Lviv region will be the first in Ukraine to introduce e-tickets on suburban and intercity bus routes.
Yurii Buchko, deputy head of the Lviv OVA, told about this during a briefing at the “Ukraine” media center. He emphasized that it is more difficult to implement this idea within the oblast than within the city – it is necessary to work out a tariff grid.
“We have been working on the electronic ticket program for the second year. Lviv Oblast is the first region to introduce such a service. Of course, there are electronic tickets that are used within the city with a single payment tariff, but not within the region. During the year, the Department of Transport and Communications of LOVA developed a program, conducted a competitive selection of applicants for investment in the introduction of an electronic ticket. This investor will install the appropriate equipment at his own expense and will administer this service,” Yuriy Buchko noted.
Yesterday, November 21, the final meeting of the committee regarding the selection of the investor was held. 5 companies participated in the competition. The Commission identified as the winner the company “Smart-Ticket Technologies” LLC, which is a Kyiv-based institution that already works in Cherkasy and provides such a service there.
“There are 1,050 buses operating on routes in the region, each one must be equipped with appropriate equipment and synchronized. Purchase and installation will take some time. I think that in six months the service should start working in Lviv Oblast. The investor estimates such an investment at approximately 30 million hryvnias – one validator on the market costs from 700 to 800 euros,” Yuriy Buchko explained.
He also explained how the new electronic system will work: the passenger enters the vehicle – uses a card, phone or smart watch to record the stop at which he entered – when exiting, performs the same action again – the system sees from which stop to which he drove . Accordingly, this is how the toll will be calculated and deducted.
“The validator can work offline, it is capable of accumulating information, and when the first connection to the Internet appears, it will synchronize and make a payment. This will improve the quality of services. We will be able to get on the bus, pay with a card – phone, watch, any gadget,” added the deputy head of Lviv Oblast.
Payment by card is the first step. The next step is the registration of preferential transportation for the relevant categories of the population. This system will allow you to fix preferential categories and grant the right to free travel for a day, a month or even an hour.
According to Yuri Buchka, the region will definitely introduce a transition period when it will be possible to pay in cash.