Published on the 19/01/2011 | Written by Newsdesk
An Auckland Transport deal sees bus, rail and ferry users’ one step closer to an integrated ticketing system…
Chief executive David Warburton says a participation agreement with Infratil subsidiaries NZ Bus and Snapper Services will see interoperable equipment installed in buses early this year.
Users of North Star, Waka Pacific, Go West and Metrolink will be able to get a single smartcard for use across all brands.
Installations in rail and ferry services will follow in the lead-up to the Rugby World Cup.
“This will be linked to the launch of a travel product specifically for visitors to Auckland which will make public transport an attractive option during the period of the Rugby World Cup,” Warburton says.
Auckland Transport is responsible for services including roads, footpaths, cycling and parking.
The new agreement supplements one already in place with key supplier Thales New Zealand.
“Auckland Transport anticipates these agreements and the open architecture of the core Thales system will encourage participation by other suppliers and providers, such as car parking, widening the scope of the project and ensuring Auckland commuters will receive a ‘transport card with benefits’.”
Thales country director Peter Beggs also welcomes the new partners. He says the system is designed to be open to third party involvement and is based on ones in Dubai and the Netherlands.
“This collaborative approach is a positive development in the delivery of a high quality and easy to use ticketing system for Auckland,” Beggs says.
Thales, a global provider of defence, security, transport and aerospace systems, will press on with developing rail and ferry solutions.
NZ Bus chief executive Bruce Emson says integrated ticketing is key to an efficient public transport system.
“Our customers and visitors to Auckland will see increased reliability of our services through improved boarding times.
We believe that our customers will rapidly embrace the benefits of Integrated Ticketing,” Emson says.
Snapper, a provider of integrated ticketing and instant small value payment systems, has issued about 150,000 cards in Wellington with 33 million transactions across 400 buses, 700 taxis and hundreds of retailers nationally.
CEO Miki Szikszai says Aucklanders will benefit from the simplicity and convenience of the product.
The Snapper system also provides journey data that can be used for planning.
