(source: SITA)
Regular users of Bratislava public transport do not need to carry special passes when commuting any more. The Transport Company Bratislava (DPB) in cooperation with Bratislava city council, has launched an innovation enabling passengers to hold the information from their tickets on their contactless bank cards.
The problem is that while the DPB is one of the members of the regional integrated transport system, the remaining partners lack the hardware and software to enable them to do the same. The DPB explained that they have been waiting for a long time for other partners to catch up but this has been in vain so they decided to launch this facility unilaterally.
“We asked the integrated transport system to introduce this innovation in January 2017,” said Milan Urban, general director of the DPB, as cited by the SITA newswire. “But because the response was not what we had expected, we launched it on our own.”
This means that when a traveller buys and holds a ticket for the DPB on their bank card, they can only use it for travelling by buses, trams and trolley buses belonging to the DPB.
Urban does not think this is a disadvantage for passengers as it is suitable for those who do not use the services of the other carries from the integrated system.
Bratislava Mayor Ivo Nesrovnal sees the innovation as a novelty that will increase the comfort of travellers in Bratislava.
“We will continue to negotiate with the others in order that this product will extend throughout the whole integrated transport system,” said Nesrovnal, as cited by the TASR newswire.
How it works
The facility enables users of public transport in the Slovak capital to buy normal as well as discounted 7, 30, 90 or 365-day season tickets online via MasterCard and Visa. They just need to register at the website of the DPB at www.dpb.sk. The tickets are then registered on the card and can be checked by a ticket-inspector on board with a special reader. They do not need to show any other forms of identification.
Previously, passengers using season tickets for Bratislava’s public transport needed a special pass.
Passengers with permanent residence in Bratislava can use the Bratislava city card, issued only for those with permanent residence. Such a card enables them to get a 10-percent discount on seasonal tickets.
