Smart play from Monitor WA

A small private company specialising in card technology has won a Public Transport Authority (PTA) tender worth more than $2 million for the provision of SmartRider cards – a ticketing system to replace train and bus MultiRiders.

Monitor WA’s cards will be launched across the Transperth network in late 2005.

Monitor WA sales manager David Wells said the cards contained an embedded computer chip and aerial, which would interact with a reading device on a station platform or bus.

Passengers will need to “tag on” at the beginning of their journey and “tag off” at the end by swiping the card at the reading device.

Unlike a MultiRider, which is discarded when its credit runs out, the SmartRider’s credit can be topped up through special machines at train and bus stations.

Transperth staff will carry portable readers to check passengers have tagged on and off.

When the passenger tags off, SmartRider will automatically debit the best priced fare from the card.

Mr Wells said commuters would be able to purchase a SmartRider card at machines located on transport platforms, while students would need the card to get concession travel.

“The card will replace the Transperth concession cards and stickers,” he said. “Schools are also making it an identification card and having student details printed on them.

“Parents can transfer money onto the card and that way kids can’t spend the money on other things. It means students don’t have to carry money on them at school.”

Mr Wells said Monitor WA’s understanding of schools and the methods for collecting the information required for the card were important factors in its contract win.

“We have a system and software in place that collects the school data, formats it and sends it back to us,” he said.

“We have ordered about 200,000 cards for WA school students and have printed about 80,000 so far.”

Monitor WA general manager Dave Ritchie said the card chip had an internal expiry date set, so a student’s concession automatically switched off.

“We were surprised to win the tender because we are much smaller compared to the other companies we were competing against,” he said.

“It was the first time we had pitched for a tender with the specifications this one had and we didn’t know how competitive we were.”