eGovWatch: DTC to introduce smart card on lines of Metro soon

Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) will soon introduce smart card facility on the lines of Metro Railway for travel in its buses.

According to DTC officials, the tender for electronic ticketing machines (ETM), on which a passenger will only be required to swipe the monthly bus pass, will be floated in the next couple of days.

The monthly bus pass is currently made on paper with DTC watermark at designated pass centres, which is very time- consuming for commuters.

“We have decided to introduce smart card monthly-bus pass on the lines of Metro, which will be very useful to passengers travelling in the corporation’s buses. Passengers will be required to swipe the smart card through ETM at the time of boarding buses,” DTC CMD Debashree Mukherjee told PTI.

At present, thousands of people get monthly-bus pass issued on their names, but the corporation doesn’t get to know on which bus routes, passengers are travelling much.

“After the introduction of smart card bus pass, we will be able to find out the flow of passengers at various routes and according to which, we can improve services,” she said.

In the first phase, DTC has decided to purchase 200 ETMs and if it gets good response, the facility will be extended.

According to corporation officials, commuters can recharge their smart card on a monthly basis.

DTC had recently decided to rope in women drivers for its fleet. It was decided to provide training and help them get heavy motor vehicle licence. Besides, it would give some relaxation to women applicants in hiring procedure, including in terms of experience.