Smart ticketing to be extended across the West Midlands rail network

SMART ticketing is to be extended on to the West Midlands passenger rail network, the Government has announced.

The rolling out of the Swift card on to trains was one of three schemes announced by Transport Minister Baroness Kramer to accelerate the introduction of smart ticketing across the country.

The Minister announced that £620,000 would be invested over the next two years to extend smart ticketing across the rail network in the West Midlands.

The money will enable Centro, the West Midlands’ public transport co-ordinator, authority, to extend Swift and pave the way for the introduction of similar products in the future.

Crucially, passengers will be able to use smartcards at the redeveloped Birmingham New Street station from this September.

Baroness Kramer said: “Smart ticketing is revolutionising travel and is an important part of the transport investment which will help to build a stronger economy and fairer society. I am very pleased that it is gaining real momentum.

“Implementing smart tickets involves close working across operators, administrative regions and industries. These three initiatives show how much can be done through partnership working.”

Cllr John McNicholas, chairman of Centro, the public transport co-ordinator for the West Midlands, said: “I am delighted that our smart ticketing programme is to receive such a boost.

“It means we can start to roll out Swift across the local rail network at a time when train usage is at its highest in nearly a century.

“The ultimate winner though is the passenger, who will now have a smart ticket they can use across all forms of transport.”

Patrick Verwer, managing director of London Midland trains which operates local rail services in the West Midlands, said: “The investment in smart ticketing will not only benefit existing users but also has the potential to attract new passengers to rail, bus and Midland Metro travel.

“Smart ticketing is another example of how we are making our rail network easier for our passengers to use.”

Swift is currently accepted on ten different bus operators covering approximately 100 routes across the West Midlands.

Most operators offer a discounted fare in comparison to the normal cash fare when using the car.

It is available online, where an automatic top-up function can be activated, or at Network West Midlands Travel Information Centres. Credit can also be topped-up on bus.

Baroness Kramer made the announcement at a meeting with the Smart Cities Partnership where she presided over the signing of a concordat setting out cooperation with bus operators to start delivering smart, multi-operator ticketing in 2015.

The Smart Cities Partnership consists of nine city regions, representing the largest conurbations outside London including those in Yorkshire, the West Midlands, Merseyside, Leicester and Nottingham.

With funding from the Department of Transport, it encourages joint working across the public and private sectors to speed up the implementation of smart multi-operator ticketing.

Separately, the minister announced that the government would be working with the UK Cards Association – the body representing the card payments industry – to bring contactless payment to public transport country-wide.

The association will lead a project to coordinate actions among card payment processors, card issuers as well as UK transport operators.