Ahmedabad to re-launch e-ticketing machines

The Ahmedabad Municipal Transport Service (AMTS) is all set to implement e-ticketing from August 2011, for which it has already floated tenders. Although, the transport body earlier burnt its fingers experimenting with the technology, authorities are quite confident of success this time.

AMTS will provide handheld e-ticketing machines to its bus conductors in order to reduce manual work for them. "We will link the e-ticketing machines with the GPS system. Conductors will also not have to maintain records of tickets sold from various points," said MS Patel, transport manager of AMTS.

It should be noted that the AMTS had used the e-ticketing machine in the past also but it did not work out well with problems like the machine getting jammed, short life of the battery that is used to operate the machine and non-functioning of switches.

"The earlier one was a pilot project operated under BRTS. The operator has been black-listed by BRTS for poor performance," said Patel. He said that it was a learning phase for them and they will ensure that past mistakes are not repeated.

The e-ticketing project will be implemented in more than 300 new buses that the AMTS will receive in August-September.