Public transport hurdle: Why you can't use your debit card or phone to tag-on

An already delayed project allowing people to use their phones and debit cards to pay for all public transport across the country is undergoing a "reset".

A recent briefing to Transport Minister Michael Wood acknowledged a National Ticketing Solution (NTS) had a "somewhat chequered history dating back to the early 2000s".

The project was reviewed by Treasury in November last year, following which Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency's board committed to supporting a programme reset, the briefing said.

Wood was advised by Waka Kotahi this reset would include partnering, collaborating and organising themselves differently. It means the timeline for the implementation of the project has been pushed out.

The briefing from January was released to the Herald under the Official Information Act.

In 2009 Waka Kotahi agreed to the introduction of a national integrated ticketing system, but more than a decade later New Zealand still doesn't have one.

The project was originally led by regional councils until Waka Kotahi took over the reins and it became known as Project NEXT.

In simple terms, the aim is to have a single, integrated way to pay for public transport trips across all regions.

Unlike the Hop card in Auckland or the Snapper card in Wellington, the new model will be account-based.

People will be able to make payments for trips using credit or debit cards, digital versions like Apple Pay, or a single national transit card.

Wood told the Herald the project was in a transition period, shifting from design to procurement.

"Given the complex nature and the scale of the intended contract, number of stakeholders, and reduced patronage because of Covid, it is sensible to keep the project under review to ensure that it can deliver the next stages in a timely manner.

"Like many New Zealanders, I am keen to see the project progress and the solution to be successfully implemented, providing enhanced experience to public transport users across the country."

Transport Minister Michael Wood. Photo / Dean Purcell

Wood said he received regular updates on the NTS project and while it continued to be complex, steady progress was being made.

"In the meantime, the Government continues to encourage public transport use through our half-price fares initiative."

An easy and flexible ticketing service is important for the Government because it's seen as something that will make public transport more attractive and reduce barriers to using it.

In turn, this will help shift people out of their cars and onto buses, trains and ferries.

Finance Minister Grant Robertson has already said supporting public transport and mode shift will be an important part of the work the Government does to reduce emissions, which will feature in Budget 2022.

The Government's decision to temporarily halve public transport fares in response to the cost-of-living crisis could be a sign of more permanent announcements to come in the Budget.

National's transport spokesman Simeon Brown said while a nationwide ticketing solution was unique, electronic ticketing was nothing new with many examples of good payment services around the world.

"For all the Government's talk that they will improve access to public transport, they have failed to deliver on a national ticketing solution – something which would make a real difference to improving public transport usage across New Zealand."

Waka Kotahi corporate support general manager Matthew Walker said the reset included "new timelines" for implementing the project.

"As with any large-scale complex transition – especially one of a national nature with so many stakeholders – there are always going to be timing challenges relevant to each stakeholder's regional operating context."

The four public transport electronic ticketing systems that currently exist in New Zealand need to be integrated into one, which was complicated, Walker said.

It was important to take the time to get it right, he said.

"We are confident, once the solution is designed, built, fully tested, and has satisfied all our requirements, it will be implemented successfully in stages throughout the country."

National's transport spokesman Simeon Brown. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Timings were still being agreed as part of the procurement process, Walker said.

But at this stage, a preferred supplier is expected to be announced later this year and Canterbury will be the first region to get the new ticketing solution in late 2023/2024.

It will be rolled out in all other regions before 2026.

That's different from a previous indicative timeline showing it was meant to be rolled out on Wellington trains in 2021, followed by buses in the capital in 2022, and then Canterbury in 2023.

Greater Wellington Regional Council chairman Daran Ponter said he was no longer annoyed the capital wasn't going first.

The council is ploughing ahead with its own electronic ticketing as an interim solution while the region waits for the integrated NTS.

Last week the regional council announced all train commuters would be able to use electronic payments via Snapper cards by the end of the year.

This was after a successful trial on the Johnsonville line, where four out of every five passengers now use the card to pay for trips.

Previously, Snapper had only been used on buses. Cash payments were taken on trains or paper tickets could be purchased ahead of a trip.

Ponter has called it a "Victorian system of payment".

Greater Wellington Regional Council chairman Daran Ponter. Photo / Supplied

The infrastructure needed to rollout Snapper on trains could be repurposed when a NTS was implemented, Ponter said.

"Ticketing machines might be a different colour and all that sort of stuff, but by in large we're putting in place a system now that we can retrofit in the future."

Ponter said there have been too many delays for him to have confidence in any timeline provided for the arrival of a NTS in Wellington.

"It is difficult for us to stand in the wind and tell the Wellington public, 'well it's not ready yet, we can't really tell you when it's going to be, but it could be five years away or it could be four years away'. We've already been telling them that for the last 20 years."

Ponter said that wasn't a criticism of Waka Kotahi.

"This just seems like a long piece of string and we never seem to get to the end of it."