"These fare payment systems are challenging and difficult to implement and you want to get it right, and there’s certainly a lot of examples out there of it not being right," said Eddie Robar, Branch Manager of the Edmonton Transit System after the Community and Public Services Committee met with the Edmonton Transit Citizens Advisory Board on February 13th.

Monday’s meeting, one of many that the Edmonton Transit Citizens Advisory Board has had with the City since the 'smart fare' system was first proposed in 2003, discussed Edmonton's adoption of reloadable cards that would act as the primary method of payment for the city’s transit system, to be launched in tandem with the opening of Edmonton’s Valley Line LRT in 2020.

View of Edmonton's skyline, image by Flickr user Mack Male via Creative Commons

The $42 million project — which will share its costs between the provinces, St. Albert, and Strathcona County — has been branded by the City as a user-friendly solution to promote ridership and greater connectivity within Edmonton's regional transit system.

Smart fare technology will replace Edmonton’s current fare payment system that uses paper transit tickets and monthly passes. Upon the smart fare system’s implementation, users will still have the option to pay for fares with cash.

Picture of Edmonton's LRT, image by Flickr user Denby Jorgensen via Creative Commons

Unlike a smart card system, which ties all funds to a physical card only, the new smart fare system will allow transit users to upload credit to an online account. In the event the card is lost, the credit would stay online. The smart fare system will then immediately transfer the balance to the card, allowing users to 'tap' when boarding transit as proof of payment.

Two vendors for the new fare system are now being considered. The move towards smart fare technology also marks the end of the honour system. The transit agency will instead adopt turnstiles or fare gates at their LRT stations.

Statistics collected on checked riders between 2012 and 2015 demonstrate a substantial drop in fare evasion among the more than 445,000 riders checked during the study period, from 2.12% to only 1.72% in 2015. Under Edmonton transit's current honour system, transit officers are only able to verify fare payment if users are in the proof of payment zones at LRT stations. The City hopes with the implementation of the smart fare system that fare evation rates will further drop and allow for transit officers to expand their scope of duties to better improve customer's transit experience.

Passengers boarding at Century Park Station, image by Flickr user Kurt Bauschardt via Creative Commons

The Edmonton Transit Citizens Advisory Board has played an integral role as an advisor to the City for its transit initiatives. The City-appointed board has acted as an intermediary between the City Manager, the public, and various levels of government to improve transit functionality and users' experiences since it was established in 1994.

While discussions are still in their earliest stages, the Edmonton Transit Citizens Advisory Board has recently proposed to "expand the inclusion of ETS fare with tickets to major sporting events and other special events." Given the recent completion of Rogers Place — and the rapid development of Edmonton's ICE District in recent years — the smart fare system could greater connect all corners of the city to this new entertainment hub. 

At the time of writing, debates regarding the costs and benefits of the smart fare system continue. Nonetheless, upon the project's completion, the system could greatly improve transit connectivity for Edmontonians and save the City considerable transit operational costs.

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