Fare Collection Update
Looking at the future of fare collection.
These chips, developed by NXP Semiconductors, facilitate secure, contactless communication. These phones will also be able to be used at participating Jack in the Box restaurants.
Each participant initially has a stored value of $48 worth of BART rides. Once the stored value drops below $10, the NFC technology automatically reloads the phone over the air with another $48 of rides. The participant is automatically charged the discounted $45.
The smart card used by the Transport for London system, Oyster, that application has been added to the OnePulse card. It’s called a 3-in-1 card; it has conventional EMV credit card functionality, contactless payment functionality and the Oyster application so when the card is presented at a turnstile or to a bus, it looks like an Oyster card. When the bankcard is presented to the reader, it captures the credit card information and then the patron enters the system and it gets processed like a credit card transaction after the fact. deKozan says, “It’s basically a virtual transit card loaded on to the bank card.”
He also mentions that software can be added to the readers so that the readers conform with the bankcard standard. “Essentially what happens is when you present the bankcard to the reader, it just captures the credit card information and then the patron enters the system and it gets processed like a credit card transaction after the fact.”
Since its introduction in 2003, the Oyster smart card for the Transport for London (TfL) has had continual added benefits. TfL and TranSys, the consortium which delivers the Oyster smart card on behalf of TfL allows passengers contactless fare payment and contactless Visa technology.
After successful trials early in 2007, in September TfL launched the Barclaycard OnePulse, a 3-in-1 card that combines Oyster applications with credit card and cashless payment facilities. OneTouch contactless payment allows the purchase of low-cost items by simply touching the card on a special reader at various outlets in the city. The new card gives the passengers the ability to pay for low-cost goods and to pay for Oyster fares without the need of carrying cash.
Another partnership was in December when TfL partnered with iTunes to offer new users who sign up for the Oyster Auto top-up account, five free songs from the iTunes Store. Auto top-up allows users to manage their pay-as-you-go travel from their home or office. The technology continues to make riding transit and running everyday errands easier and more convenient for the riders.
