Smart Card & NFC Bus Ticketing System
Electronic bus ticketing and fare collection using smart cards, NFC, conductor POS terminals and configurable fare rules.
BSD Infotech builds bus ticketing systems in which passengers pay with a stored-value smart card, the conductor’s terminal calculates the fare from the boarding and destination stops, and every ticket, recharge and cash sale is recorded for collection and settlement. The solution can be configured for passenger smart cards, NFC/contactless payment, conductor ticketing, cash and card tickets, fare calculation, card recharge, printed tickets, collection reporting and settlement.
Talk to BSD Infotech
Tell us how many buses and routes you run, roughly how many passengers use them, whether you need cash, card or both, and what terminals you already have. We will suggest a configuration and arrange a demo.
What Is a Smart Card Bus Ticketing System?
Bus Ticketing System Architecture
Smart Card and NFC Passenger Ticketing
Each passenger is issued a contactless smart card that holds a stored-value balance. Cards are reusable and read without insertion: the passenger simply taps the card on the terminal.
- Passenger receives a smart card, with a balance loaded
- Card taps on the conductor’s NFC terminal, or on a reader at the bus door where configured
- Fare is deducted from the card balance
- Balance before and after each journey is recorded
- Card is recharged when the balance runs low
BSD’s bus ticketing uses 13.56 MHz ISO 14443 contactless cards. Other card types are confirmed per project. See contactless cards.
Bus Conductor Ticketing POS
The conductor carries a handheld POS terminal with an NFC reader and a printer. For each ticket, the conductor first chooses Cash or Card.
Smart card / NFC
Cash
The same terminal can recharge a passenger’s card and records every ticket and recharge. For general POS terminals, see POS hardware and software.
Cash and Smart Card Ticketing in the Same System
Most operators do not switch every passenger to cards on day one. Where required, the system can be configured to support both cash and contactless card transactions on the same terminal, so card users and cash-paying passengers ride the same bus and all tickets appear in the same collection records. An operator can then move more passengers to cards over time.
Fare Master and Origin-Destination Fare Management
Fares are held in a fare master: a table of stations and the fare from each boarding station to each destination. The fare is looked up from the journey, not hard-coded, so fares can be changed centrally.
- Station master with a code for each stop
- Fare for each boarding station to destination station
- Fare applied automatically when origin and destination are known
- Each journey recorded with the boarding station, destination, fare, previous balance and current balance
| Boarding station | Destination station | Fare |
|---|---|---|
| Station A | Station B | Fare A→B |
| Station B | Station C | Fare B→C |
| Station A | Station C | Fare A→C |
Illustration of a fare master. Actual stations and fares are set by the operator.
Fare Logic and Journey Validation
Besides conductor ticketing, BSD has designed an automatic tap-on / tap-off model in which card readers at the bus doors record where the passenger gets on and off. The fare cannot be known at boarding, so the logic handles each case as follows:
| Situation | At boarding | At exit | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Taps on and taps off | Boarding station stored; a fixed maximum fare is provisionally deducted | Provisional entry is removed and replaced with the actual boarding-to-destination fare | Passenger pays the actual journey fare |
| Does not tap on, taps off | No entry recorded | No entry found on the card or in the database; exit station stored and the maximum fare deducted | Maximum fare charged |
| Taps on, does not tap off | Boarding station stored; maximum fare deducted | No exit tap | Maximum fare entry remains |
The maximum fare is a configurable amount set by the operator.
What is recorded for each journey
On the card
Transaction ID, date, time, boarding station code, fare, exit station code, balance before the transaction, balance after the transaction, device ID and device type.
On the terminal’s local database
Transaction ID, date, time, boarding station code, fare, exit station code, device ID and device type, for later upload to the server.
Smart Card Recharge and Balance Management
A passenger whose balance is too low can recharge the card on the conductor’s terminal. The new balance is written to the card, and the recharge is recorded and uploaded with the day’s sales. A passenger app for checking the balance can be added. Other recharge points can be scoped per project.
Electronic Ticketing with Printed Receipts
Every card or cash ticket can be printed on the conductor’s terminal. Ticket formats can be configured to include transaction and journey information such as:
- Date and time
- Boarding station
- Destination
- Ticket amount
- Previous balance and current balance (card tickets)
Passenger and Smart Card Management
Card preparation and issue
Cards are initialised and then issued to passengers.
Minimal registration
Passenger name and mobile number recorded at issue.
Opening balance
A balance loaded on to the card at issue; any issue charge is set by the operator.
Card validity
An expiry period for the card balance, configurable per project.
Balance
Current balance held on the card and updated with every journey and recharge.
Transaction history
Journeys and recharges recorded against the card.
Bus, Conductor and Terminal Management
Depending on deployment design, conductor terminals and operator credentials can be associated with assigned buses or routes. In one documented design:
Conductor master card
Each conductor is issued a master card linked to the allocated bus number.
Morning issue
The conductor collects the terminal and master card from the head office.
On the route
Tickets and recharges are issued on the terminal.
End of day
The terminal is returned and its transactions are downloaded.
Bus Ticketing Transactions and Collection Management
Transactions recorded
Card tickets, cash tickets and recharges, each with date, time, stations, amount and terminal.
Terminal download
At the end of the day, an accounts user downloads sale and recharge transactions from each returned terminal.
Server upload
The downloaded transactions are uploaded to the central server through the accounts user’s login.
This end-of-day download is one supported deployment architecture; with networked terminals, collection can be seen as it happens (see below).
Online and Offline Ticketing Architecture
Real-time collection
With GPRS-enabled POS terminals, the operator can check collection in real time.
Store and upload
Transactions are kept on the terminal and the card, and uploaded at the end of the day.
The architecture is chosen per deployment, depending on terminals and connectivity.
Day Closing, Commission and Settlement
Depending on the operating model, the back-office system can support daily closing, commission calculation, settlement and transaction file exchange with financial systems. In a bank-linked design:
Day closing
The fare payable account is debited, and the operator’s merchant account and the commission account are credited according to a commission master.
Transaction file
The bank can download the transaction file and upload it into its core banking system.
Day-end settlement
The commission account is debited and the bank account credited for disbursement.
More merchants
Other merchants can follow the same process, each with their own account and POS terminal number.
Bus Ticketing and Fare Collection Reports
Because every ticket, cash sale and recharge is recorded with its stations, amount, time and terminal, the back office has the data for collection and settlement reporting. Reports can be customised according to the operating model, for example:
Optional GPS Bus Tracking and Passenger App
Ticketing is the core of this system. As project-specific extensions, GPS-enabled POS terminals can let the operator track buses online, and a passenger app can let passengers check their card balance and follow buses online. For school bus tracking, see our school bus tracking solution.
Smart Card Readers and NFC Hardware
BSD integrates the ticketing software with the hardware on the bus and in the office:
For readers, cards and other smart card applications, see smart card solutions. For integrating readers into your own software, see smart card reader SDK and integration.
Where Smart Card Bus Ticketing Can Be Used
Public and city bus ticketing
Conductor ticketing with cash and card, fare by boarding and destination.
Institutional transport
Prepaid cards for staff or members using organisation buses.
Campus and university buses
Student cards with a stored balance for campus routes.
Corporate transport
Employee cards for company buses, with transactions recorded per card.
Prepaid passenger cards
Reusable stored-value cards replacing paper tickets and change.
Contactless fare collection
Tap-on / tap-off readers at the bus doors, where designed.
These are typical uses of the solution, not a list of deployments.
How Smart Card Bus Ticketing Works
Receive a card
The passenger is issued a smart card.
Load balance
A balance is loaded, and recharged when low.
Board the bus
The passenger boards.
Select the journey
The conductor selects origin and destination.
Tap the card
The passenger taps the card on the terminal.
Fare calculated
From the fare master.
Fare deducted
From the card balance.
Ticket printed
With journey and balance details.
Transaction recorded
On the card and the terminal.
Collection updated
Online, or at the end-of-day upload.
For cash passengers, the conductor selects the fare, collects cash and prints the ticket.
Passenger Journey Workflow
NFC Bus Ticketing Demonstrations
BSD’s demonstration videos show the NFC fare collection system with a conductor application and with card readers at the front and back doors, where passengers tap in when boarding and tap out at their destination.
Customized Bus Ticketing and Fare Collection Software
Every operator’s fares, stations and settlement differ. BSD can customise the following. Customization is subject to technical feasibility and agreed project scope.
Have your own fare structure?
Send us your stations, fare rules and settlement model, and we will discuss how to configure them.
BSD Infotech: Smart Card, NFC and Ticketing Technology
Smart card technology
Contact and contactless smart cards, readers and e-purse applications. See E-Purse application.
NFC and contactless
13.56 MHz NFC readers and cards, from desktop to mobile.
Electronic ticketing and fare collection
Conductor ticketing and tap-on / tap-off fare logic, shown in BSD’s own demonstrations.
POS integration
Ticketing software on handheld POS terminals with printers.
Software development
Back-office, settlement and mobile app development.
Hardware + software
Terminals, readers, cards and software designed to work together.
BSD Infotech has developed NFC and smart-card based ticketing and fare collection workflows. Client names are not published.
How Much Does a Bus Ticketing System Cost?
Pricing depends on the number of buses, terminals, cards, fare configuration, integrations, hardware and deployment requirements.
Request a quote
Send us your buses, routes, terminals and payment model. We will quote software, hardware and integration separately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Planning Smart Card Bus Ticketing?
Tell us about your buses, routes, passengers, cash and card mix, and existing terminals. We can help design a ticketing, fare collection and settlement workflow around your operation.
Helpful to include in your enquiry: number of buses · approximate passengers · number of routes · smart card / NFC requirement · cash, card or both · existing POS or device · integration requirement