The Victorian government has just announced a new provider will take over the Myki contract, overhauling the current system to make it a more modern ticketing proposition for Victorian bus users
BREAKING – The Victorian government has announced today that it has changed its Myki public transport ticketing system with the signing of a new contract.
Instead of re-signing current operator NTT Data for another contract worth $100 million a year, Victorian transport minister Ben Carroll announced today that the government has decided to go with international public transport ticketing specialist Conduent.
In a deal that will be worth $1.7 billion over 15 years, the Myki system, which was contracted in 2007, will undergo an overhaul, with Conduent’s contract meaning the ticketing system will change from a card-based system to an account-based one.
“We’re pleased to announce that Conduent will run our smart ticketing services in Victoria,” Carroll says.
“Conduent already runs services from Montreal and New Jersey to Paris and all over the world. It’ll be a state-based ticketing solution that will incorporate all V/Line and bus services to provide tickets for all modes of public transport in Victoria.
“It’s a very important moment for Victoria.”
Conduent’s new system will begin to be rolled out in the next two days, with testing set to get underway next year on certain Melbourne and greater Victorian services.
Instead of relying on a Myki card to touch on and off, the new solution, which will still be known under the Myki name, will allow passengers to touch on and off with credit cards, smart phones or smart watches and have an account charged instead of the card.
Despite this change, Carroll says passengers will still have an option to use a physical card to touch on and off.
“We know that with more modern day transport options, everyone wants ease of access and a simple and seamless solution,” he says.
“Transport users will notice a difference through a range of trials beginning next year. We’ve learnt a lot of lessons through Myki, so this two-year period will help update the system.”
Carroll says there’ll be some hardware overhaul required in the next two years to ensure the Conduent system is fitted to a range of metro-Melbourne and regional Victorian services.
With paper tickets still being the main way of securing tickets in regional Victoria, Carroll says this new state-wide solution will incorporate the school bus network and provide a solution that will run on all public transport systems.
“Conduent has offered a superior package for running the Myki system,” he says.
“They were working closely with our social enterprise sector and have shown that they have a good value for money system as well as a proven track record that makes us excited and confident about this overhaul.”