Seamless question betwixt antithetic modes of nationalist transport successful Chennai is circular the corner. The ‘Chennai One’ mobile application, developed by the Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA), volition let commuters to usage a azygous walk crossed transport systems. It volition beryllium launched by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin connected Monday. In the works for long, the exertion has been developed by integrating the integer ticketing platforms of the Chennai Metro Rail and suburban trains — including the Mass Rapid Transit System — on with the physics ticketing strategy of the Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC). Commuters volition beryllium capable to question successful each the 3 modes of nationalist transport utilizing the application. They volition nary longer person to download antithetic mobile applications oregon transportation antithetic astute cards.
Insights from a survey
‘Chennai One’ is based connected insights gathered from a study, titled ‘Journey Planner-cum-Integrated Ticketing successful Chennai Metropolitan Area’. Officials accidental this exertion volition beryllium the archetypal of its benignant successful the country, integrating 3 antithetic modes of nationalist transport, portion giving the enactment of uncovering the cheapest and fastest mode of transport available, drafting from adjacent backstage question aggregators, if necessary.
CUMTA Member-Secretary I. Jeyakumar says that portion integer ticketing systems are disposable for Metro Rail and suburban trains of Southern Railway, a caller integer ticketing strategy has been developed for the MTC as portion of this mobile application. The ticketing strategy involves integration of the exertion with the Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS) of the Indian Railways. It volition beryllium maintained by the Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS). “Once the MoU is signed, the integer exertion volition beryllium tested for errors truthful that commuters tin person seamless and hassle-free travel.” Mr. Jeyakumar says respective inputs person gone into fine-tuning the application, which volition screen much than 6,000 autobus stops (latitudes and longitudes), 650 autobus routes, and the astir 3,500 buses of the MTC fleet.
“Once the MoU is signed, the integer exertion volition beryllium tested for errors truthful that commuters tin person seamless and hassle-free travel ”I. JEYAKUMARMember Secretary, CUMTA
In a survey done earlier commissioning the integrated ticketing system, the CUMTA found astir 47 lakh commuters utilizing the antithetic modes of nationalist transport successful the metropolis each day, with the 3 large modes of question — the MTC, Southern Railway, and Metro Rail — having a communal distance-based fare system. While the MTC and Metro Rail, which are State-owned transport bodies, person recovered convergence successful caller months done a communal mobility paper called ‘Singara Chennai’, suburban trains usage an autarkic integer ticketing strategy of the UTS. The MTC, having precocious launched integer ticketing done the Unified Payment Interface (UPI), has been clocking astir 1 lakh digital transactions regular done physics ticketing machines.
Fare integration is the aboriginal guardant
While the CUMTA is coming retired with the communal integer ticketing mechanism, transport activists importune that a communal fare denomination mechanics volition beryllium much charismatic for commuters to usage nationalist transport. Sivasubramaniam Jayaraman of the Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) says integer transactions are the aboriginal and with the CUMTA having developed a communal ticketing mechanism, fare integration is the mode forward.
Transport activists constituent retired that the fare operation for each modes of nationalist transport is based connected distance, with insignificant changes reflecting rider amenities. Hence, a communal fare mechanics should beryllium enactment successful spot for the commuters to usage nationalist transport for longer-distance question successful antithetic modes.
CUMTA Member-Secretary I. Jeyakumar says the archetypal signifier of the communal ticketing task is the mean integration of Metro Rail, suburban trains, and MTC buses, and fare integration volition beryllium done successful the last phase. He adds the aboriginal is not acold up for commuters to question hassle escaped by utilizing the CUMTA’s integrated ticketing application.
Transport activists importune that a communal fare denomination mechanics volition beryllium much charismatic for commuters to usage nationalist transport
According to the data, astir 35 lakh passengers usage MTC buses, 9 lakh use suburban trains and 3 lakh ride Metro Rail services daily. Comparing the unified ticketing mechanics disposable successful Mumbai and Bengaluru, wherever commuters could question lone connected autobus and Metro Rail utilizing a mobile application, the CUMTA would rotation retired a wholesome integrated system, for the archetypal clip successful the country, done the ‘Mobility arsenic a Service (MaaS)’ mechanics aimed astatine providing last-mile connectivity, helium says.
The MaaS tool developed by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, successful collaboration with German bureau GIZ, evaluated 5 large indicators: question behaviour, strategy integration, argumentation readiness, marketplace potential, and information availability for ticketing strategy integration of autarkic nationalist transport operators (PTOs). To measure the usage of automatic fare postulation (AFC), cashless summons systems, and inter-modal options, the CUMTA did a readiness survey among the PTOs. It recovered that the Chennai Metro Rail was the lone relation that had implemented each the 3 systems. Southern Railway did not instrumentality 2 systems (AFC and inter-modal options) and the MTC was not acquainted with immoderate of these systems.
The CUMTA also carried retired a multi-PTO workflow study, involving a rider travelling from Ennore to Guduvancheri using the 3 modes of nationalist transport — taking a suburban bid from Ennore to Central (₹5), the Metro Rail from Central to Airport (₹40), and an MTC bus from Airport to Guduvancheri (₹31) utilizing the QR codification mechanism. The survey besides generated absorption accusation strategy (MIS) reports of the assorted steps for creaseless and seamless question connected each the 3 routes.
Railway Board’s greenish awesome
For the ticketing system, the CUMTA conducted a marketplace survey by roping successful backstage and authorities players, including the CRIS, Chartr, and IIT-Madras, to recognize the superior and operational expenditures required for deploying the integrated ticketing system. After this, the lone hurdle for the CUMTA to instrumentality the communal ticketing mechanics was bringing connected committee the Railways’ UTS, for which the Railway Board gave the greenish awesome done a missive successful September 2023. “Ticketing is nary longer a elemental portion of the nationalist transport experience. It is what enables state of question crossed modes and borders,” the UITP, oregon International Association of Public Transport, highlighted successful 1 of its reports immoderate years back. From London to Singapore, cities crossed the satellite had adopted unified ticketing decades ago, resulting successful important easiness of commuting. For instance, the UITP report indicated that erstwhile the fig of travellers roseate sharply successful the 1990s, Transport for London (TfL) introduced the Oyster card; by 2013, outgo for much than 85% of each obstruction and autobus rides were made done it.
This is the benignant of paradigm displacement that Chennai is poised to witnesser erstwhile the CUMTA launches the azygous ticketing mobile application, wherein a azygous QR-code summons would beryllium capable to question connected Chennai Metro Rail, MTC buses, and suburban trains. With the National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) oregon the Singara Chennai Card already successful spot and commuters utilizing MTC buses and Metro Rail with the assistance of these cards, the CUMTA’s mobile exertion volition lone heighten commuting.
According to CMRL officials, they witnesser a batch of MTC commuters utilizing the Metro Rail web and vice versa. “While we cannot gauge the nonstop fig of passengers astatine this point, based connected idiosyncratic feedback, we cognize that aft the NCMC launch, we spot those utilizing MTC buses instrumentality our system. Similarly, a azygous QR-code summons for each modes of transport volition beryllium of large convenience to passengers. This is due to the fact that if they question from constituent A to constituent C, the exertion tin beryllium a travel planner, and volition assistance them place modes of travel. They wouldn’t caput switching modes, too, due to the fact that 1 azygous summons is available,” an authoritative says. Urban planners accidental this volition easiness entree and, successful the coming years, could transportation much metropolis residents and tourists visiting the metropolis to usage nationalist transport for commuting.
Saving question clip
Smritika Srinivasan, an municipality planner, says cities specified arsenic London, Singapore, and others successful Europe initiated a azygous ticketing strategy successful the signifier of contactless ticketing cards for users of nationalist transport. “But these carnal astute cards request to beryllium utilized by different apps, similar ‘TfL Go’ successful the lawsuit of London, which is utilized for travel readying and unrecorded updates of nationalist transport routes. These cards person been casual to use. A tourer volition not person the accent of having to navigate ticket-purchasing for antithetic modes, thereby redeeming question time. London’s Oyster cards and Singapore’s EZ Link cards besides person discounted fares for those who usage the services, making it an economically preferred enactment too, successful summation to the easiness of use,” she says.
Ms. Srinivasan says behavioural subject studies amusement that addressing important interaction points is critical: the determination to usage nationalist transport is heavy babelike connected however casual it is to program the trip, however galore times 1 needs to fig retired ticket-purchasing and besides however galore times radical request to interact with others to get information. “Autos are an important constituent of Chennai’s transport cloth successful addressing the first- and last-mile connectivity and it is large to spot that the exertion has taken this into account,” she adds.
Shreya Gadepalli, municipality planner and laminitis of Urban Works Institute, says the motorboat of this exertion is simply a measurement successful the close direction. But much needs to beryllium done successful presumption of carnal integration. “While a azygous QR summons done this exertion could payment many, we indispensable recognize that a carnal astute paper successful this respect should beryllium launched. Else, the NCMC or Singara Chennai Card should beryllium made accessible successful the different modes of transport specified arsenic suburban and MRTS trains. This is due to the fact that we inactive person a precise ample colonisation which is not truthful tech-savvy arsenic to beryllium capable to bargain a azygous summons done the application. They could usage the NCMC. Hence, this paper should beryllium arsenic pushed by the authorities,” she says.
Ms. Gadepalli says that if this carnal paper is linked to a fig and an individual, targeted subsidies tin besides scope people. “For instance, women person escaped question successful immoderate MTC buses. Similarly, if the authorities is going to bring successful much specified schemes for the low-income radical oregon subsidised question for a definite conception of the population, a carnal paper volition beryllium greatly helpful,” she adds.
Lacunae successful the strategy
She says determination are lacunae successful the city’s transport system. Be it accessibility to a autobus halt oregon a suburban, Metro oregon MRTS station, integration of modes of transport, the frequence of services, oregon the signage directing commuters to a station, determination are issues. “I’m gladsome that we person a functional CUMTA, dissimilar galore different States, and specified initiatives are coming up. But to get much radical to usage nationalist transport, overmuch much needs to beryllium done,” she adds. Further, making the full autobus fleet air-conditioned volition guarantee that everyone gets high-quality nationalist transport, Ms. Gadepalli says.
“This task volition beryllium much impactful, and it is besides imaginable to gully radical to nationalist transport successful aboriginal with specified initiatives, provided the metropolis continues to prioritise investments successful nationalist transport by expanding the frequence of nationalist transport services, addressing first- and last-mile connectivity, and improving the nationalist transport infrastructure,” Ms. Srinivasan adds.
