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| Subject: Washington Metropolitan Transportation Authority - SmarTripWMATA was the first public transportation system in the U.S. to adopt smart cards, launching a pilot program in 1999. In June, 2002, WMATA sold its 250,000th SmarTrip permanent rechargeable plastic smart card which holds up to $200.00 in fare value. | |
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Author: One third of WMATA Metrorail riders use SmarTrip cards regularly. SmarTrip will be expanded to parking, bus transit, and other regional rail service over a total of 17 transit systems. |
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Date Posted: Saturday, April 26, 10:17:08am In reply to: 's message, "  " on Tuesday, April 08, 04:10:35amhttp://216.239.57.100/search?q=cache:JUthKjKTpQMJ:www.apta.com/research/info/briefings/briefing_6.cfm+ERG+transit+systems%2Bsmartcards&hl=en&ie=UTF-8 Washington Metropolitan Transportation Authority - SmarTrip WMATA was the first public transportation system in the U.S. to adopt smart cards, launching a pilot program in 1999. In June, 2002, WMATA sold its 250,000th SmarTrip permanent rechargeable plastic smart card which holds up to $200.00 in fare value. One third of WMATA Metrorail riders use SmarTrip cards regularly. SmarTrip will be expanded to parking, bus transit, and other regional rail service over a total of 17 transit systems. WMATA Web site: http://www.wmata.com/riding/smartrip.cfm Source: APTA 2001 Rail Transit Conference Proceedings paper by C. Maxey & P. Benjamin. Click here for .pdf file. http://www.apta.com/research/info/briefings/documents/maxey.pdf ABSTRACT The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) has awarded a contract for bus fare boxes that will set the stage for a seamless fare system not only between the WMATA bus and rail systems, but throughout the Washington, DC - Baltimore, MD region. Customers will be able to use their SmarTrip contactless stored value smart cards for WMATA parking fees, and for fares for transportation on bus and rail systems throughout the region. A single SmarTrip card will be used regardless of the provider’s fare structure. Opportunities also exist for "automatic" transfer discounts and "lowest fare" initiatives, providing both convenience and security to the multi-modal customer. Today, WMATA customers have different payment methods and options. A WMATA metrorail trip requires a magnetic fare card or a SmarTrip smart card. A bus trip requires cash or a pass. Magnetic passes are used on the rail system, and passes are visually displayed on buses. Transfers are paper for rail-to-bus and bus-to-bus, and tThere are no bus-to-rail transfers. Parking can be paid by SmarTrip, prepaid monthly pass or cash. Other regional transportation providers have similar combinations of cash, magnetic fare and pass systems. This presents a challenge to the multi-modal customer who faces not only varying fare structures, but varying payment methods as well. WMATA has contracted with Cubic Transportation Systems of San Diego, CA for new bus fare boxes that include SmarTrip capability. Up to 1,622 fare boxes will be purchased for WMATA’s anticipated CY 2003 fleet size of 1,545 buses. The fare boxes will accept currency and coins, as well as payment by SmarTrip. Support equipment, including cash receiver vaults and computer system for fare accounting data, SmarTrip tracking and customer service is also required. The SmarTrip capability will be compatible with that already in use in WMATA’s rail system and parking facilities. The specification development and contractor selection was done jointly with the Maryland Mass Transit Administration (MTA). This joint procurement will allow MTA and twelve other area transportation providers to separately purchase compatible bus fare boxes and SmarTrip capability from the same vendor. They will purchase fare boxes or stand alone SmarTrip units for up to an additional 1,686 buses, together with garage support equipment. Expansion to commuter rail systems is anticipated in the future. The SmarTrip card is faster, easier to use, more durable and can store more value than other fare payment methods currently used. This convenience is being expanded regionally, from the WMATA rail system to the WMATA bus system, to the regional transportation agencies, and beyond. This multi-jurisdictional, multi-agency regional approach will enhance customer convenience in the Washington, DC- Baltimore, MD region. INTRODUCTION The key to gaining and keeping customers is customer satisfaction. The secret to keeping the transit customer satisfied is to give them what they want: clean, dependable, convenient service. But how convenient is "exact change only"? How convenient is transit travel when customers must use different methods and amounts of payment for different segments of their trip? In the Washington area, cash or a displayed pass may be required for bus trips, with a broad range of fares depending on the provider and the type of service. How can regional transit providers make fare payment more convenient for the customer? Fourteen transit agencies in the Washington, DC - Baltimore, MD region are contracting to provide their customers with a major customer convenience: a seamless regional fare system based around a common smart card. When the system is in place, transit customers will be able to travel throughout the region, using the services of a number of providers, with a single fare medium: the SmarTrip smart card used on the WMATA metrorail system. The card will be easier to use, faster and more durable than previous forms of fare payment. Automatic downloading of transfer discounts, purchase discount incentives and employer Seamless Fare Collection: Using Smart Cards For Multiple Multiple--Mode T Transit ransit T Trips rips Craig L. Maxey and Peter Benjamin Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Washington, DC Customer Service Innovations Track 1 - Customer Service and Marketing 2 transit fare benefits will add convenience to the card, as will an optional autoload feature that automatically adds value to the card when a predetermined minimum limit is reached. The ability to disable lost or stolen cards and restore the unused value will give customers added security. The linchpin of this regional system is the Regional Bus Fare Collection System contract recently awarded by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), used in conjunction with the WMATA SmarTrip smart card. WMATA will install SmarTrip card capability on its bus fleet to complement the card’s current use on the WMATA rail system and in the rail station parking lots. By itself, this will allow seamless fare payment by SmarTrip card throughout the WMATA system, whether the customer travels by bus, by rail, or by automobile to the rail station parking lots. However, the Regional Bus Fare Collection System contract also includes provisions to allow other transit providers to independently purchase functionally compatible equipment. This equipment will be either a complete bus fare collection system with SmarTrip card capability, or a stand alone SmarTrip processor system for each bus. The Maryland Mass Transit Administration (MTA) helped develop the contract specifications, and will purchase fare equipment under the contract. Twelve other local bus transit agencies are also planning to purchase equipment under this procurement. A Regional Customer Service Center will be established to insure reconciliation between where the fare value was purchased and where the transit service was provided. This Service Center will also handle SmarTrip card sales, card encoding and deactivation, establishment and service of point-of-sale locations and maintenance of point-of-sale equipment. Through the integration of the existing WMATA rail fare collection system, the Regional Bus Fare Collection System and the Smart Card Service Center, the SmarTrip smart card will become the seamless regional fare media throughout the Washington-Baltimore region. THE PARTICIPANTS WASHINGTON METROPOLITAN AREA TRANSIT AUTHORITY (WMATA) WMATA is a regional transportation agency created by compact by the Federal Government in 1967. It serves a 1,500 square mile area around Washington, DC which includes the District of Columbia and parts of Maryland and Virginia. Its Board of Directors is made up of representatives of those jurisdictions. WMATA provides both bus and heavy rail subway service. The current bus fleet of 1, 443 vehicles covers the entire service area, and the subway fleet of 762 rail cars serves a 103-mile system centered in the District of Columbia. Currently the system carries an average of almost 1.1 million passenger trips per day: 500,000 on the bus system and 600,000 on the rail system. EXISTING FARE SYSTEM Payment on the WMATA rail system is based on a distance-based peak/off-peak system, and can be made by magnetic fare card or SmarTrip card. Fare vending machines in each station are available to accept cash or credit cards for purchase of magnetic fare cards or for adding value to SmarTrip cards. Magnetic fare cards, SmarTrip cards or passes may be purchased at one of several sales centers, by mail or through the Internet. The bus system uses a flat-fare system, and payment can be made only by exact change or a visually displayed pass. Reduced fares are accepted for transfer trips from rail to bus and from one bus to other bus. Transfers from bus to rail are not available. Currently each WMATA bus is equipped with an electronic registering fare box that accepts the cash fares paid by the passengers, and keeps a statistical count of the number of fares paid and the total value of the money collected. The fare box also has a keypad to allow the bus operator to enter a tally of the number of passengers boarding the bus and either paying a reduced fare or displaying a flash pass. Each day, the money is collected from the fare boxes and is secured in a garage receiver vault for transport to the Revenue Collection Facility. The data is also collected from the fare boxes at the bus garage each day, and then uploaded first to the garage computer and then to the mainframe computer for further analysis. The use of SmarTrip cards with the new fare boxes will simplify this system by automatically calculating transfers and deducting fares when the card is passed over the target. Data will continue to be downloaded from the bus fare box daily, but cash handling will be reduced. A fare simplification program implemented by the WMATA Board of Directors in 1999 set the stage for a common fare medium to be used on both the bus and the rail systems by eliminating the bus zone fare system and establishing a flat fare system on buses. The distance-based fare structure on the rail system is facilitated by the customer passing through fare gates on both entry and exit. Bus Track 1 - Customer Service and Marketing Customer Service Innovations 3 passengers only pay on entry, however, which does not lend itself to automatic zone or distance-based fares. The flat fare system on buses does allow the SmarTrip to be used as the common fare medium, since the fare is deductable when the customer boards the bus. NEW REGIONAL BUS FARE COLLECTION SYSTEM CONTRACT A contract was issued on January 25, 2001 to Cubic Transportation Systems (Cubic) of San Diego, CA and its major subcontractor, GFI Genfare of Elk Grove Village, IL for the Regional Bus Fare Collection System. The contract will procure 1,622 bus fare boxes; 1,545 for the projected fleet size at the end of the contract in 2003, and 5% (77) spares. The fare boxes will be modern, state-of-the-art units that accept and validate coins and bills, and also process SmarTrip cards. At ten garages, the support equipment that collects, transfers and reports both physical cash and electronic revenue will also be replaced to provide a complete, integrated system. The smart card protocol, data and reporting system will be compatible with that used for the WMATA metrorail fare collection system. Concurrent with the installation of the fare boxes and support equipment will be integration of data processing from the new system to the WMATA mainframe computer system. The WMATA bus fare boxes will also house the smart card processor. The smart card processor in these units is Cubic’s Tri-Reader. The Tri-Reader will not only read the WMATA SmarTrip card (same as Cubic’s Go Card), but has the capability of being configured to also read ISO 14443 Type A and Type B cards in the future. This would provide the capability to read smart cards that may be introduced from other sources, and would allow WMATA to procure smart cards from various manufacturers. WMATA made the determination not to include magnetic fare card processing capability on the bus fare boxes, even though magnetic fare card payment is currently the mainstay of the rail system. The acquisition, operating and maintenance expense of including the magnetic fare card capability could not be justified in view of the phenomenal success of the smart card on the WMATA metrorail system. The Board of Directors, however, insured that provisions would be made so smart cards would be economically available to all segments of the customer population, and that the sales outlet network would be expanded sufficiently to make it convenient for all customers to purchase or add value to their smart cards. MARYLAND MASS TRANSIT ADMINISTRATION The Maryland Mass Transit Administration (MTA) operates an 850-bus fleet, a 35-station light rail system and a 14-station subway system in Baltimore, Maryland. MTA also supports five transit agencies that operate commuter buses in contract service, generally between Baltimore and Washington. The MTA bus fleet operates out of four garages. Peak ridership is approximately 250,000 boardings per day. The system utilizes a flat fare system, which accepts cash, tokens, paper tickets and visual (flash) passes. MTA expects to procure 850 bus fare boxes with smart card processor and magnetic card processor, and revenue collection and support equipment for their four garages. The transit agencies with the commuter buses will require 125 standalone smart card systems. These standalone units will be mounted adjacent to the existing fare boxes, and will allow them to participate in the smart card program. Garage support systems will also be provided, allowing communication with a central processing center for the appropriate allocation of regional revenue and transaction data. OTHER REGIONAL PROVIDERS Twelve additional regional bus transportation providers may also separately contract for equipment under the Regional Bus Fare Collection System procurement. They are: • Arlington Transit, Arlington, VA • Annapolis Transit, Annapolis, MD • The Bus, Prince George’s County, MD • Corridor Transportation, Laurel, MD • CUE Bus, City of Fairfax, VA • DASH, Alexandria, VA • Fairfax Connector, County of Fairfax, VA • Frederick Transit, Frederick, MD • Harford Co. Transit Services, Abington, MD • Howard County Area Transportation System, Ellicott City, MD • PRTC, Prince William County, VA • Ride-On, Montgomery County, MD Between them, they may procure up to 834 fare boxes, and equipment for 13 garages. Participation is voluntary, with each of the agencies choosing a fare box system with smart card capability and all of the associated garage and Customer Service Innovations Track 1 - Customer Service and Marketing 4 central system support, or choosing the standalone smart card system, allowing for participation in the program at a reduced capital investment. Their participation is essential to bridging the transportation gap from the Baltimore and Washington agencies into the suburbs, and insures that the goal of one seamless regional fare medium becomes reality. SMARTRIP REGIONAL CUSTOMER SERVICE CENTER With the introduction of the SmarTrip card as a fare medium accepted by a number of transportation providers comes the necessity for, at minimum, a clearing house function to properly allocate revenues and provide services. Customers will purchase or add value to their SmarTrip cards at one agency, then use it to pay fares for services provided by a number of other agencies. The clearing house function must be performed in order to assure that each provider receives proper payment for the service rendered. The SmarTrip Regional Customer Service Center (RCSC) will perform the clearing house function and more. Specifications have been prepared for the RCSC contract, and contract award is anticipated Summer 2001. The RSC will not only be responsible for the clearing, settlement and financial management of SmarTrip transactions, but will also be responsible for expanding the Point of Sale (POS) network, maintaining customer service and keeping a sufficient inventory of SmarTrip cards on hand. The current POS network for WMATA SmarTrip cards consists of nine WMATA Sales Outlets, seven Commuter Stores, and purchase by mail or through the Internet. Value can be added at any of the 83 metro stations. Even with this modest network, more than 150,000 SmarTrip cards have been purchased since SmarTrip’s introduction in May 1999. Through the RCSC, the SmarTrip POS network will be extended to the 450 current concessions that sell WMATA fare cards but not SmarTrip cards, as well as an estimated 626 additional outlets throughout the Washington area. Similarly, POS outlets will be established to support the Maryland MTA and regional providers service areas. The clearing house functions and the point of sale network are essential to the proper functioning of the seamless regional fare system, and will be completed by June 2002. The SmarTrip Regional Customer Service Center will handle customer service and card handling. While each transit agency will continue to provide customer service to respond to operational and fare-related issues, the RCSC will be responsible for all SmarTrip customer service inquiries. These issues will include card purchase and card balance; reporting lost or stolen cards; setting up accounts that automatically add value to the card when a minimum value is reached (Autoload); registering cards to protect their value if lost or stolen, and other customer requests. The RCSC will also be responsible for insuring that sufficient SmarTrip cards are available for all POS outlets, including transit agency sales outlets, mail and Internet requests. This will include initializing the cards, testing, distribution, returns and replacements. The complete transfer of these functions to the RCSC is anticipated by July 2003. ADVANTAGES What are the advantages to implementing this system? What benefit does it provide to the customer? What benefit does it provide to WMATA and the other regional agencies? What is the convenience to the customer? For the first time, the customers will now have one card that can take care of their transportation needs. The inconvenience of "exact change only" is gone, and with it the concern over varying fares among providers. It makes it easier for customers to budget their transportation dollar, and to take advantage of transfers and discounts available for higher value purchases. Registering the SmarTrip card insures that if the card is lost or stolen, the value is not lost. The previous card can be deactivated and the remaining value transferred to a new card. By extending the system to other regional agencies, the basis exists for "lowest fare guarantees" which could deduct a flat fare from the card regardless of the transportation providers used. Also, as any observer of the WMATA metrorail system can attest, waving a SmarTrip card over the target to pay the fare is much faster than other fare payment methods. WMATA SmarTrip customers barely break stride as they walk through the fare gates, whereas queues build behind customers paying by magnetic card on the rail system or cash on the bus system. What are the advantages for WMATA and the other regional agencies? Certainly, first and foremost, added convenience leads to more customers. For the first time transit will be on equal footing with the automobile in that the costs are less visible. Automobile users don’t see how much their commute trip to work costs, and are not sensitive to this cost. Transit suffers because fare payment is a very visible, daily expense. With the capability of loading up to $200 on a SmarTrip card, each daily fare payment will be largely invisible. As more transit customers use SmarTrip cards, there will be less coins and currency for the agencies to handle. This means less fare loss, and less collecting, Track 1 - Customer Service and Marketing Customer Service Innovations handling, transporting, counting and banking of cash, which will require less labor and equipment. And that faster fare processing time with SmarTrip card? At major transfer points where many customers board buses at the same time, the faster SmarTrip processing time will get people on the buses quicker, and the buses back on the road sooner. FUTURE OUTLOOK The Regional Fare Collection System is a tremendous and exciting step, but it is only the first step. With the establishment of a regional transit payment mechanism, expansion to other transportation venues is possible. Would the customer find it convenient to also be able to pay for airport parking with this regional fare card? How about toll roads and bridges? Expansion beyond transportation is also possible. The card is fully capable of storing value for other purposes, or being combined with other cards’ functions, such as a SmarTrip/ATM or a SmarTrip/credit card combination. These options approach true customer convenience, and are currently being explored with partners in the Washington region. DISCLAIMER It should be noted that the authors are solely responsible for the content and conclusions discussed in this paper. These may not represent the official view or policies of the Board of Directors of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). Customer Service Innovations Track 1 - Customer Service and Marketing [ Next Thread | Previous Thread | Next Message | Previous Message ] |