Accenture Selected For GTA Fare Card Project
GTA transportation will become more convenient for travelers
TORONTO; Oct. 12, 2006 – Accenture has been awarded a 10 year contract, worth $250 million CDN including sales taxes, to design, develop and implement a seamless fare card system for public transit in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).
The new system will cover GTA public transit travel between Hamilton and Oshawa, making it the largest smart card transit payment system in Canada.
“Using advanced technologies, Accenture is committed to bringing innovation and high performance to the transit system in the GTA,” said Alden Cuddihey, senior executive in Accenture’s Canadian government operating group.
The fare card system will make travel across the GTA easier by using smart card technology to replace tickets, tokens, passes or exact cash fare. The convenience will give people the incentive to leave their cars at home. Riders will be able to load their fare card with value at wickets, select retail outlets, via pre-authorized payments, by telephone or Internet. As a passenger boards a public transportation vehicle, the card is placed in front of an electronic reader, which scans the card to calculate the fare and deduct it from the card balance. When the system is fully operational, it will accommodate more than 2 million passengers per day traveling across GTA transit systems.
Accenture has subcontracted world class partners to jointly deliver this complex system. Thales Transportation Systems is a strategic partner of Accenture with whom Accenture has worked around the world to implement Integrated Fare Collection Systems. Thales Transportation Systems will provide all of the front-end equipment. TELUS will provide infrastructure support including network and hosting services; IBI Group will provide implementation and transition services and Giesecke & Devrient will be responsible for fare card production and distribution. Accenture will manage the project, and provide system integration services.
The new GTA Fare Card system is a joint initiative with Brampton Transit, Burlington Transit, Durham Region Transit, Hamilton Street Railway Company, GO Transit, Mississauga Transit, Ontario Ministry of Transportation, Toronto Transit Commission, Oakville Transit and York Region Transit.
The GTA fare system will be introduced on a limited basis in mid-2007 and will be fully implemented by 2010.
About Accenture
Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company. Committed to delivering innovation, Accenture collaborates with its clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments. With deep industry and business process expertise, broad global resources and a proven track record, Accenture can mobilize the right people, skills, and technologies to help clients improve their performance. With approximately 140,000 people in 48 countries, the company generated net revenues of US$16.65 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2006. Its home page is www.accenture.com.
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Sarah Thompson
Media & Analyst Relations Manager, Accenture
+1 (416) 641 4416