A plan at the national level in India intends to put all buses, trains, rail, metro, ferry, taxis and even auto rickshaws under a common, contactless smart card.
The Indian government is considering the creation of a transit card that "will grant users access to the country's diverse modes of transportation with the wave of a single card." The "common transport card" would model the successful Octopus card in Hong Kong where in addition to public transit, card holders can make convenience store purchases and pay for virtually every other imaginable good and service.
Jonna McKone believes the creation of such a national scheme would benefit transit users:
"Whatever the technology, a few things are clear: contact-less payment that links directly to an account eliminates the need for cash and buying tickets, minimizes handling costs for transit operators, speeds up the on-boarding and off-boarding process, and eliminates the evasion of fares on such transit systems."
Thanks to Garrett Bradford
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