Railways say no to unified cards

May 19, 2012 - ATEEQ SHAIKH |

Age Correspondent

mumbai

In the future, commuters of Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and possibly Bengaluru will be able to use their smart card “More” to travel in any of these cities as part of the national common mobility card — a cashless way to travel. However, in Mumbai, people will be able to use this card to travel only in public buses, Metro and monorail, but not for suburban locals, as the Railways has refused to be a part of the initiative.
“The smart card system and even the card will be the same for the three metropolitan cities — Delhi, Kolkata and Mumbai. This means that commuters of Delhi and Kolkata when they visit Mumbai, or when Mumbaikars go to these two cities, will be able to use the same smart card,” said Rahul Asthana, metropolitan commissioner, MMRDA.
However, people with these smart cards will be able to use it only for three modes of transport in Mumbai, namely the Metro Rail, monorail and Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) as the Railways has chosen to opt out of the system. Hence, Mumbaikars will also have to carry two smart cards with them, unlike their counterparts.
One of the prime and major factors for the Railways choosing to stay away is that the access system of the Railways is a lot different from that of the other three modes of transport.

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