Ticketing and Concessionary Travel on Public Transport - United ...

Executive Summary
Memor<strong>and</strong>um from Transaction Systems Ltd, (TranSys) (TPT 19)
Transport Committee: Evidence Ev 123
— Transaction Systems Limited, (TranSys) is the consortium that designed, developed, maintains
<strong>and</strong> operates the Oyster smartcard transport ticketing system in London under the terms of the 17
year PFI PRESTIGE services contract that was signed in 1998.
— PRESTIGE has been an undisputed success. 7.6 million journeys every working day are made
using Oyster.
— From the passenger perspective, smartcards can deliver increased convenience <strong>and</strong> flexibility.
— For the operator, smartcards can reduce costs of ticket selling, improve security through reduced
cash-h<strong>and</strong>ling <strong>and</strong> provide better usage information.
— The experience of London shows that smartcard technology works <strong>and</strong> can help to reduce
passenger congestion <strong>and</strong> fraud. Savings from reduced fraud are extremely diYcult to estimate
accurately <strong>and</strong> depend upon the extent to which the operator wishes to operate a closed system.
However, the experience with gating on London Underground shows that revenue growth
immediately following introduction of the gates averaged about 10%.
— With the right policy direction from Government, TranSys believes an economically-viable
integrated smartcard ticketing system across Transport for London (TfL), National Rail <strong>and</strong> other
transport modes is achievable.
— For the bulk of passenger mass transit journeys in the UK, a smartcard ticketing system is the best
way forward for enabling operator integration <strong>and</strong> delivering benefits to the passenger.
Introduction
The TranSys consortium provides, maintains <strong>and</strong> operates the Oyster smartcard transport ticketing
system in London under the terms of the 17-year PFI PRESTIGE services contract that was signed in 1998.
The principal partners of the TranSys consortium are Cubic Transportation Systems (CTS) <strong>and</strong> Electronic
Data Systems (EDS) who are responsible, respectively, for asset provision <strong>and</strong> operational services. Fujitsu
<strong>and</strong> WS Atkins are also minor shareholders in the consortium.
The PRESTIGE-Oyster system is designed to be multi-modal <strong>and</strong> smartcards work across London’s
Tube, Dockl<strong>and</strong>s Light Railway (DLR), tram, <strong>and</strong> bus network, as well as on specified national rail services.
Users with travelcards (daily, weekly or monthly) can also travel on rail services within the Greater London
area in all the zones for which they have validity on their card.
The National Audit OYce report on Achieving Innovation in Central Government Organisations published
in July 2006 stated “The project was developed to time <strong>and</strong> to budget <strong>and</strong> has won several awards, such as
the New Statesman “Modernising Government” award (2004), the MCA award for technology innovation
<strong>and</strong> the PFI best Transport Award”.
The Oyster smartcard has been an unqualified success since its launch in 2002, <strong>and</strong> the Oyster card is used
by more passengers each day than any other smartcard system in Europe.
TranSys will be working closely with TfL over the coming months <strong>and</strong> years to achieve the shared vision
of integrated smartcard-based ticketing within the Greater London Authority (GLA) area.
TranSys’ responses to the Transport Select Committee’s questions are set out below, following the same
numbering as set out in the Committee’s terms of reference.
Integrated <strong>Ticketing</strong>
1. Is ticketing suYciently integrated across diVerent modes of transport <strong>and</strong> between diVerent geographical
areas?
1.1 No. However, the arrangements in London show that integration is possible across modes
(Underground, tram, buses, light rail, <strong>and</strong> specified national rail services) when there is a will to achieve it.
1.2 At present, the extent of ticketing integration varies within diVerent geographical areas, between
diVerent geographical areas, <strong>and</strong> across diVerent modes of transport. National rail tickets are integrated
between overground/mainline stations <strong>and</strong> through magnetic stripe tickets with London Underground.
1.3 However, outside of the London Oysterised area there is little integration with local bus services in
diVerent geographical areas, or with other forms of transport (light rail, metro). Customers are baZed <strong>and</strong>
irritated at the disjointedness of ticketing policy <strong>and</strong> possibly discouraged from using public transport by
the need to queue <strong>and</strong> purchase more than one ticket on multi modal journeys. If the government wishes to
encourage the use of public transport, whether it be bus or rail, to reduce car usage <strong>and</strong> meet energy <strong>and</strong>
emissions targets it needs to enable public transport with “a convenience factor”—get in <strong>and</strong> go—<strong>and</strong> then
provide the service <strong>and</strong> capacity necessary.