Stagecoach Supertrams go ITSO smart in Sheffield

SUPERTRAM passengers in Sheffield are to benefit from smarter travel following the launch of Stagecoach’s smartcard ticketing scheme in the area.

The StagecoachSmart scheme - which is now live across the city's tram network - allows Supertram passengers to store their travel on an ITSO-compliant electronic card instead of using paper tickets.

Read the full article from ITSO here.

Manchester’s new smart ticketing will ‘get you there’

THE NEW smart ticketing scheme for the Greater Manchester area will be called get me there.

The name has been chosen to reflect how the combination of ITSO-compliant smart ticketing with the option to use contactless bankcards on Metrolink will make journeys by public transport easier, more accessible and more flexible, whether by tram, bus, train – or any combination of the three.

The Government, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and its local partners, including major transport operators Arriva, First and Stagecoach, are investing several million pounds in the scheme. The objective is that the ticketing system should keep up to date with the latest technology and provide an integrated system that in the future could be linked in to real time information: That way journeys could be planned and paid for ‘on the hoof’ using a smartphone or smartcard.

Read the full article from ITSO here.

Launch sees ITSO smart rail ticketing in London

THIS Summer will see a historic leap forward for ITSO smart ticketing when Southern Railway customers start using their smartcards to pay for journeys to Southern’s London stations.  Southern is owned by Govia, a joint venture led by Go - Ahead which brands its ITSO - compliant smartcard as ‘the key’.  The smartcard is currently  undergoing testing with a view to firstly processing weekly, monthly and annual season tickets, as well as point to point single and return tickets.

This will be the first use of the new ITSO - compliant ticketing infrastructure inside TfL’s (Transport for London’s) transport system which involves the tri - reader equipment capable of processing ITSO - compliant smartcards, bank and Oyster cards (ITSO on Prestige, or IoP).  

The key was first launched on a trial basis on Southern in September 2011 and has been gradually rolling out on all of Southern’s routes since then. April 17 saw it introduced to a further 17 stations, meaning it is now live at 88 out of 93 planned stations outside London.  Customers already load weekly, monthly and annual season tickets onto their cards for journeys outside London.  Summer will see 21 gated stations within London start to accept some Southern rail tickets on the key card.  These include Victoria, London Bridge, Purley, Peckham Rye and Sutton.

Read the full article via the ITSO website here.

TfL goes out to tender for ticketing

TRANSPORT FOR LONDON has issued an OJEU (Official Journal of the European Union) tender notice for its ticketing  and fare collection services beyond 2015.  The Electra contract is valued at up to £1 billion over ten years and is expected to be awarded in October 2014, with a start date of August 2015.  By then the ticketing system in London should be ITSO - compliant and accept integrated ticketing with the country’s rail network.  The contract covers the  maintenance and availability of some 20,000 pieces of ticketing and fare collection equipment, including machines on 8,500 buses, 1,900 ticket gates at London Underground and Overground stations, and 2,250 National Rail stations. It also covers 1,800 stand - alone ticket validators (including the Docklands Light Railway), 1,600 ticket machines, and 4,000 retail ticketing devices at Ticket Stops across London.

SCNF Members’ Meeting at PayExpo

SCNF members have been offered free places to the PayExpo conference this year.  We are hosting a members’ meeting on the first day so please email events@scnf.org.uk if you are planning to attend.

SCNF Member’s meeting – 14:20, 18th June

Chaired by Kevin Farquarson, SCNF Chair

Prepaid in Transport

With case studies from:

·         Kevin Farquharson of SCNF

·         Lindsay Robertson for ITSO

·         Mick Davies Chairman of LASSeO

·         Adele Wearing for Leicester City Council

On Wednesday, 19th June there will be a Transport Ticketing Summer Seminar at the same place. The audience will be European transport operators and local authorities

·        At 1.30pm to 2pm Kevin will present Matt Lewis of Centro who will talk about their smart ticketing scheme and Swift card plans

·        From 3pm to 4pm there will be a discussion moderated by Mike Burden of Consult Hyperion with the topic Contactless payment: encouraging mass user adoption in transport. Taking part in this discussion will be Steve Wakeland, Steve Howes of ATOC, Levente Nagy of the Centre for Budapest Transport, and Erbil Yurdakul of Bankalararasi Kart Merkezi (Turkish Interbank Card Centre)

This is a well attended event and not to be missed for anyone with an interest in Prepaid cards.  You can see the full agenda via the Pay Expo website.

Core Group Election 2013/14

We are now accepting nominations for our online core group elections for 2013/14.  If you would like to stand for election please email events@scnf.org.uk with your name, organisation and a short biography about you and the reasons why you wish to join the core group.

This is your chance to make the decisions about the forum's future and programme of events.

Would you like us to do things differently?  Would you like to see us cover a certain topic at one of our events?  Tell us!

The SCNF core group members are located all over the UK and are a mix of sponsor members and Local Authority members.  The local authority members make up most of the core group and we welcome those from varied backgrounds and levels of experience.  The core group has regular teleconferences to discuss event plans, current initiatives and forum growth and they come together at SCNF events if availability allows.

We are also accepting nominations for the posts of treasurer and chairperson so if you would like to stand for these posts please let us know.

The deadline for nominations is 5pm, Friday 21st June.

ITSO all aboard the Shields Ferry for the Pop card

THE cross - Tyne Shields Ferry is one of the first passenger ferries in the country to accept ITSO - compliant smartcard transactions.

Nexus, which owns and operates the Shields Ferry service, has fitted smartcard readers on its two ferries to accept smart payments using the Popcard.  The Pop card allows the holder access to Metro and Ferry travel in new ways, including online.

Travel products can be easily uploaded on to a Pop card at the new ticket vending machines at Metro stations.

Passengers will eventually be able to use their Pop card on a pay - as - you - go basis, and will be able to upload credit on to their card using their home computer, at local shops and at Metro stations. Pop card readers are already installed at Metro stations across Tyneside and Wearside, and the Shields Ferry has followed suit in a scheme that is transforming the way people access public transport in Tyne and Wear. Director of Customer Services for Nexus, Tobyn Hughes, said: “We believe the Shields Ferry is one of the first crossings in the country to accept ITSO compliant transactions. This is great for our passengers.

Read the full article via the ITSO website here.