Oyster-card plan for travellers in region

Metro’s £7m plan to take its Oyster Card-style smartcard ticketing scheme forward will be considered by transport chiefs when they meet this week.

Transport bosses says the scheme, which it is planned will be introduced across the whole of the bus network in West Yorkshire, will mean fewer people having to pay cash for their journeys, which will in turn improve punctuality as the time it takes to board a bus will be reduced.

Metro, with local bus operators, recently made a successful bid to the Department for Transport for almost £5m to develop West Yorkshire’s smartcard network and the report to tomorrow’s West Yorkshire Integrated Transport Authority (ITA) Executive Board sets out how this money, along with some Local Transport Plan funding will be used.

It is envisaged the system will be introduced across the whole of the West Yorkshire bus network and eventually it is hoped that the smartcards will be used on trains as well.

When the scheme is fully introduced passengers will be able to charge up their cards with cash at a number of outlets including local shops, vending machines and online for journeys in the county and beyond. Some passengers in Keighley have been taking part in a pilot which has seen them swipe their smartcards to pay for bus rides, rather than having to pay cash to the driver.

John Henkel, Metro’s Director of Passenger Services said yesterday: “With Transdev Keighley and Arriva having already switched on their smartcard readers, and First currently testing their equipment, much of the West Yorkshire bus fleet will soon be smartcard enabled.

“While it is currently just senior, disabled and blind concessionary pass-holders who can swipe on to local bus services, we want to opening the scheme up to all bus users as soon as possible and the plan, which will be considered by members of the Integrated Transport Authority (ITA) Executive Board on Friday, sets out how we will achieve that.

“Establishing a smartcard retail network, equipping more vehicles and completing the development of the back-office technology, are the next steps to extending smartcard travel to all bus users, rather than just concessionary pass-holders, and eventually rail passengers as well.”

The cards can also show the concessions to which people are entitled.

Experience to date has shown that there have been a few concessionary card holders whose passes do not scan, due to a problem with the chips in individual passes. While those people will be able to continue using their passes by showing them to the driver as before, Metro is advising they take them to a Bus Station Travel Centre where they can be checked.

Faulty cards will be replaced but cardholders that have damaged their cards and made them unreadable will be charged for a replacement.

The report says: “The third West Yorkshire Local Transport Plan includes smart and integrated ticketing as one of the six ‘big ideas’ with the potential to have a transformational impact on transport services and usage.”

Some of the major bus operators are already equipping their vehicles with smartcard readers but Metro has said it is keen to ensure that the smaller companies are part of the new scheme as well. Almost 400 smaller operators’ buses would be fitted with smartcard readers.

To enable the system to be used on local train services, Metro has said the need for smartcard readers will be written into franchises for local rail services when they are renewed.

People applying for an English National Concessionary Travel Scheme Senior Pass can now do so online through Metro’s website. Details of how and when people qualify and a step by step application guide can be found at www.wymetro.com/TicketsAndPasses/seniorpasses

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