NWKRTC takes big leap in digital payment for bus tickets

The North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) has taken a huge stride in issuing tickets through digital payment mode in buses.

Currently, 415 long-route buses from five depots in its jurisdiction are issuing tickets to passengers through UPI.

The NWKRTC, which caters to the needs of passengers of six Kittur Karnataka districts (excluding Vijayapura), soon intends to extend the digital payment mode to all 4,581 buses under its jurisdiction. 

NWKRTC is the second road transportation corporation (RTC) in Karnataka to start digital payment facilities in buses after Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC), which has successfully implemented digital payment (using QR code reading) in buses since 2020.

Every month BMTC’s online payment transaction is around Rs 4.5 crore, whereas the cash transaction per month is Rs 13 crore to Rs 18 crore. However, the other RTCs - Karnataka State RTC (KSRTC) and Kalyana Karnataka RTC (KKRTC) - have not started this facility under their jurisdiction so far. 

NWKRTC started the digital payment service (static QR code reading) on an experimental basis on September 1.

Given the positive response it received, officials extended the pilot project to five more depots on November 1.

So far, conductors in 415 buses have completed 30,000 individual transactions and transferred Rs 75 lakh directly to the account of NWKRTC.

Sources in NWKRTC said nearly 20% of the transactions in these buses were digital.

“Digital payment system has reduced two of our headaches: returning change to passengers and presenting accounts to higher officials,” said Somashekar Hiremath, a conductor in Hubballi rural depot.

Speaking to DH, NWKRTC managing director Bharath S said a private organisation (Phone-Pe) approached them to start the online payment system in buses.

“The company provided QR codes to conductors and also set up a live dashboard at the headquarters to monitor the transactions free of cost. So far, the transactions have been smooth and without glitches. We will soon call for expression of interest from all online payment service providers and the corporation will pick the best deal,” he said.

BMTC has gone one step ahead and with the help of Tummoc App, it has been issuing daily, weekly and monthly passes to passengers.

Of the one lakh plus passes that BMTC issues every month, nearly 25% of them are being purchased online.

Daily 61% of Vayu Vajra, 39% of Vajra and 6% of ordinary bus tickets are being purchased through the 5,000 QR code cards pasted in buses and with conductors, said BMTC PRO Sunitha.

KSRTC, a corporation with the largest bus fleet in the state, plans to provide smart electronic ticketing machines that would enable conductors to issue tickets through card or UPI method.

Currently, only 89 Point of Sale (POS) machines at select bus terminals are employed for online transactions in KSRTC.

KKRTC managing director M Rachappa said none of their bus services has an online payment service and they are contemplating to sign a memorandum of understanding with banks to provide this service to passengers.