'Notifying Boarding and Alighting'... Gyeonggi-do Introduces 'Contactless Bus Fare Payment Service'

212 Public Bus Routes with 1,760 Vehicles... Phased Implementation from January to March
Mobile Stop Bell Service Operation... Preventing Safety Accidents Onboard

Gyeonggi-do Public Bus

[Asia Economy Reporter La Youngcheol] Gyeonggi Province will start the public bus 'Contactless (Tagless) Bus Fare Payment Service' beginning with the Gimpo area from the 24th.

According to the province on the 5th, the 'Contactless Bus Fare Payment Service' aims to minimize concerns about COVID-19 infection through public transportation and to assist the convenience of bus passengers.

After installing the 'Tagless Pay-App' on a smartphone and registering a prepaid or postpaid transportation card, boarding and alighting on the bus will be automatically processed and paid without physically touching (tagging) the transportation card terminal.

The principle is based on Bluetooth wireless communication between the 'Beacon' installed in the vehicle and the passenger's smartphone to determine boarding and alighting status.

If the passenger presses the 'Mobile Alighting Bell' button on the app before getting off the bus, an alert is sent to the driver indicating that there is a passenger to alight, eliminating the need to press the alighting bell manually or to get up and move for that purpose.

The province plans to gradually introduce this service starting January this year for a total of 1,760 buses on 212 public bus routes in Gyeonggi Province, excluding double-decker buses and bi-door vehicles.

On the 24th, it will be first introduced on 133 buses across 18 routes in Gimpo City; on February 21st, on 111 buses across 11 routes in three cities including Uijeongbu, Yangju, and Pocheon; and on March 21st, on 1,516 buses across 183 routes in 20 cities and counties including Suwon City.

Gyeonggi-do Public Bus Tagless Poster [Gyeonggi-do]

To let passengers know if a bus supports the 'Tagless' service, tagless stickers will be attached to the outside of the buses, and the Gyeonggi Bus Information app's location guidance service will also indicate whether 'Tagless' is supported.

If passengers use or transfer to buses or subways where the service is not provided, they can still pay fares and receive transfer discounts in the traditional way by touching (tagging) their card to the terminal while the smartphone screen is on.

To ensure stable settlement of the service, the developer will hold events such as a 3,000 KRW transportation card charge reward upon first installation of the application (1.17~4.20) and a 1,000 KRW transportation card charge reward per ride using the service (up to 20 times per month, 1.24~4.20).

Additionally, starting from the 10th, a 'Contactless Ticket Inspection Service' that automatically checks tickets upon boarding will be introduced for 277 buses on 96 reservation-based intercity bus routes, accessible through the 'Bus Tago-App'.

Kang Hyundo, Director of the Transportation Bureau, said, "With the introduction of the contactless bus fare payment service, we expect to minimize the risk of COVID-19 infection inside vehicles and greatly help prevent safety accidents inside buses."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.