is to show that with the 'right' ticketing system similar is possible with buses too!

Zürich, Switzerland is one of Europes' most prosperous cities with a very high rate of car ownership. And with over 50% of all travel being by public transport it is also fêted as having the most successful urban transport in Europe. As such it is living proof that where there is high-quality, closely integrated and reliable fixed-infrastructure transport even wealthy car-owners will choose to use it.

Although part of this success is based on the types of transports used (electric trains, trams and trolleybuses - motorbuses are banished to out-of-town rural services) what binds everything together is the ticketing system.

The overriding philosophy is to encourage passengers to buy advance purchase period and multiple-trip tickets by heavily subsiding them when compared to the cost of a single ticket such as is bought for immediate travel. This is primarily because once a person has a valid ticket they are more inclined to use it again and again, instead of going by car. These tickets are also cheaper for the transport operator (less cash to handle, less ticket 'card stock' used, etc.,) and the savings are passed back to the ticket holder.

In Zürich most tickets are just 'entitlements to travel', this means they are fully shareable between friends and family, as long as only one person is using it at a time. However, if lost they cannot be replaced. Some of the more expensive period tickets can also be 'named' - although restricted to the holder only they can be replaced if lost.

In Zürich tickets are easily available from a wide range of outlets including combined ticket sales & validating machines located at every stop, newsagents, local shops, hotels, railway stations and special staffed 'ticket here' booths located at a few very busy stops around the city. (as illustrated).

Once validated (done before boarding the vehicle) even standard Single Fare Tickets allow the holder to travel at will (ie: make multiple journeys). This means that for no extra cost it is possible to break your journey, perhaps to do some shopping, and even make a return trip, providing all travelling is completed within a time limit. The only exception is with the short journey ticket which is designed for a single journey of only a couple of stops.

For twice the price a standard Single Fare Ticket becomes a 24-hour ride-at-will ticket; but unlike the 'day rover' tickets available in many British cities which expire at midnight, in Zürich these last a full 24 hours (ie: validated at 11am, expires at 10.59am the next day) - so you get your full money's worth.

Zürich has not forgotten the needs of less frequent passengers and to encourage them to use the transport there are several types of Multiple Fare Tickets which are bought in advance (from staffed ticket sales locations only) and provide the equivalent of six individual tickets more cheaply than if bought individually. These too are also fully transferable between family and friends, and can even be used by several people travelling at the same time as long as the correct number of 'journeys' (on the ticket) are validated - and everyone travels together as one group.

To encourage young adults who might also be thinking of buying cars to continue using the public transports people aged under 25 can buy certain types of the advance purchase Multiple Fare and Season Tickets at reduced (child) rates; this is done because this is a most important age group who would be in the process of forming habits that will last a lifetime - and the desire is to encourage them to form the habit of using public transport! Users of these tickets are very strongly recommended to carry proof of age with them when they travel (to show the roving ticket inspectors).

As in many cities roving ticket inspectors patrol the system and there are steep fines for travellers who cannot show a valid ticket. At the time of writing (September 2004) the fines are 60 Francs (approximately £28) for immediate cash payment or 80 Francs (approximately £38) for payment by invoice - with legal action for non payers. However holders of "named" season tickets have the option of showing it later (together with the penalty receipt) and receiving a refund (of the fine) less five Swiss Francs (approximately £2.35).

By 2010 the fall in value of the British Pound has seen even the Sterling values quoted above rise significantly to approximately £38 / £50 / £3.16.

Some North American systems use the fare box system where the driver collects fares (or pre-paid tokens) in a box to which they do not have access. This is safer for them, but also means that the passenger must tender the correct fare as it is not possible to give ('make') change. Interestingly, the land of 'free enterprise' and 'market forces' uses a very different philosophy on its public transport. Competition is strictly between public transportation per se and the private car ('automobile'). The transports do not compete within themselves! Fares are heavily subsidised, many cities have 'flat fares' which means that everyone pays the same irrespective of how far they are travelling.

If the passenger knows that their journey will require a change of vehicle en route then when starting that journey they can ask for a 'transfer' which will enable the interchange to be made at minimal or no extra cost. However transfers are not usually required for locations where the whole interchange area forms part of the 'fare paid' zone. An example of this is seen at this subway station (from Toronto, Canada) where new passengers entering the system from the street must first pass the ticket barrier in the usual way and then have a choice of going downstairs to the subway or staying at street level for the streetcars or buses. Walking straight from the (street) footpath to the streetcar waiting / loading area is treated as fare dodging.

Toronto's suburban 'GO' (Government of Ontario) rail system has a novel solution for reducing fare evasion by single-fare 'cash' ticket holders. These tickets 'nominate' which train they can be used on (usually the next one) so even if a ticket is not checked en route it cannot be used to make multiple journeys.

Some North American cities use metal tokens as subway tickets - these are often available in multiple at a discounted rate and are inserted into the turnstile / ticket barrier when entering the station. This solution is only suitable for systems where there are flat fares, which means that passengers pay the same irrespective of distance travelled, or the time of day. New York was famed for its use of tokens, and even though they have now been replaced by magnetic stripe tickets they still remain in NYC folklore.

Some cities also have free travel (ie: fare less, no charge) zones over part of their systems - usually this will be the city centre core (CBD). Part of the idea will be to encourage city (office) workers, etc., not to use their cars when travelling about the city centre. Such zones often benefit local traders because people will take advantage of the free travel and visit local stores for their shopping instead of using car-based out of town shops.

The argument against these free travel zones is that car commuters end up not paying for the transport, while those people who use public transport to commute will have season tickets which already provide them with city centre travel at no extra cost.

Bus drivers also report that not asking boarding passengers for money reduces passenger aggression, as the principle cause of attacks on bus drivers stems from the collection of fares as the passengers board the bus. However this must be countered by issues with passengers who board these buses within the free travel zone and then ride beyond its limits, for free. One solution to this issue has been adopted in Portland, Oregon, where only the light rail and streetcars are free. A side effect of this is that it should also speed up bus services (slightly) as short distance passengers switch to rail and only passengers who wish to travel beyond the free travel zone will now use them, reducing bus stop dwell times within the free travel zone.

In some towns and cities an alternative way of doing things sees the operating of dedicated higher-profile free services whilst everything else charges as per normal.

Click the speaker symbol or here to download a 150kb soundclip (named Calgary.mp3) which was sourced from a video clip and is of a 'next station' announcement that also tells passengers that the free fare zone ends at the next station.

Scratchcard.

Some cities use scratch card tickets which are not valid until the passenger has scratched over the sections for the day, date, times etc. Of course, if they make a mistake (ie; get the date wrong - a simple but common error) then the card is effectively voided. And the money wasted. Experience in Melbourne, Australia, showed that scratch card tickets offer much potential for fraud (very easy to use unvalidated) and are incompatible with electronic gates which require an ability to 'read' a ticket before allowing its holder to pass.

Pay before boarding.

In South America some cities speed up their 'bus rapid transit' (BRT) services by requiring passengers to pay their fare when arriving at the bus stop, so that when the bus arrives they can board it without the usual delays. In some cities (such as Curitiba, Brazil, as seen here) they use these visually distinctive high-platform street-based 'tube-stops' which are served by buses equipped with folding ramps which provide level access with the high level stop platform.

For many years some Asian cities used stored value tickets which featured magnetic stripes on to which a certain monetary value would be loaded by the transport operator. When using these tickets the cost of each journey would be deducted as the passenger left the exit ticket barrier. To prevent problems the last journey could usually be made irrespective of the value remaining on the ticket, which the exit turnstile would then retain (this also helps reduce litter). Often these were plastic tickets which once 'spent' would be 'reprogrammed' for re-use.

These stored value tickets also allow(ed) for different fares to be charged at different times, as some places (for instance, Hong Kong) charge higher fares for travel in the peak hours.

Advances in technology have made this ticketing system ever more popular with transport operators, albeit with a significant change in that the monetary value is now held as an electronic purse on silicon chips.

Many cities planetwide have already or are looking at introducing radio-frequency contactless smart card tickets which store both travel tickets (typically as electronic tokens) and cash value in the form of what is often called an electronic purse (or e-purse). To make these tickets more attractive to the general public their e-purse function is sometimes integrated with other services, such as purchases at confectioners, paying for telephone calls or even paying for car parking / road usage tolls. This saves people from the (claimed) hassle of carrying loose change and small amounts of cash. It also results in the creation of an electronic "paper trail" so that a person's every movement and even their smallest financial transactions can be recorded.

About Smart Cards.

The use of plastic cards as methods of payment is already well known, but until recently these cards have always required physical contact for the transaction to be completed. At one time this was by inserting a plastic card and multi-part carbon copy form into a special mechanical machine which copied an imprint of the numbers and other information which was slightly proud of the cards' surface. Monetary values, date of transactions and customer's signature would then be filled in using a pen. However as time progressed the use of machine readable magnetic stripes were introduced to plastic cards and even later the cards were equipped with a 'chip' that has open electrodes on the top so that it can be read by specialist card reading terminals. RFID cards represent the 'next step' in the use of plastic cards payment systems as the transaction is enacted using radio waves / without physical contact (hence the label 'contactless') although - so far - the cards still need to be located within an inch or so (about 3cm) of the base station for the transaction to be successful.

As with smart cards with contacts, contactless smart cards do not contain a battery. Instead, they use a built-in inductor to capture some of the incident radio-frequency interrogation signal, rectify it, and use it to power the card's electronics.

Typically transport smart cards are the same dimensions as pre-existing plastic credit / debit / charge cards, even though the active equipment within the card is usually so small that it could be contained in just about anything, including mobile telephones, key fobs, imitation keys which double-up as USB flash drives, soft toys, articles of clothing - or for those want it, just under skin inside the human body.

The receipt conundrum.

Electronic tickets only create electric (ie: virtual / non physical) 'paper' trails, which is great for reducing paper consumption but less appreciated by business travellers (and anyone else) who need paper receipts to use as part of expense claims. Although it is usually possible to print out paper logs of recent journeys / other transactions made using the smart card, a new problem has become apparent because typically these logs detail every journey / transaction, and for reasons of privacy and 'need to know' some people do not want their employer to know their every movement. Such as when they used a prepaid 'ride-at-will' transport smart card ticket to visit a head hunter or for private journeys in the evening after work - even though such may not have cost the employer anything extra. In a domestic situation a wife might become very concerned about her husband's activities if she learns that he has been frequenting a certain locality without her knowing, when in fact he is just sourcing a secret wedding anniversary gift and would rather not be forced to explain his travels until the day itself. This could wreck marriages.

The latter scenario is already technically possible, as some stores add RFID chips to their products as anti-theft devices. These are supposed to be removed / deactivated when the goods are paid for, but when forgotten the mere act of carrying them out of the store is known to activate the theft alarm. Similar technologies with an ever greater reading range are expected to be introduced for 'road vehicle pricing' using RFID tags to trace every vehicle's movement. Who is to say that the road pricing system will not also read transport RFID cards, if only to gather data on who is passing through...?

Higher tech ticketing enforces rules - rigidly!

The introduction of RFID ticketing is usually hailed by the transport operator as a way to introduce new conditions of carriage (ie: rules) which passengers must obey and another way to enforce ticketing rules which previously had not been enforced (or widely disregarded) because they had been 'less easy' to enforce. In most cases the net result is that some passengers end up paying more for their journeys - although sometimes this is actually the 'correct' price. An example of this comes from London, where passengers using paper period tickets with magnetic stripes could travel from a station in zone 4 through zone 3 & 2 and back to another station in zone 4 whilst only paying fares for zones 3 & 4. They were wrong for doing this but since the paper ticketing system only checked that the ticket was valid at that station (ie: did not know their stations of origin or arrival, so could not work out the route followed,) so therefore when passing through the ticket barriers their tickets were seen as valid and they 'got away with it'. But, since the new RFID ticketing has been designed to note stations of departure, arrival and permitted routes between them, so these passengers found themselves no longer able to pass through the ticket barriers in the way they had previously done. They now have to buy the correct tickets for their journey!

Higher tech ticketing can degrade the travelling experience.

An example of where RFID ticketing degrades the travelling experience is that in many towns and cities there where there are 'open' stations (ie: without either ticket barriers / gates or staff checking everyone's tickets as the pass through) season ticket holders have been able to walk through the station at their convenience - the only requirement being to actually have the ticket in their possession whilst travelling. With trams they could board by any door and unless checked by a roving ticket inspector they too kept their season ticket in their handbag / pocket / wallet. Now many transport operators are using RFID ticketing as excuses to introduce the requirement that it be 'read' at the start and end of each and every journey, with penalties (of one type or another) for failing to do so. This applies even when the station does not have ticket gates and both when boarding and alighting from buses or trams - even though there is not usually any financial reason for requiring this. It simply represents a way of keeping tabs on people.

Another way in which services can be made slower is that because it always remains the passenger's responsibility (liability / duty) to ensure that their card is properly read when they board and alight, so as they pass the card readers some passengers will stop for a second or so in order to visually verify that all is well. Whilst doing so other passengers may be delayed. When using smart card readers at the end of journeys in London I often stop to put on my reading glasses, so that I can double check that a proper 'read' has been made - but because London's buses have flat fares so this is only necessary at railway stations and as a result does not delay the service.

As this illustration demonstrates, these smart card tickets can be read without physical contact. This can make life much easier as there is be no need to fumble and remove it from a wallet / purse.

This image has been sourced from S-VHS-C videotape and the larger clickable version is a little fuzzy.

Clicking the projector icon or this link will download a 9 second video clip named 'RFID-Ticket320.mpg' showing the action being described.

Hong Kong and Octopus.

Launched in 1997 the first location to widely adopt RFID contactless smart card ticketing was Hong Kong.

Here the system is marketed under the Octopus label, and although originally intended as just an upgrade on the Mass Transit Railway's (MTR) stored value ticketing system as described above it has grown in scope and usage so that in addition to being accepted on virtually all of Hong Kongs' public transports it has become a widely accepted payment and personal identification system which can be used at over 253 different commercial and other organisations including convenience stores, self service outlets (eg: vending machines) conferences and exhibitions, recreational facilities, as access control cards in residential / office buildings, for school administrative functions, to pay at parking meters / car parks, and more...

The Octopus card is so named because it originally joined together payment systems for 8 types of transport, emulating the 8 legs of an octopus.

There are two main types of Octopus card (On-Loan and Sold), and two less common types (the Airport Express Tourist and the MTR Airport Staff). On-Loan cards are issued for usage in day-to-day functions, primarily being for fare payment in transport systems. There are four types of On-Loan cards, with the first three based on age and different amounts of fare concession, and each of them being a different colour. These are Child (pink), Adult (yellow), Elder (jade green), and Personalised (special design comprising of all other colours). Initially there was a blue student card too, but in 2005 these were withdrawn in favour of Personalised student cards. With the exception of the Personalised cards, On-Loan cards are anonymous and no identification is required for the purchase of these cards. If an owner loses a card, only the stored value and the deposit of the card are lost. Prices for the cards vary according to type, and include varying amounts of credit to enable immediate use.

The multi coloured Personalised card is available on registration. The name and, if desired, photograph of the holder are imprinted on the card. These can function automatically as a Child, Adult, or Elder card by recognising the cardholder's age stored on the card, hence accounting for different concessionary fares. Student status Personalised cards are available to full-time students in Hong Kong aged between 12 and 25. These cards are automatically issued to students who apply for student concessionary privileges. In addition to all the functions of ordinary cards, the Personalised variant can be used as a key card for access to residential and office buildings. If lost then Personalised Octopus cards should be reported as such to prevent unauthorised use and minimise any possible financial loss. In this way liability will only be for any loss arising from unauthorised use of the card within six hours after the loss report. The deposit plus financial value on the card (after six hours) are then refunded, less a HK$30 card cost and a HK$20 handling fee.

Visitors / tourists staying less than 14 days can buy a special Octopus card which includes the cost of using the airport express railway, 3 days of unlimited travel on MTR railways plus HK$50 cash stored value. These are not available at the vending machines - visitors will find it is cheaper and easier to purchase these at the special kiosk near the exit to the express railway. There are two variants, offering either one or two journeys on the airport express railway, with the latter journeys (only) being valid for 180 days from the date of purchase. Note that users may be required to produce an air ticket showing their arrival date in Hong Kong and passport to prove their visitor status. As with all Octopus cards these include the cost of a deposit which can be refunded when leaving Hong Kong - although many visitors like to retain their cards as a souvenir or for use during the next visit.

Sold Octopus cards are sponsored and branded souvenir cards which are frequently released by Octopus Cards Limited. These cards are sold at a premium, have limited or no initial stored value, and cannot be refunded, but they can otherwise be used as ordinary cards.

The MTR Airport Staff Octopus card is for staff of Hong Kong International Airport and AsiaWorld-Expo, a convention centre close to the airport, for commuting at a reduced fare between the airport and MTR stations via the Airport Express. This card is available upon application via the company for which that a staff member works.

In addition to credit card sized cards, it is possible to buy various types of wrist & pocket watches, mobile phone covers, wristbands and key fobs which function as anonymous Octopus cards.

Using Octopus.

When travelling on the MTR network using an Octopus card many fares are often between 5% and 10% cheaper than ordinary fares paid in other ways. Plus bus services also often offer discounts or other special offers.

The maximum value which an Octopus e-purse can hold is HK$1,000. If the (financial) value on an Octopus is positive (ie. HK$0.1 or above) but insufficient to cover the full cost of the next transaction it is permitted to incur a negative value of up to HK$35, which will be re-covered when the card is reloaded. However an Octopus with zero or negative value cannot be used until it is reloaded. Once loaded the value is valid for up to three years. After that time the value can be reactivated when it is next reloaded.

There is also a frequent user loyalty scheme called Octopus Rewards.

With Octopus not only is it possible to spend money almost anywhere, but it is possible add value to the e-purse almost anywhere too - not only at MTR stations but also at establishments such as large-chain fast food establishments and local (neighbourhood) grocery stores. To make life even easier for Octopus users, some financial institutions offer automatic Octopus AAVS (Automatic Add Value Services) whereby a person can register their Octopus card number with the bank / financial institution and then whenever its financial value reaches zero, a negative balance or when its remaining plus the maximum negative value is insufficient to settle the full cost of the transaction it will be automatically topped up with HK$250 - with the funds coming from a designated bank account or credit card. Octopus e-purses can be automatically reloaded in this way once a day. Many participating credit card issuing banks or companies also give bonus points or cash rebates for AAVS transactions. Some financial institutions also offer this service for up to 3 other people aged 12 or above holding an Octopus card.

For the convenience of visitors from Hong Kong a few retailers in Shenzhen and Macau also accept Octopus, although it only possible to add value to Octopus cards within Hong Kong.

Glitches

Although electronic purse systems are generally very secure it is worth noting that when Octopus first started (in 1997) there was a smart university student who found a way to add-value to it "for free". Also, in February 2007 it was found that when customers added value to their cards at certain self-service add-value points located at MTR and KCR stations, their bank accounts would still be debited even if the transactions had been cancelled. A few months later (July) it was announced that following an investigation 15,270 instances of wrong transactions had been traced back to 2000, with over HK$3.7 million having been incorrectly deducted from people's bank accounts. Furthermore, the it was added that there were possibly more instances from before 2000 but as transaction data is only kept for seven years so it was impossible to be sure.

Dating from 1997 Octopus is so 'old' that it predates all international standards regarding electronic smart cards. So therefore it does not comply with them. This represents a typical scenario for those who are amongst the first with something new. Whether this will prove to be a severe handicap in the longer term remains to be seen.

For more information visit the Octopus (English language) website at http://www.octopuscards.com/eng/index.htm (link to an external site which opens in a new window).

Elsewhere in Asia.

Many many cities in Asia now also use smart cards on (some of) their public transports, indeed too many to mention them all. But two stand out as being of special interest.

Singapore, the city state which pioneered road pricing, has started a move towards merging road pricing and transport smart cards so that the same cards can be used to pay for them both.

Like many cities, Singapore requires that all passengers have their smart cards read at both ends of their journeys, which for buses means both when boarding and alighting. Unofficial reports by a possibly disgruntled user placed on Wikipedia suggest that some bus passengers have been experiencing overcharging problems which are being attributed to card readers that sometimes take as long as five (5) seconds to activate when a bus stops at a bus stop, so that often passengers will have alighted from the bus thinking that because their smart cards are touching the card reader as they alight they are being charged the correct fare - when they are not. As with all other cities, it always remains the passenger's responsibility (liability / duty) to ensure that their card is properly read when they alight from the bus.
Information source (link to an external site which opens in a new window)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EZ-Link#Criticisms

Public Transport, Road Toll Payment & ID Card Integration.

In Malaysia the Touch'n Go or TnG smart card is also used to pay for road tolling and here too the e-purse can also be used to pay some (eventually all) public transport fares. In addition the e-purse can be used at some other locations, such as convenience and fast 'food' stores, leisure destinations and car parks, although the latter usually pass on the commission fee onto card users, resulting in users paying 10% more. TnG usage can be viewed online, although it takes three days from date of transaction before the data shows up on a person's e-Statement. Fax records are often available more quickly. TnG cards can only be used to pay for adult transport fares. The are no versions for senior citizens, children, or handicapped.

Malaysia is noted for being the first nation where personal ID cards feature an integrated smart card. These cards, which are known as MyKad, were originally intended to have four functions, being:-

• Identity card, including biometric information (fingerprints) and photograph,
• Driving licence,
• Internal Passport in Malaysia which is also accepted at several neighbouring countries - although a conventional passport is still required internationally,
• Storage for health information.

However, four further applications were added before or during its initial release, although minimal publicity means that most of these functions are still not widely used:-

• e-cash, (e-purse) intended for low value but high volume transactions,
• ATM integration,
• Touch 'n Go, the toll road and public transport payment system - which explains the relevance of MyKad to this page,
• Digital certificate, commonly known as Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) - this is only supported by the 64Kb smart card version which was introduced in 2002

The extensible design of the card may be leading to functionality creep. Further applications envisaged by the government include:

• Frequent travellers' card
• A merge with the Payment Multi-Purpose Card ('PMPC'), giving the MyKad credit and debit card functions that will pave the way for other financial uses.

Readers may be interested to read that the MyKad ID cards also include information on race and religion (on the chip) with the name of at least one religion being printed in large letters (for easy identification) on the front of the card too. As well as the holder's unique 12-digit personal identification number they also include a code for their place of birth - code No. 87 has been allocated to the United Kingdom and Ireland.

In Malaysia it is a crime punishable by heavy fines and three years jail for a person to leave home without their ID card, and it is also crime for any official except those specially and explicitly authorised to confiscate or otherwise withhold a person's ID card. Security guards etc., may ask to see them but are legally required to return them immediately. Even friends or relatives hiding an ID card for a prank are committing an offence.

RFID Tickets in Europe.

As in Asia there is an ever increasing number of European cities which accept smart cards on (some of) their public transports, and for space reasons this page only looks in depth at one of them.

One of the first European cities to embrace RFID smart card ticketing was Moscow, which introduced them in the late 1990's. In 1999 they replaced the existing token-based fares system and in 2008 magnetic stripe tickets were also withdrawn, making Moscow the first transport system to operate solely using contactless automatic fare collection system outside Asia.

Moscow uses the same RFID system as the Dutch and London systems detailed below.

Because of privacy concerns regarding public transport smart cards being used by the transport operators (and the authorities) to track the movement of individuals in Finland the Data Protection Ombudsman has prohibited the transport operator YTV from collecting such information, in spite of YTV's argument that the owner of the card has the right to get a list of journeys paid with the card.

RFID Tickets in Holland (The Netherlands)

The way smart cards are being used in Holland is (so far) unique, because rather than being just a town / city specific or transport operator specific system the Dutch implementation mimics and expands upon the pre-existing paper "Strippenkaart" (strip ticket) system which can be used for local journeys virtually anywhere nationwide, and once complete will include longer distance rail travel too. Known as the OV-chipkaart (Public Transport Chipcard) this smart card system is being run by a privately owned corporation as a self-financing business , which perhaps makes it more expensive and less beneficial than systems where city-specific cards are used.

Holland is also looking to introduce distance-based road pricing, with rollout of the system starting in 2012. As yet the technology to be used and possible compatibility with the OV-chipkaart remains unknown.

There are several types of OV-chipkaart.

The simplest version is the disposable OV-chipkaart which is made out of cardboard and meant for one-time use only. This is primarily aimed at people who rarely use Dutch public transport - which also includes tourists on short visits. Depending on location disposable cards are sold with a range of different pre-loaded travel 'tokens'. By way of example the list of options can include a single return journey, a one-day pass to all trains in the country, or a three-day pass to all public transports in one city. After use these cannot be reloaded and should be thrown away - although some people may wish to retain them as receipts or souvenirs and transport ticket collectors will instantly recognise their future nostalgic value. The disposable card can only be used for travel products and does not feature an electronic purse.

The Anonymous OV-chipkaart is a semi-permanent re-usable smart card aimed at people who travel more frequently. In addition to travel 'tokens' it can also store an electronic purse. This type of OV-chipkaart is transferable (ie: can be shared between family members, friends, etc.,) - although only one person can use it at a time. However it cannot be used for discounted travel, monthly or annual season tickets. Anonymous OV-chipkaarts are sold at station ticket offices and from vending machines and are available for travel immediately.

The personal OV-chipkaart is dedicated to one person and includes a photograph and the date of birth of the holder. Because of this it can be used by a passenger who is entitled to cheaper or zero rate fares (eg: children aged between 4 and 11, students, senior citizens or holders of discount cards). This is also the only type of OV-chipkaart which can hold a monthly or annual season ticket, and can be stopped if lost or stolen. Another feature is that the electronic purse can be set to automatically top up its balance when it drops below a certain level. With these cards the keeping tabs of the holder's every movement becomes a realistic proposition.

Anonymous and Personal OV-chipkaarts always remain the property of Trans Link Systems (TLS), which is a company that was created by the five largest Dutch public transport companies to implement a single payment system for public transport within Holland. The public can either source OV-chipkaarts direct from TLS (from the website) or through the various private or municipal transport operators. In all cases however TLS only sell the right to use their products, and on the basis that at any time the card holder's right to use it can be revoked - which effectively means be denied the ability to travel on public transport (except with a disposable card). The individual organisation which sells the OV-chipkaart determines its price.

TLS have a public assistance telephone helpline but in the time honoured way it charges premium rates.

If an OV-chipkaart needs replacing, perhaps because of loss, theft, or technical problems the organisation from which it was bought will decide how much to charge for the replacement. Anonymous and personal OV-chipkaarts can be returned, and subject to a minimum of €5 the value of the electronic purse refunded. However there may be additional handling fees and the purchase price might not be refunded.

Using cash to add value to the electronic purse is free, although some locations charge if using credit / debit cards - especially for low values. No interest is paid on the value of the OV-chipkaart e-purse.

Limited Life

Both anonymous and personal OV-chipkaarts need periodic replacing, which effectively means buying new cards. Anonymous cards expire after 4 - 5* years; personal cards are valid for 5 years. This timescale has been determinated by the expected thermal, electrical and mechanical 'durability' of the material from which the cards are made, when subjected to what has been determined as 'normal' day-to-day use. The cost of replacement cards will depend on the charge set by the transport provider through which it is bought. As yet it is too soon to be sure how things will 'pan out' and it remains to be seen whether people replacing life-expired cards will be offered the replacements at discounted rates. Perhaps a lot will depend on how much fuss the Dutch people create when the present cards start expiring en masse.

*The reason for the slight timeframe difference is unknown, however this is what the website says!...
http://www.ov-chipkaart.nl/allesoverdeov-chipkaart/kostenenopladen/tarievenlijst/.

Using the OV-chipkaart.

As with other RFID transport smart cards the OV-chipkaart requires placing on (or very near) a specialist card reader at the start and end of all journeys. The Dutch call this checking in and checking out. Passengers with season (or other pay-once ride-at-will) tickets are also required to check in and check out at the start and end of every journey, which many will find a nuisance when passing through 'open' stations where there are no ticket gates and mere possession of a valid paper ticket used to suffice. Financial and other penalties are being used to force these passengers to check in/out - see below. One concession seems to that students who are entitled to free travel do not need to check in/out.

Passengers using the electronic purse feature would have had to validate tickets anyway, so especially at the start of the journey they will just do it in a different way. They will also have to get used to a different style of fares calculation (see below) and checking out at the end of their journey. Because e-purse journeys are priced using an initial boarding charge failing to check out can work out somewhat expensive - see below.

Incomplete Transaction Charge.

Whether using a season ticket or the e-purse passengers who fail to check in or check out incur an incomplete transaction on their card. Cards which incur 12 incomplete transactions in a fortnight are disabled. To get them restored requires a visit to the local transport operator's sales and information desks. Passengers who are used to stations without ticket gates and especially at the end of their journeys often forget to check out may find it 'less hassle' to always try to use paper tickets - or when that option ceases ordinary single / return tickets on disposable OV-chipkaart cards.

Distance-based Fares. Bye Bye Free Travel Periods.

The paper-based strippenkaart charged fares based on zonal regions, with passengers cancelling the required number of zones from the paper ticket plus one extra. They then had a time limit to complete their journey during which they could travel freely within the zones. So it was like buying a ride-at-will ticket valid for set period of time.

The e-purse ticketing system uses a very different fare scale which is based upon distance travelled plus a fixed basic rate. Every journey is chargeable and the freedom to travel within a fixed time limit is no longer allowed. For city or regional transport the basic rate is set nationwide but the actual rate per kilometre is set by local governments in mutual agreement with public transport companies. Passengers who need to interchange to complete their journey must check out and then check in on every transport they use, and providing this is done within 35 minutes they are not supposed to be charged a further basic fare. This time period might be too short in some areas, especially in rural areas if the bus to which a person is transferring only runs hourly.

There is also a boarding rate, which at the present time for urban travel in cities such as Rotterdam is €4.00. The Dutch mainline railway has set its boarding rate at €20.00. This is charged when the passenger checks in and then when they check out the boarding rate - less the actual cost of the journey - is reimbursed. People who forget to check out end up being charged the full boarding rate. To check in successfully an OV-chipkaart must have sufficient balance - at least €0.00 - in the e-purse - even if there is a valid travel product (like a season ticket) on the card. A card with a zero balance can only check in once as it will then go negative and the e-purse will need reloading before the card will successfully check in again.

Early indications suggest that 2% of passengers are failing to check out, which is providing the transport operators involved a tidy cash bonus - its like winning an intermediate (ie: middle) prize on the lottery... easy money!

Another aspect of the distance based fares system is that if a person is travelling from a bus (tram) stop served by several routes, with any of them being suitable for them to use to reach their destination but one of them following a different, more direct route than the others, then the fare for the journey will vary depending on which transport the passenger used. So, if the more direct route only operates Monday - Friday daytime, then passengers who travel in the evenings and at weekends will pay higher fares. The difference may only be a few Euro cents, but passengers dislike being financially penalised for things which are not even within their control.

The e-purse aspect of the OV-chipkaart is still in its early days and the various public transport companies retain the right to apply different terms as time progresses. It is assumed that this would be done in agreement with local governments.

Free Platform Tickets

Especially for longer distance journeys non-passengers often like to walk right up to the train their friends / relatives are travelling on so as to be able to wave them goodbye or welcome them if at the destination station. The OV-chipkaart includes a platform ticket function whereby no charge is made when a person checks in and then within 20 minutes checks out at the same station. If a person is longer than 20 minutes they are charged just the 'base' fee.

Passengers in Amsterdam must be careful when using platforms where the metro and mainline railway benefit from cross-platform interchange and shared 'fare paid' areas. This is because the two transports use different OV-chipkaart barriers and readers. The GVB ones for the metro are by default closed and the NS ones for the mainline trains are open. What remains unknown is what happens if a passenger just wants a train to the next station and will take whichever comes first!

Problems and Significant Fares Hikes!

This section contains several links to external sites which open in new windows.

The implementation of the OV-chipkaart has been riddled with problems. The cost of the project is proving to be massively more expensive than originally anticipated, but at this stage it is too early to even attempt a final figure.

The Dutch people were promised that the introduction of the OV-chipkaart would not see fares rise - but in Amsterdam the former basic charge for travelling even a few stops on a tram has soared from €1.45 (€1.60 if bought on the bus or tram) to €2.60. This is because the ticket they are sold is a one-hour ride-at-will ticket, so is a different product. In addition, railway fares have increased because return tickets have disappeared for OV-chipkaart users - instead they are forced to pay for two singles, which is a more expensive option.
Information source: http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2010/01/public_transport_prices_under.php.

In August 2009 newspaper reports talked of 50% of the ticket machines breaking down on a daily basis.
Information source: http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2009/08/transport_smart_card_machines.php.

Despite the intended multi-operator integration so many transport companies have developed their own system and fee structure that passengers are faced with a complex system of charges which costs them money. For example, people changing trains from the mainline NS Dutch railway to a privatised Veolia train have to pay a second basic fee because the two rail companies have different systems. The same applies to passengers using single tickets bought on Amsterdam's trams when changing to privatised Connexxion buses.
Information source: http://www.dutchnews.nl/news/archives/2009/11/labour_mps_complain_about_tran.php.

Socially-Exclusive Activation Routine Deters People From Travelling On Public Transport

People who have difficulty understanding present-day technologies and / or who do not use the Internet are finding themselves being disadvantaged because some activities (such as activating a personalised OV-chipkaart) must be done online. First a person must create an account at the OV-chipkaart website, then they need to make a 'purchase' from the webshop, with the item being bought called activate my chipcard. Then they must tell the system where they wish to 'collect' the activation, which will either be a ticketing machine or transport company service desk. The first blog linked below details one person's experience of trying to use their card on the railways, and having to activate it before being able to do so. They also complain that the confirmation email which they are supposed to have received within an hour actually took a day to arrive. The second blog linked below also talks of senior citizens finding the whole process to be so user unfriendly that they have given up using public transport. It is too difficult. The simple option of going to a customer service desk and having all this done for a person is not offered.
Information sources: http://gray-um.com/tag/ov-chipkaart/.
http://www.uselog.com/2010/01/dutch-public-transport-chip-card-system.html.

Long-term Data Storage!

Electronic travel records of people's movements using both public transport with the OV-chipkaart and private motoring distance-based user toll information are all being stored for seven (7) years. This will help with any issues related to possibly incorrect charging years after the event. However this is probably not the reason why such data is being held.

Civil liberty campaigners are concerned that because the travel records can be accessed by the police, judicial system, tax service, etc., so these organisations will find such data to be veritable goldmines of possibly incriminating information, with probably innocent people being seen as guilty until proven otherwise.

The official mantra may be that only criminals will have something to fear, but who wants a knock at the door at 5am in the morning because electronic records show that they just happened to be near the scene of a major crime?

It should be noted that in many parts of Holland there still remain some other ways to pay public transport fares, especially bus fares, as outside the big towns and cities some local bus companies still sell paper based tickets which are accepted on their own services only.

Elsewhere globally the list of towns and cities using RFID smart card ticketing systems is increasing, especially in the more technically advanced nations, and already the list is too long to name them all. However what is happening in New Zealand may be of relevance to Britain - especially towns and cities where the same on-street competition between bus companies is to be found.

Wellington, New Zealand.

New Zealand operates a deregulated bus system where the bus companies compete against each other for passengers, much like Great Britain outside of London and Northern Ireland.

In Wellington the RFID ticket follows the nautical theme of Hong Kong and London (see below) and is known as Snapper.

Snapper's cards come in several variants and colours; Snapper Red is for adults and secondary school children and Snapper Green is for primary and intermediate school children. Children using a Snapper Green automatically receive child fare discounts on some bus services. Snapper Green can also be used to buy items from shops where Snapper is accepted, including some school tuck shops.

As well as normal credit card sized cards which are normally kept in wallets and cost NZ$10 Snapper is also available in smaller versions which can be kept on keyrings or hung from lanyards and mobile phones. In addition to Snapper Mini (NZ$15) which is red and Snapper Mini.Jr (NZ$15) which is green and duplicate the credit card sized versions in intended users there is also the Snapper Sprat (NZ$20) which is an extra tough / robust small Snapper card and the Snapper USB (NZ$40) which a user can plug in to a computer's USB port to check their balance and top up using the special My Snapper computer software. These smaller Snapper cards all come with an elasticated hanging cord.

Other items also available from the Snapper shop include a Snapper Holder (NZ$3.50) which features a ring that allows a credit card sized Snapper card to be attached to a key ring or lanyard without having to punch a hole in it, and a Snapper (NZ$4.50) branded Lanyard. (All quoted prices include GST - goods and services tax)

Once a Snapper card has been purchased either funds need adding to its e-purse or some other type of travel ticket needs adding; then it is ready to use.

Feed Me, Feed Me, Feed Me Now!

With Snapper being named after a fish / a living being it is perhaps not surprising that adding monetary value is known as 'Feeding', although the term ' top up' is also used.

There are several ways to feed a Snapper.

• Doing so at a Snapper retailer or Snapper service centre costs 25 cents per top up. The fee covers the cost of the retailer providing the top up service and associated bank charges. When topping up at a retailer the minimum top up amount is 1 cent and payments can be made by cash, debit card and at some locations credit card.


• Doing so at a self-service Snapper kiosk using EFTPOS (debit card) is free and the minimum top up amount is 1 cent. Note however that the kiosks are a very rare breed - at the time of this update (November 2011) the website listed just five (5) kiosks in Wellington plus one in Auckland, in a girls school to which the public are not admitted.


• The third top up option involves either using a Snapper USB or buying a Snapper Feeder (NZ$40) USB dongle which plugs in to a computer and using the free software downloaded from the Snapper website. This software is available in Windows, Apple Macintosh and Linux variants. When used it establishes a secure connection which is outside of web browsers (although of course an internet connection is still also required). Topping up online using a Snapper Feeder or Snapper USB and a credit card is free, but the minimum top up amount is (NZ$10). Although the Snapper Feeder costs to buy a household would only need the one, no matter how many Snapper cards are held by the family members. Parents can update their children's Snapper cards in the evenings from home, rather than enduring the hassle of finding an open local shop during precious family time.

The maximum monetary value which a Snapper can 'eat' is NZ$300.

Snapper's e-purse is accepted to pay fares on all trolleybus and some motorbus services within Wellington, at railway station ticket offices and at a growing list of retail establishments. It can also be used to pay ferry and taxi fares, although most taxi companies charge an electronic transaction fee which varies from operator to operator.

Passengers using Snapper must tag-on at the start of their journey and tag-off at the end. To indicate a successful tag or 'read' of the RFID smart card a green circle illuminates on the card reader and a beep is heard (two beeps for children and concessions) and at the same time the system automatically work outs the correct fare. On buses tagging-off can be done at either the front or the back of the vehicle.

Since June 2009 some bus companies have given a 20% discount on adult fares paid for using Snapper. One bus company also offers discounted transfers to other buses on its network. Passengers who do not tag-off do not receive any of these benefits and depending in bus company may be charged a full fare as if they rode the bus from one end of the route to the other end.

Snapper the whole family in one go!

When boarding a bus if the lead passenger advises the bus driver before tagging-on then one Snapper card can be used to pay for up to five passengers, who can be a mix of two adults and three children. But do remember to tag-off afterwards, otherwise all five users will not benefit from any discounts and may even be charged a full fare!

Snapper is a commercial product, controlled by a wholly-owned subsidiary of Infratil (a major New Zealand business,) who also control NZ Bus, who own the former Stagecoach operations in New Zealand and have a near monopoly of the buses in Wellington - except in the suburbs of Mana and Newlands where an incompatible smart card system is used.

Registration of Snapper cards is optional. If done the benefits include online account access and transaction history, plus greater protection for a Snapper which swims free from its owner and becomes lost - or was stolen.

IOU

If there is insufficient money on a Snapper cards's e-purse when tagging-off, or a passenger fails to tag-off, or a passenger travels outside the area covered by a Snapper travel pass and an extension fare is charged which is greater the value stored on the e-purse, then something known as an 'IOU' is incurred.

IOU's are easy to resolve - just top up the e-purse, and then the next time the Snapper card is used to tag-on the IOU is repaid.

However travel passes will not work on Snapper cards which have an uncleared IOU.

There is more information about Snapper on their website at http://www.snapper.co.nz/. (Link to an external site which opens in a new window).

RFID Ticketing in Britain.

Smart card and RFID ticketing systems are being introduced in Britain too. For London with its regulated transport system it was relatively easy for TfL to enforce the use of smart card technology on the transports it directly controls, although getting the mainline railways to join in has proven to be more challenging. After all, why should they invest in something which they saw could actually disbenefit them financially and then was found to not even be compatible with what they are planning for themselves? The financial comment refers to the ability of the electronic ticketing to help determine modal usage in a far more accurate way than was previously possible, with that information then being used to accurately and fairly apportion the 'pot' of money created from sales of the Travelcard season tickets between the various private transport companies depending on how many people actually use each operator's transports, with this potentially resulting in some companies having their share of the 'pot' reduced, whilst others receive more.

Outside of London the deregulated nature of public transport and the fear of the Governments' Office of Fair Trading crying foul / claiming that a 'big business cartel' which is against the public's best interests might be being formed has made the creation of anything but operator-specific smart card systems very difficult. As it is, deregulation had allowed individual transport operators to all-but 'kill off' the former integrated paper ticketing systems in areas such as Tyne & Wear.

However in some areas the local governments have successfully introduced smart cards which several bus operators accept, even though the bus operators remain commercial competitors. For instance, in Cheshire, where the Cheshire Travelcard is administered by Cheshire County Council in partnership with participating bus companies. These are obtainable from the County Council by filling in an application form and supplying a passport type photograph. In addition to various season tickets these cards have an e-purse which offers a 10% discount on cash fares

Several bus companies have introduced their own smart card systems, with the Plymouth CityBus Freedom Card being an example of just one. As with the Cheshire Travelcard this is a personalised card with the user's photograph, and can be used for both e-purse and period tickets. The bus company also uses these cards to gather passenger details and bus-usage data, for the purpose of ensuring that their services meet passenger needs and travel patterns. It says so in the small print - which frequently people do not bother to even look at.

Nottingham is credited with having Britain's first smart card ticket, and although renamed this still exists - and can be used on the trams too. One of the options includes a novel form of season ticket where passengers buy blocks of non-consecutive days of travel (3, 5, 10, 20, 100), so if a person works just a few days a week then they will receive some of the benefits of a season ticket. The savings range from 6% - 34% compared to paying cash fares, although the savings are even greater with normal period tickets. All types of easyrider Citycard are personalised with the user's name; many also have their photograph as well. Holders can also use their cards for some local council services, such as library rental, and free swimming. Students of the Nottingham Trent University (NTU) can also use their university ID cards on Nottingham City Transport and the NET tram. Students can also use their cards as an e-purse, and receive 10% off in NTU cafes. Included in the other bus companies which operate in Nottingham is Trent Barton Buses who have their own and incompatible Mango smart card. These are obtained by opening an account with the bus company. There is an £3 administration fee. Mango features an e-purse which offers its users a 25% discount on normal fares. There is a daily maximum charge of £8.00 if the Mango card is used before 9am or £4.60 if only used after 9am. Because fares are distance based (using GPS satellite data) so passengers must remember to touch off at the end of their journeys, or they will be charged as if they had travelled to all the way to the buses' destination. The minimum top-up amount is £10.00, with the e-purse holding up to £250. Users must allow up to 24 hours for top-up data to reach their cards. Likewise journey data takes a day before it is visible online. Lost, stolen etc., cards are stopped at midnight on the day this is reported to the bus company, after which stored value can be transferred to the replacements (less £3 admin fee). Cards are valid for up to two years after their last use for travel. During this time they can be returned for the stored value to be refunded. After two years of non-use they expire and the stored value is lost.

A few links where more information may be sourced - they all lead to external sites and open in new windows...
http://www.eweekeurope.co.uk/news/government--smart-ticketing-could-save-cash-and-carbon-1645.
http://www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/transport_and_roads/public_transport/bus/travelcard.aspx.
http://www.plymouthcitybus.co.uk/freedomcard.asp
http://www.nctx.co.uk/fares/easyrider/easyrider.asp
http://www.trentbarton.co.uk/fares-and-tickets/mango.aspx

Because the Government is in favour of electronic ticketing systems it has decided to help 'kick-start' their introduction in the largest English conurbations, these being Greater Manchester, West Midlands, Tyne and Wear, Merseyside, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Nottingham, Leicester and Bristol. The chosen method was to invite the relevant Public Transport Executives / local governments to bid for a share in a Transport Investment Fund (TIF), which is a 'pot' of taxpayer's money that has been allocated to transport investment. Because of devolution it is for the Scottish, Welsh and N. Irish to make their own arrangements via their respective Parliaments / Assemblies.

However, by using a bidding process it means that there is no guarantee of success. At a time when the nation's coffers are already beyond threadbare there are those who would rather different - less competitive - ways could be found to decide how the funds are shared out, as the bidding process is in itself expensive, requiring the bidders to seek the services of highly paid consultants to write the bid... and as a result so already there is less money to actually get the ticketing systems installed.

One specification requirement that the Government wants to see adhered to is that all local systems are compatible with the integrated system also being rolled out on the railways. Then, at least in theory, there will be one e-ticket - which may be plastic card shaped, or carried on key fobs, or in USB flash drives, (in the right hand / subdermal?) etc... - that can be used nationwide.

ITSO: The e-Ticket For The Entire Nation.

To ensure that all future RFID smart card ticketing systems here in Britain are compatible a technical standard known as ITSO has been created.

The acronym ITSO stands for Integrated Transport Smartcard Organisation and is also the name for a non-profit sharing membership organisation whose objectives are to maintain and develop the ITSO Specification, operate and manage an interoperable smart media environment, and facilitate and support development of interoperable smart ticketing schemes that comply with the ITSO Specification.

ITSO was established as a result of discussions between various British Passenger Transport Authorities concerning the lack of standards for interoperable smart card ticketing. These discussions grew to include other authorities, transport operators and Government. Today ITSO membership covers the breadth of the Transport arena including transport operators (both bus and train operating companies), suppliers to the industry, local authorities and public transport executives. Supported by the Department for Transport, ITSO has links with major transport industry organisations and established smart card schemes in the UK and overseas.

ITSO refers to the format of data held on the card. How it is used is a different matter. So, whilst in theory it should be possible to use one smart card ticket just about anywhere - especially in mainland Britain and possibly Northern Ireland too - experience with the multi-operator Dutch OV-chipkaart leaves a big unanswered question mark. Admittedly the Dutch are still rolling their system out - and although hoped not 'teething' issues are always possible - nevertheless ITSO needs to be able to be at least as versatile and robust as paper ticketing systems, as well as cope with passengers who forget to touch in / out, people travelling on split tickets who do not actually alight from the trains, and much more...

One of the first ITSO systems was the Yorcard pilot scheme which was used in South and West Yorkshire. It was commissioned by the Department for Transport (DfT) and a joint venture between South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive and the West Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (Metro). The pilot's aim is to gather information to inform the DfT's work on multi-modal smart cards. It operated on ten school bus services and seven regular bus services in Sheffield. It began in September 2007, was extended to some rail services in December 2008 and ended in October 2009.

At the present time (February 2010) ITSO compatible ticketing is slowly being rolled out in a few areas, such as in Cheshire, and on the 'free travel' passes given to senior citizens. As time progresses the rollout may overtake the information on this page, although periodic attempts will be made to keep up to date.

In September 2010 a government Transport Minister (Norman Baker) revealed that the government would like to see a single national transport smartcard, which would cover trains, trams and buses nationwide.

There is an ITSO website at http://www.itso.org.uk/ (link to an external site which opens in a new window).

The one major British smart card ticketing system which does not conform to ITSO standards is the London Oyster system. This is because it was developed and launched 'too soon'. This is unfortunate, but represents a typical scenario for those who are amongst the first with something new (as with Hong Kongs' Octopus, as detailed above). In September 2010 the Department for Transport confirmed that it has been making payments to Transport for London so that Oyster smartcard readers can be upgraded to accept the future national card. This implies that Oyster will almost certainly be retained for travel solely within London, whilst visitors from elsewhere in Britain will be able to use their national card. However whether both types of card offer identical ticketing choices (range of ticket features) and fares remains to be seen.

It Is Important to Keep the Civil Liberty & Human Rights Advocates Happy.

The various Civil Liberty & Human Rights groups have expressed very strong concerns about the probability of big brother using electronic smart card ticketing systems to keep tabs on people. Their worries would be easily mitigated if there was a legal requirement for travellers to be given the option of impersonal smart card tickets which charge the same fares as the personalised variants but - like paper tickets - do not record the holders' identity.

For passengers using discounted travel schemes, such as the railcards offered to people aged 16-25 and over 60, a solution would be a requirement to follow present procedures and carry a separate authority card, with fares purchased at the discounted rate being electronically placed on both the smart card and 'behind the scenes' computers without any personal identifiable data.

Whilst local / urban ticketing is fairly well suited to smart card based solutions, some of our longer distance mainline railway operators have reservations as to whether this would represent their optimal way forward. Their concerns are based around issues such as ease of passengers reading the data themselves and ensuring that they travel on the correct trains and - if they have fixed seat reservations - sit in the correct seats. Some of them see better solutions in mobile telephone e-tickets and print at home tickets, both of which require electronic ticket gates at stations to be specially adapated to be able to read them.

Whilst self-service ticketing systems can be very convenient for ordinary people and offers transport providors many financial benefits, it is hoped that at all times it will be remembered that some passengers will prefer to still use ordinary paper ticketing solutions, whether bought online (and then posted to their home / collected from a nominated station) or, especially for those people who find machines confusing - which includes both self-service machines and computers - bought by telephone or by visiting a station and interacting with a real person located in a ticket office.

An issue which has already been identified in Holland is the question of what happens when a person travels with 'split' tickets. This is where a passenger buys two or more tickets which are valid for part of the journey but when used 'back to back' allow a longer InterCity journey to be made at an overall fare which is cheaper than when just the one through ticket has been bought. With smart cards a passenger who reaches a station where they stop using one ticket and start using the next ticket is supposed to touch-out the old ticket and touch-in the new ticket. But of course this is not possible when a person is staying on the same train and it would be iniquitous to penalise such passengers for going into default by not touching out and then in again. Paper tickets do not face this scenario and apparently here in Britain ATOC (Association Train Operating Companies) rules require that passengers using split tickets are allowed to stay on the train at boundary stations. In theory this ruling could create complications for passengers mixing journeys with paper and electronic RFID tickets; already this situation has been reached for journeys that are partially in London (using the RFID Oyster system) and partially outside London (using a paper ticket), although it could be that because the London ticketing operator is not an ATOC member so therefore the rules do not apply to any tickets paid for using its ticketing 'products'.

Why do passengers buy split tickets? For example because they began their journey in the morning at a time when full fares are being charged and bought several tickets so that they could take advantage of off-peak fares for the sections of their journey which are eligible for off-peak tickets.

Another issue which needs resolving is how the system will cope with passengers who have multiple tickets loaded on a smart card (for instance a local season ticket and an open [ie: not train / date specific] InterCity ticket) as the system may not always be clever enough to know which ticket is being used for that journey.

Bradford: Where Smart Cards come with BusMiles to encourage Customer Loyalty.

Some British privatised transport companies are also enthusiastic for smart card ticketing because it will facilitate the easy introduction of customer loyalty schemes for regular passengers. One city where such a scheme is already operating is Bradford, West Yorkshire, where the smart card is known as FirstCard and the promotion is marketed under the name (or brand) of BusMiles. The loyalty scheme offers 1 BusMile for every £1 the smart card's registered owner credits to it, with the registered owner being able to convert 100 BusMiles into £1 stored value.

The FirstCard is free to obtain, all that the transport company require are the user's name, address and date of birth. If obtained from the local transport authority travel shop then proof of identity is also required (a utility bill showing a name and address should suffice).

FirstCard holders benefit from discounted bus travel when purchasing an Annual, Monthly or Daily pass. Or they can use the e-purse feature and use it as an easier way to pay bus fares. Despite being registered to one person it is permitted to share a FirstCard with friends and family, so that they may all take advantage of the value on the card.

The registered holder may, at any time, apply for a refund of stored value on the FirstCard, for which an administration fee of 10% is levied. Any remaining BusMiles will be converted to stored value at the normal rate. For season tickets only remaining full calendar months can be refunded, with the value being calculated proportionally on the basis of the price of an annual travel pass. Again, there is a 10% handling fee.

A lost, stolen or defective FirstCard must be reported by the registered owner; a replacement FirstCard will be issued after 3 full working days. During this time all bus fares must be paid for in the normal way and will not be refundable. This is because the unauthorised use of the FirstCard is only stopped at the time of issue of its replacement. BusMiles on a lost, damaged, stolen or unusable FirstCard cannot be transferred to a replacement FirstCard. However, BusMiles existing on the original FirstCard on the date of issue of the replacement will be converted into stored value (at the normal rate) and added to the replacement FirstCard.

For more information visit the bus company's website at http://www.firstgroup.com/firstcard/ (link to an external site which opens in a new window).

London's RFID Oyster - a valuable Pearl or worthless lump of Grit?

In London the electronic smart card tickets are marketed under the name (or brand) of Oyster.

Oyster cards can be used with both standard season tickets and as an e-purse. Unlike Hong Kong the Oyster e-purse has very few uses apart from paying for travel. (Dateline February 2010) To increase flexibility it is possible to load Travelcard and / or BusPass season tickets and use the e-purse PAYG monetary value feature on a single Oyster card. When used the system will always look for the appropriate period ticket first, and only charge the e-purse if nothing else is available.

In London the term pay as you go (PAYG) is usually used for the e-purse feature where the correct fare is deducted as appropriate for the journey. Sometimes the term PrePay is also used, but this seems to be slowly slipping out of favour, perhaps because it too accurately reminds users that they are effectively paying in advance. If an Adult Oyster card is only used for PAYG then it can be shared with friends and relatives - providing that only one person is using it at a time. The maximum e-purse amount that can be loaded on to an Oyster card is £90.

Oyster cards being used for weekly Travelcards and PAYG do not need registering, and providing that whenever adding extra monetary value to the PAYG e-purse the transaction is made using cash then they will be as anonymous as paper tickets. However, because plastic cards leave 'paper trails' anonymity will be lost if credit / debit cards are used for any transaction which involves an unregistered Oyster card. Unregistered Oyster cards will not be stopped or replaced if lost or stolen. This means that the e-purse value will be lost (used by someone else).

Oyster cards containing Travelcard season tickets of one month or longer need to be registered with the user's name. Registering a card will enable the user to view a list of recent journeys online and to use 'auto top-up' of the e-purse. It also allows lost or stolen Oyster cards to be stopped and facilitates a transfer of the tickets and / or e-purse to a new card.

Oyster cards for senior citizens, children and other users who are entitled to special rates must also be registered, and in many cases will include a photograph of the user too. Not all of these tickets allow the use of the e-purse - for instance, the 'Freedom Pass' given to senior citizens is already accepted throughout London so there should not be any need to use PAYG. More information is available in the publicity given to the people who are entitled to these tickets.

Within London over 3700 local shops (known as Oyster Ticket Stops) sell Oyster cards, as do Underground / London Overground railway stations, some DLR stations, the Internet, and other locations - which may just comprise of a coin operated self-service vending machine. Self-service machines often include some PAYG e-purse value in the purchase price. Most of these locations will also add 'top-up' value - at stations there is a £5 minimum value if done at a ticket office and a 10p minimum value if done at a touch-screen ticket machine (the latter being the smallest / lowest value coin these machines accept). At one time passengers buying Travelcard season tickets would often be given an Oyster card free of charge, however nowadays when obtained in London all passengers are charged a deposit of £5.00 (prior to January 2011 the deposit was £3.00) which is normally fully refunded if the card is returned - providing that the e-purse is not in debit - otherwise only the balance will be refunded.

For the convenience of visitors from outside of London, Oyster cards can also be bought on some aircraft and trains travelling towards London, at most of London's main airports, via the Oyster website (they will post overseas) and from travel agents in 25 countries planetwide. Sometimes these retailers charge a different fee than the usual amount. Unlike ordinary Oyster cards, the Visitor Oyster cards usually include sufficient PAYG e-purse for more than one day's travel, so can be used immediately.

Depending on the amount (ideally 'very little') and how it was purchased e-purse values may be refunded in cash or by other ways, which may be by a cheque sent via the post (this may not be very useful for overseas visitors - although they could always retain the Oyster card for a future visit, or give it to a friend about to visit London). To avoid fraud (for instance: in case it was stolen) e-purse values added to an Oyster card which were paid for using credit / debit plastic cards are never refunded in cash. Lost or stolen Oyster cards may attract a handling fee to replace.

Whilst Oyster cards can be used on virtually all rail services in London only some mainline railway stations sell them or offer the facility to 'top-up' (ie: add monetary value to the e-purse). In addition, some mainline railway stations still issue paper Travelcard season tickets and for longer durations may also require passengers to have photocards. Photocards require a passport photograph and have a serial number which to prevent other people using them is written on the paper season ticket.

Note that unlike many cities overseas, there are no additional or handling fees for a top-up whether paying by cash, automated systems from a bank account or using a plastic card. So if an Oyster Ticket Stop tries to charge a fee (especially if the top-up is being made using a credit/debit card) then this should not be paid and an official complaint should be made to the Oyster helpline.

Touch In, Touch Out.

To use Oyster passengers must ensure that their ticket is electronically read by an Oyster card reader for every journey. This is known as touch in and touch out. It is the passenger's responsibility to ensure that it is read properly. The card reader will indicate whether this has been done - in general a green light or a ticket barrier which opens means that all is well. For PAYG users many journeys require a minimum amount of e-purse value to be on the card to start the journey - the amount will depend on the type of transport being used.

On the buses and trams PAYG passengers must touch in at the start of every journey but as these transports charge a flat fare there is no need (or facility) to touch out. Special conditions apply to tram users at Wimbledon station - see below.

When a passenger who is using PAYG touches in at the start of a railway journey a deposit of up to £7.40 (exact amount depends on where they are and which railway company controls the station) is deducted from the PAYG e-purse value on their Oyster card. When they touch out at the end of the journey, the deposit fee is refunded, minus the appropriate Oyster fare for the journey. Passengers who fail to touch in run the risk of being seen as travelling without a valid ticket, which can lead to a penalty fare being charged, or even their being taken to court for fares evasion.

Oyster card readers are to be found on buses, tram stop platforms, on DLR stations before the "fare paid" area, and combined as part of the ticket barriers at railway (and underground) stations. Where stations do not have ticket barriers they will have stand-alone card readers. Some interchange points between the mainline railways and the DLR / underground also have stand-alone card readers (ie; without barriers) which depending on ticket type and journey may need to be touched before interchanging - even if it means missing a connecting train (or tram). To ensure that they are charged the correct fare for their journey PAYG Oyster card users must also remember to touch in/out at stations where the ticket barriers are open.

Whilst passengers with weekly or longer season tickets are recommended to touch in/out at all times, including free-standing card readers and if a ticket gate is open, as a general theme they do NOT have to do so. An example of when touching is an absolute requirement is when travelling to / from stations in zones outside those covered by the season ticket and paying the balance using the stored PAYG value. This includes passengers making journeys which can follow several different routes through different fare zones and who are choosing to travel via a cheaper route - even though it may be slower - and who will be using the special pink 'route validator' card reader to tell the Oyster system that their journey followed a specific route. (See 'Different routes attract different fares' below).

Passengers with season tickets must have their Oyster card with that season ticket loaded on it in their possession at all times whilst travelling - accidentally leaving it behind (ie: at home) is not accepted as an excuse. If they do not then they are risking being treated as someone trying to avoid paying their fare.

Special requirements apply to tram passengers using Wimbledon station using PAYG or a BusPass. This is because the trams (which use the same fare scale as the buses) call at a platform inside a railway station where the trains all use railway fare scales. To ensure they are charged the correct fare tram passengers starting their journey from the street will therefore have to touch in twice - first to pass the ticket barrier (a process which registers an entry to the station) and then on the tram platform - a process which changes that station entry to a tram journey. Following these procedures will also ensure that PAYG fares capping is applied correctly, if applicable. Failing to follow this procedure will result in the passenger being charged the 'maximum cash fare' - this also applies to passengers who have an otherwise valid BusPass.

Tram passengers travelling TO Wimbledon using PAYG or a BusPass must remember to touch in at the start of their tram journey, because if they do not then when they touch out at Wimbledon to leave the station they will be treated as if they made a railway journey but did not touch in when starting that journey and charged the maximum (underground railway) cash fare.

PAYG users intending to interchange from the mainline railways or underground to the tram must touch out using the card readers on the platform of arrival and then register the tram fare by touching in on the tram card reader on the tram platform. PAYG users interchanging from tram to underground or mainline railway just need to touch in using card readers on the mainline railway or underground train's platforms.

BusPasses are not valid on the trains, so passengers using these should be using a different ticketing solution if interchanging to / from a railway service. If that is PAYG then they follow the PAYG procedures detailed above

The former system whereby all passengers using the Jubilee Line at Stratford had to pass through ticket gates dedicated to its platforms - even if they had just passed through a barrier to enter the station from the street or were interchanging from the Central Line or DLR is no more, as that gateline has been taken out of service and removed.

There is a twofold policy of enticements to encourage people to switch from paying in cash to Oyster.

• Virtually all underground, DLR, bus & tram single tickets are cheaper if paid for electronically using the PAYG e-purse rather than by cash. The potential savings can be more than 50%! The aim is to speed up bus journeys and reduce ticket queues at station ticket offices. For this reason visitors from outside London may find that it is very financially advantageous to never pay cash - and instead either buy a BusPass, Travelcard or use Oyster PAYG.
• There is a 'capped fares' policy whereby people who make multiple single fare journeys in one day and pay for them electronically using the PAYG e-purse will be not be charged a daily total that is greater than the cost of a paper one-day ride-at-will Travelcard. (Bus passengers have their fares capped at less than the cost of 4 bus fares). A 'day' is considered to be a 24 hour period between 4.30am and 4.30am the next morning. To take advantage of fares capping a traveller must ensure that they touch in/out when commencing and ending every railway journey and when starting every bus/tram journey - even if they have already reached the cap on that day. Otherwise they will be charged the maximum single fare (as described above) and the cost of the journey will not be included in the capping. This applies at all times - even if the ticket barriers are 'open', or if there are just card readers instead of ticket barriers. If touching in/out is not possible (for instance, if the power grid fails and nothing electronic works) then they must contact the Oyster helpline.

Time Based Fares.

The concept of different peak and off-peak fares is not new, and it is also used with Oyster PAYG. Peak fares are charged between 06:30 to 09:30 in the mornings and 16:00 to 19:00 (4pm to 7pm) in the evenings on Mondays to Fridays, except excluding public holidays. At all other times the cheaper off peak fares are charged. Special arrangements apply at a few outer-suburban stations with the peak fare time ending slightly earlier - publicity should be available at the stations concerned. PAYG peak / off peak fares are determined by the time the passenger touches in. This means that if a passenger wishes to catch a train timed to leave a station after 9:30 (am) then they should not touch in before that time, or they will be charged the peak fare. Fares capping work with time based fares to always charge the lowest fares, so that if the total cost of a day's travel journeys is less than the peak cap then the system will charge separately for any journeys taken during peak hours, plus the off-peak cap. As from January 2011 passengers starting their journeys in the outer zones who travel by many (not all) of the rail services into London Zone 1 during the evening peak are charged off-peak fares. This reflects that they will usually be travelling against the main peak flow.

PAYG Benefits: Freedom from fixed ticketing.

The introduction of the Oyster system has led to a revolutionary change in fares and ticketing within London, significantly reducing the time it takes passengers boarding buses to pay their fares / have passes 'read' and reducing queues at station ticket offices.

PAYG means that many of the advantages of period tickets are now available to everyone - even infrequent visitors - who on arrival at stations just walk straight past the ticket sales area to the ticket barriers, where they touch in and then continue directly to the platforms.

The many ways to add PAYG value to the Oyster card e-purse has resulted in a significant reduction in numbers of people using staffed ticket office windows, although this does represent a double-edged sword in that it can result in staffed ticket office windows being closed with transport employees losing their jobs (or redeployed on other job functions). In March 2010 it was reported that...

• Ticket office use is down 50% compared with five years previously - it is presumed that this refers to staffed ticket office windows / does not include self service machines.
• Only about one in twenty (20) journeys start with a visit to the ticket office - although the information does not state whether this is staffed ticket offices only or includes using self-service ticket vending machines within the wider ticket sales area,
• 80% of all journeys on the Underground are made using Oyster cards - although this data does not separate season ticket holders from other passengers - the significant issue being that the former already travelled without needing fresh tickets for each journey.