In its continuous pursuit to develop and improve the public bus service, The Integrated Transport Center (ITC) in Abu Dhabi announced the launching of its automated payment system with "Hafilat" smart cards in Al Dhafra. Eight Ticket Vending Machines (TVM), which enable users to issue and recharge tickets were installed along with 11 Banknote Reloaded (BBR) and six Ticket Office Machines (TOM). The Automated Payment system in Al Dhafrawill be activated starting from Monday, January 8, 2018.

The machines were installed in various locations in Al Dhafra like Al Sila Bus Stations, Ghayathi Bus Station, Ferry Terminal in Jabal Al Dhanna, Ghayathi Bus Station, Al Marfaa Bus Station, Madinat Zayed Bus Station, Ruwais ADNOC Compound Bus Station, Al Ruwais Bus Station and Tarif Bus Station. The installment of these machines comes in part of enhancing the usage of Automated Payment System “Hafilat”.

Saeed Al Hameli, Head of Buses and Water Ferries Team, stated that the Automated Payment System is an easy method to use and is initiated in order to keep up with the technological and digital development that are used in the transportation field. In addition, the system offers the latest payment methods that enhance the level of the services provided for bus users.

“The payment cards provide the feature of adding a certain balance and recharging it, in addition to the possibility of adding other services such as the weekly and monthly passes. These cards enable the bus users to preserve their credit in case of losing the card by issuing a replacement. In addition, users can add their personal information and be eligible to special offers. Cards can be recharged by cash or credit cards using the different machines available,” added Al Hameli.

This smart card or ticket deducts the fare of the bus trip directly from the cash value stored in the T-Purse. The fare is calculated automatically based on the distance of the passenger's journey from the moment he or she boarded the bus until his or her descent. The launch of this smart payment system will facilitate the bus boarding and descent process for passengers.

“Hafilat” smart cards provide special facilities such as storing the monetary value electronically in the T-Purse or using them as weekly or monthly subscriptions. The new payment system ensures accuracy in deducting the bus trip fare based on the distance, and it provides a real-time data and statistics that can be used to improve the planning, analysis and development of processes and services. Through using this system, the ITC hopes to raise the level of satisfaction among public bus users and encourage the passengers to commit themselves to paying the public bus fares. The T-purse can be used when travelling on internal or external bus routes.

It is noteworthy that "Hafilat" smart system includes plastic cards for permanent use and paper tickets for temporary use. The smart cards are categorized into anonymous cards and personalized cards that contain information about the passenger stored in the card chip and the ITC customer database. The personalized cards consist of students cards, senior citizens cards and the Determine Ones. Holders of these cards are eligible for free travelling on in the city and the suburbs for a year starting from the issuing date. The public can get the personal cards and add weekly and monthly permissions to travel on the internal routes only or to add product to the T-Purse to use to travel on all routes, including external ones.

We accept Guest Posts

Download the Dubai City Guide iPhone mobile app

DubaiCityGuide.com is owned and managed by Cyber Gear