Cashless travel a distant dream in Bengaluru as One Nation One Card remains a non-starter

BENGALURU: The National Common Mobility Card (NCMC), also known as One Nation One Card which was launched in March for seamless travel through various transport modes, seems to have a hit a roadblock in Bengaluru. Reason: Non-synchronisation of automated fare collection (AFC) gates at Metro stations and BMTC ticketing machines with NCMC.
NCMC, on the lines of London’s Oyster card, was initiated by the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs, to enable cashless travel by different Metros and other transport systems like bus and suburban trains, toll plazas and parking charges across the country, besides retail shopping.

While BMRCL has a closed-loop card since it began operations in 2011, BMTC has two different cards: Axis Bank open-loop card as well as CityCash closed-loop card. While closed-loop cards, like the ones used in Namma Metro, can’t be used for other purposes, open-loop cards like NCMC are universal and can be used to shop and pay for parking, and can be integrated with other modes of transport like Metro, taxis or autos.
“Common mobility card is a long-term objective but it may take some time. It is unlikely before the completion of Metro Phase 2,” said additional chief secretary of urban development department Mahendra Jain.
BMRCL officials said they will have to upgrade the existing AFC gates at Phase 1 stations to accept new open-loop cards. Though AFC gates at new Phase 2 stations will be compatible to accept new cards, the entire Phase 2 line will be operational only by 2024.
Under pressure from the Centre to implement NCMC, BMRCL has now decided to upgrade the existing AFC gates in a phased manner. “We’re planning to install some AFC gates for NCMC users at Byappanahalli and Kempegowda stations on a pilot basis. The idea is to have at least one or two NCMC-enabled AFC gates at entry and exit points of every station. It’s not financially viable to replace all the existing AFC gates, but it will be done in a phased manner,” said a BMRCL official.
BMTC officials said they will have to replace all old electronic ticketing machines (ETMs) to accept new cards. “We’re in the process of replacing 11,000 old ETMs with advanced Android-based ones. Around 1,800 have already been replaced. The new ETMs of Ingenico is much advanced compared to the earlier one (Verifone). Ingenico machines have advanced features like QR-based ticketing, but the replacement process has been delayed after Trimax IT Infrastructure and Services, which implemented BMTC’s intelligent transport system (ITS), is going through financial problems. We’ll have to make software changes to accept NCMC cards,” said an official.
He said Axis Bank open-loop cards evoked poor response from passengers due to the cumbersome KYC procedures and lack of awareness. AFC gates at proposed suburban rail stations will accept NCMC cards.