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Single ticket pilot imminent

By Leon Engelbrecht, ITWeb senior writer
Johannesburg, 23 Jul 2008

The Gauteng Provincial Government plans to introduce a single e-ticket for use aboard busses, taxis and trains as a pilot project within a "matter of weeks".

Public Transport, Roads and Works Department spokesman Alfred Nhlapo says planning is currently in an "advanced stage".

"We are just finalising it and will unveil [the scale and details of the programme] quite soon," Nhlapo says.

He adds that French and British experts have been assisting the province in designing the programme and the pilot scheme "may not be as small as you might think, which is why we are engaging the City of London."

Nhlapo says the pilot scheme will see busses, trains and taxis try a uniform ticketing system. The scheme will gradually be expanded and forms part of the city region's preparations for the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

The ticketing solution will also include the province's prestige project, the Gautrain. The Bombela Consortium that is building the train system last year contracted French company Thales to provide an e-ticketing solution for the high-speed train that would integrate into the bus network.

Nhlapo says the strategic aim of the project is to create a public transport system that is "reliable, affordable, safe, accessible and sustainable".

"A single ticketing system will ensure that public transport such as trains, buses and taxis provide a united public transport service for the community of Gauteng."

The scheme will also see the creation of a "fully functional public transport information call centre" and links into the province's Intelligent Transport Systems programme and the Gauteng Freeway Improvement Plan, that includes e-tolling the region's highways and providing CCTV coverage.

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