Athens Underground “takes a cue” from London

So, will there be an “end” to paper tickets in public transport in Athens? Very likely, as there is a clear trend towards increased use of laminated ATH.ENA cards, and soon bank cards that will function as tickets.

The Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, as Secretary General of Transport Yiannis Xifaras publicly announced yesterday at the company’s event, “has begun cooperation with the contractor ASSK OASAto be able to “open up” the e-ticketing system through cooperation with banks.”

As noted, “the bank card can be used in the subway, buses and all MMMs”, emphasizing that “we are working in this direction so that we can agree on such a change in the system that we have structured, this is the way to open and other types of cooperation.

According to transport experts, the use of bank cards of all categories (credit, debit, etc.) as tickets is an important alternative for passengers.

In fact, a few years ago, when this system was adopted in London, passengers described it as “one of the most important positive changes.”

Apart from obvious benefits for passengers, the benefits for OASA are also significant. Using bank cards as tickets, the organization automatically saves resources, as it reduces the use of “traditional” paper tickets, i.e. the cost of their release – expensive typographic replication.

Although paper tickets are also “rechargeable”, most urban public transport users throw them away and subsequently purchase new ones.

Efforts are expected to be intensified to “change” the behavior of passengers in order to spread the use of the ATH.ENA laminated card (named and anonymous), as well as multiple refilling of tickets.

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