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| Saturday, February 21, 06:20:37pm | [ Login ] [ Contact Forum Admin ] [ Main index ] [ Post a new message ] [ Search | Check update time | Archives: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 ] |
| Subject: MTC, responsible for planning, financing and coordinating transportation programs in the Bay Area, estimated that installing TransLink equipment on every bus, subway car, ferry and train in the region will cost about $50 million. | |
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Author: December 2nd 2002-operation costs, estimated at $10 million annually, |
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Date Posted: Monday, April 07, 05:23:13am In reply to: Visa Cash Solution for Public Transportation Bill Powell San Francisco CA USALast modified: 01/24/2001 06:07:41 PM 's message, "San Francisco--seperate file." on Saturday, April 05, 01:49:34am http://eastbay.bizjournals.com/eastbay/stories/2002/12/16/story8.html ----------------------------------------------------------- From the December 13, 2002 print edition Transit agencies look to unify fare systemEric Young ----------------------------------------------------------- Public transit riders would no longer fumble for coins or transit tickets under a universal payment system being tested by the Bay Area's largest transportation agencies. ----------------------------------------------------------- But before the TransLink payment system can move beyond the test stage, transit executives must resolve difficult questions about the system's financing and governance. ----------------------------------------------------------- TransLink would be a significant unifying force among more than 20 public transit agencies in the San Francisco Bay Area. Each transit system has its own fares and payment methods, involving cash, tickets or passes, which are not compatible with other neighboring systems. ----------------------------------------------------------- TransLink, which uses an electronic scanner with a "smart" card the size of a driver's license, allows public transit riders to use one currency. The Translink system is being built by ERG Group, a European concern with North American offices in Concord. ----------------------------------------------------------- More than 3,000 Bay Area residents are testing TransLink on six systems – AC Transit, BART, Caltrain, Golden Gate Transit, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority and the San Francisco Municipal Railway – which together carry about 75 percent of the region's daily transit riders. ----------------------------------------------------------- Economic Snapshot ----------------------------------------------------------- Transit agency managers have begun regular talks with officials at the Metropolitan Transportation Commission on how to make TransLink a permanent payment option for transit riders. ----------------------------------------------------------- "The two issues are governance and who is going to pay what portion," said Mary Currie, spokeswoman with Golden Gate Transit. "That is what all the transit operators are at the table to discuss." ----------------------------------------------------------- MTC, responsible for planning, financing and coordinating transportation programs in the Bay Area, estimated that installing TransLink equipment on every bus, subway car, ferry and train in the region will cost about $50 million. MTC authorities said they expect to cover most installation costs through federal grants and state transportation funds. ----------------------------------------------------------- But operation costs, estimated at $10 million annually, likely would be shared by transit agencies, which are loathe to take on additional costs at a time when many are seeing declines in operating income. ----------------------------------------------------------- In addition, TransLink's governance must be finalized. Discussions so far have explored options including TransLink falling under MTC's direction with input from transit operators. Another option could involve transit agencies forming a new entity responsible for TransLink's oversight, said Randy Rentschler, manager of legislation and public affairs for MTC. ----------------------------------------------------------- Examples of shared payment systems are operating in the Bay Area now. A Caltrain monthly pass entitles users to free rides on SamTrans and VTA buses in certain areas, said Caltrain spokeswoman Jayme Maltbie. For TransLink to work, Maltbie said, revenue sharing among all Bay Area agencies must work as smoothly as it does between Caltrain, SamTrans and VTA. ----------------------------------------------------------- "If we're going to have a truly universal fair system, the only way to operate it is to make sure we're recouping our fares," Maltbie said. ----------------------------------------------------------- Young is a reporter for the San Francisco Business Times, an affiliated publication. ----------------------------------------------------------- [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] |
| Subject | Author | Date |
| be a time frame in much the same way as Sydney ie full implementation is 2006,18/11/2002 -- Cubics business modelFits in well with ERG's focus on clearing and settlementThe idea is to make San Francisco the hub for clearing and settlement-- Washington is settled through San FranSeattle 26/2/03ERG will use its San Francisco smart card Service Bureauto provide all of the required services -- card issuance,management,maintenance,clearing,settling transactions | The Venus contactless interfacecompliant ISO 7816EMV compatibleSan Francisco, Rome and Manchester | Monday, April 07, 05:28:27am |