Muvo Card Lays The Foundations For An e-Ticketing Standard In South Africa

Muvo card lays the foundations for an e-Ticketing standard in South Africa

The successful rollout of the Muvo SmartCard marked the beginning of the modern era of e-Ticketing in the Durban region in South Africa. As part of the new infrastructure, the Almex Electronic Fare Collection system with ticket printer from the manufacturer Hoeft & Wessel was installed by Almex Transport Solutions (Pty) Ltd in all the regular buses of the Durban Transport and People Mover services operating under the eThekwini Transport Authority (ETA). In the lead-up, the Germany-based ticketing specialist had developed an innovative e-Ticketing solution based on EMV contactless credit cards from MasterCard together with the National Department of Transport (NDoT) and Standard Bank. The Muvo Smartcard replaces ordinary tickets and makes cashless ticketing possible. Cash as well as multi journey trips can be stored on the smartcard. The card and the associated back-office system thus become the foundations for the new Integrated Rapid Public Transport Network (IRPTN). In addition, the system can also be deployed in other regions in South Africa and across the globe.

“This is a great day for public transport in eThekwini. Today we welcome the future,” said the delighted head of the ETA, Thami Manyathi, at the official launch of the Muvo card.

 “In South Africa, the Muvo card is the first functional e-Ticketing solution based on the NDoT specification which, thanks to its system requirements, is suitable for broad deployment throughout South Africa. Apart from regular bus services, this can also extends to include the numerous taxis in the cities,” explains Stephen V. Lelyveld from Hoeft & Wessel partner organisation Almex Transport Solutions, which is responsible for customer relationship management in Southern Africa.  
 
The introduction of the new intermodal e-Ticketing system in bus transport companies in the Durban metropolitan region with a population close to four million is seen as the first step in the introduction of the this new standard throughout South Africa. For many South Africans, the distribution of the first 50,000 free Muvo card also represents the first encounter with a cashless payment system that does not require the passenger to have a bank account. One of the objectives pursued with the introduction of cashless ticketing is to boost safety. The country at the southern tip of Africa is thus introducing one of the most modern payment systems for passenger transportation worldwide.
 Hoeft & Wessel has developed an Electronic Fare Collection System for the innovative e-Ticketing system in South Africa. About 700 almex.optima electronic ticketing machines ETM’s were delivered to the bus transport companies of the eThekwini Transport Authority in the Durban metropolitan region. Additional orders for bus ticketing systems were received this year via the South African partner company Almex Transport Solutions.

The close and successful cooperation with our partners contributed a great deal to the on-time completion of this pioneering e-Ticketing system in South Africa. We therefore see good prospects for this new e-Ticketing system to become the de facto standard throughout South Africa,” said Michael Hoeft, CEO and founder of Hoeft & Wessel AG.
 
The IRPTN has adopted the SmartCard for its EMV contactless payment functionality. The card is issued by Mastercard. It features PayPass, a contactless payment function. This means that the system also supports payments by means of contactless cards when travelling by bus right from the start. The Muvo card functions as a kind of electronic wallet, allowing cash or ticket products to be loaded onto it at electronic Kiosk terminals. Tickets can then be bought and paid for via the standard chip and dip method at a Kiosk and used on board the bus by simply holding the card in front of the NFC/RFID reading unit.