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The Karnataka government is planning to introduce a unified fare collection system for the state's four road transport corporations, aiming to bring the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC), Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) and Kalyana Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (KKRTC) under one common digital ticketing platform.
Karnataka Government to Introduce a Unified Fare Collection System
At present, the four transport corporations use separate electronic ticketing systems. The new system is expected to provide a common platform for different types of payments and tickets. It will support Shakti cards, stored-value smart cards, mobile tickets, QR codes and National Common Mobility Cards (NCMC).
How will this System Benefit Passengers?
The system will also have a Central Clearing House to bring together transaction details and calculate the fare revenue and reimbursements due to each transport corporation. The government plans to eventually make the system interoperable with Namma Metro and K-RIDE, allowing passengers to use an integrated mobility system.
The new arrangement will also help improve the digital tracking of journeys under the Shakti scheme. The proposed system will create a record of each free journey, including details such as the transport corporation, route, service, trip, depot, vehicle, ticketing device, and GPS location. The journey records will be retained for at least seven years for audit purposes.
The Shakti scheme provides free travel to women domiciled in Karnataka on non-AC buses operating within the state. The proposed system will allow the government to verify beneficiaries and maintain better records of the journeys.
Implementation of the Project
The project will be implemented in phases. It will begin with a pilot at one depot before being expanded to one corporation and then the remaining three corporations. The statewide rollout is expected to take around 12 months. Once the new system is fully operational, the existing ticketing systems will gradually be phased out.
The plan comes as Karnataka's four transport corporations face financial pressure, with the state government considering measures to address their growing losses and operational expenses.