Chennai to roll out single ticketing system for city buses, metro trains by December

CHENNAI: The Chennai Unified Metropolitan Transport Authority (CUMTA) is set to implement an Integrated Ticketing System (ITS) which will bring a single ticketing solution for city buses, metro trains, and suburban trains in Chennai.

The system allows people to make journeys that involve transfers within or between different transport modes with a single ticket that is valid for the complete journey.

The CUMTA has entrusted Moving Tech Innovations Private Limited with developing a mobile app that will facilitate the unified ticketing system, in order to simplify travel for passengers and allow seamless transitions between major modes of transport.

Through the proposed app, the passengers can buy a common ticket for a journey from one point to another on multiple modes. It will help passengers book a single ticket and the QR code generated can be used for commuting on all the three modes.

The app would also provide the real time location of the MTC buses, Metro trains, suburban trains and MRTS to help the commuters choose the fastest option to reach their destination.

In the initial phase, ITS will be launched for Chennai's city buses and metro trains by December this year. Subsequently, by March 2025, the system will be set up in suburban trains as well, further enhancing convenience for commuters.

Meanwhile, the National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) sold by the Chennai Metro Rail for its commuters will be soon made compatible with MTC bus travel.

With the introduction of electronic ticketing machines (ETMs) in all city buses, the MTC has been asked to make the ETMs compliant to accept payments from NCMC cards.

After the integration of the NCMC, passengers travelling on the Metro and city buses can travel seamlessly using the multi-mode payment facility.

(With inputs from bureau)