WHILE the online world was quick to criticize the Aquino administration for the new tap-and-go ticketing system, the company behind the technology is more than upbeat to continue improving the payment scheme, its president said on Wednesday.
In a matter of two days, a total of 6,000 tickets were sold, a welcome development since the testing phase for the automatic fare collection system (AFCS) was started on Monday, AF Payments Inc. President Peter Maher said over lunch in Makati City.
“We sold between Monday and Tuesday over 6,000 beep cards, very high rate of takeup of stored-value card. More than 80 percent of tickets sold were beep cards—that’s a very high percentage. We’re very pleased that the public has confidence and were willing to purchase the card and use it immediately. 6,000 is, remember you need to buy the ticket once,” he said.
So far, the whole system is performing well, despite minor glitches in the ticket vending machines, Maher added.
“The gates are performing well. Ticket machines are performing well. Personnel in the ticket booth are very familiar with the computers they are using. I can see becoming proficient in using the tickets quickly,” the executive explained.
The system is currently undergoing its pilot-testing phase, starting with the youngest of Metro Manila’s train lines, the Light Rail Transit (LRT) Line 2.
Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio A. Abaya has imposed a two-week target for the complete rollout of the payment scheme at the said railway system.
The department has lined up the activation of the remaining stations in the following order: Betty Go-Belmonte; Katipunan; Pureza and J. Ruiz; Cubao; Anonas and Gilmore; Recto; V. Mapa; and Santolan.
Under the testing phase, a limited number of new single-journey and stored-value tickets, branded as beep cards, will initially be sold for P20 at the line’s stations. Commuters may purchase them at designated windows and at two ticket vending machines inside each station.
The shift to a contactless ticketing system aims to enable seamless transfers from one metro line to another by unifying their ticketing schemes, and to shorten queuing time for the riding public.
A transition period before completely rolling out the system is needed to identify any possible bugs in the system and to familiarize passengers with the new payment scheme.
Upon its completion, commuters can expect faster payment processes and reduced queuing time for buying tickets, as well as seamless transfers from one rail to another.
All three railway lines will fully transition to the new system by September.
Metro Pacific Investments Corp. and Ayala Corp., the lead proponents of AF Payments, are interested in expanding this payment system beyond transport to make money out of their over P3-billion investment.
Image credits: PNA