KOLKATA: The city will soon see the expansion of the Kolkata Transport Card (KTC)—designed on the lines of London’s Oyster Card— with the Metro Railway agreeing to join the initiative for an all-in-one transport card to integrate the ticketing systems across all modes of transport in Kolkata.The KTC, launched in March last year, currently includes only the network of state transport buses operating in the city with trams and ferries likely to join the integrated system by this year-end.Major cities across the globe have similar transport cards such as Navigo Pass in Paris, Pasmo in Tokyo, CPTC in Shanghai and SmartLink in New York.In their last coordination meeting with the state government held earlier this month, Metro authorities expressed willingness to integrate their ticketing system with the WBTC and sign a memorandum of understanding to push the initiative through.Bengal’s additional chief secretary (transport) Alapan Bandyopadhyay said, “Metro Railway has shown interest in integrating its ticketing system with the transport card. So apart from the Metro card, there will be an all-in-one transport card which can be used across categories of mass transit modes within the metropolis.”Once Metro is integrated into the KTC, the transport department plans to take the proposal to Eastern Railway and Southeastern Railway to add suburban and Circular Rail services to it. Taxis and autorickshaws may also be brought under its ambit in the future, providing commuters with a non-cash payment option across the entire gamut of transport systems in the city. Wider use of the card will also help map Kolkata’s mobility pattern.“Since everything is done electronically, the system also champions transparency,” said Narayan Swarup Nigam, secretary of transport and MD of West Bengal Transport Corporation , the state transport utility which serves the metropolitan area of the city. Nigam had visited London to see how the Oyster card works.Transport for London has issued more than 60 million Oyster cards since its introduction in 2003 and it accounts for over 85% of rail and bus travel. Buses in London no more accept cash.Metro Railway chief public relations officer Indrani Banerjee said, “We also want seamless commuting of passengers from one mode to another. We are working on it and have already held meetings with banks on the payment gateways. Moreover, our smart gates need to be re-calibrated for this integration.”The KTC has been a hit with commuters, significantly reducing their bus transport hassle. Apart from improving the revenue transparency and plugging the pilferage, the card is also expected to generate huge data that would be the basis of government policy decisions, a transport official pointed out.

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