Fox: Smartcard technology for transport tickets 'works'
Adelaide Hills buses have begun trialling new 'smartcard' ticketing technology as of Wednesday.
11 buses have been installed with the new ticketing machines, which can take current multitrip and single trip tickets and will also accept new Metrocards, set to be rolled out in 2012.
New Transport Services Minister, Chloe Fox, said the Metrocard technology is more efficient than what South Australian public transport uses currently.
"We’re putting this particular machine into 11 buses in the Hills’ service, and by the end of the year this system will be in 64 buses on the Hills’ service," she said.
"A slow rollout to make sure people are comfortable with it and to make sure there are no surprises when this system does change over."
Minister Fox dismissed claims the new Metrocard system would face similar issues to Victoria's plagued 'Myki' ticketing system.
"We are not going to have the same problems and the reason we’re not going to have the same problems is that this is a system which has been tried and tested all over the world," she said, "In Europe, in Great Britain, in Canada and in the USA."
"You can get one of these cards and put money on it, you can go back as many times as you like and you can travel anywhere with it."
"So we’ve made very, very sure that this system works."
