A city bus run by Dream Team Sahara

Bhubaneswar, Aug. 11: The smart card system that was to help passengers of city buses continues to elude them.

The system, which was announced by private bus operator Dream Team Sahara (DTS), has been held up by fare revision that the government will fix.

The city bus service is expanding but passengers are yet to avail the benefit of the smart card system, which was announced last year. The plan had been mooted DTS, the private operator of the bus service, had mooted, which would enable commuters to travel without paying cash, is yet to materialise.

In August last year, the private bus operator had conducted a pre-project survey to assess the feasibility of the system. During the survey period, DTS had received more than 700 emails from passengers urging them to implement the system.

According to the plan, a smart card can be obtained by paying Rs 300. Passengers would need to recharge the card to avail the facilities. While the cost of the minimum recharge voucher will be Rs 50, the application form can be obtained for Rs 5.

“The service is all set to be launched but we are waiting for the fare revision. We are hopeful that the smart card system will be introduced by the third week of this month,” said chairman of Dream Team Sahara Nishikant Mishra.

The radio frequency identification device will read the code printed on the cards and with each journey, the balance on the card would be used. The cards will have a unique bar code to ensure that any other cards that look similar cannot be used.

The smart card system is aimed at making things easier for daily travellers along with cashless travel. “It is common for the bus employees to ask passengers to pay the exact change, which sometimes leads to verbal arguments. The authorities should introduce the smart card system as soon as possible to alleviate this problem,” said Naresh Das, a passenger.

The bus service, which was introduced under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission, in October 2010 with only 20 buses, has currently expanded with as many as 125 buses running across routes in the city.

It is at present operational on 16 routes, Cuttack and Puri with around 40,000 passengers availing its services on a daily basis.

“It is true that the service has become a lifeline for city residents. So the time has come for the smart cards, which are being used in some other states. The cards would definitely help a hassle-free journey,” said Pratap Mohapatra, another passenger.