Visakhapatnam: Don’t have the change to pay for bus fare while travelling in the government-run city buses? No need to worry, you can just pay using your debit/credit card.
Interestingly there is no need to chip in or swipe the card, just wave it at the ticket machine carried by the bus conductor.
For the first time in the country, such open loop interoperable contactless payment system is being introduced in buses in Vizag under Vizag Digital Dhan Sankalp (VDDS) project spearheaded by the state government and Visa, to develop Visakhapatnam into the country’s first "less-cash" city.
On a pilot basis, the facility has been mde available on 18 buses on Kurman-napalem-Tagarapuvalasa-Vizianagaram (route 111 and 111v).
Moreover, there would not be any transaction charge for the payment. Passengers can pay the fare for even '5 and also avail money back offer for usage of the card.
The project was facilitated through active participation by various banking and technology partners including Andhra Bank, Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, State Bank of India, Bill desk.
IT Minister Nara Lokesh said, “Having set the benchmark as the first state in India to embark on the digitisation of government services like bus fare on such a large scale, we will further raise the bar by extending the project to cover electricity, municipal taxes and tourism payments. Digitisation of transactions will lead to a reduction of costs and improved convenience for all stakeholders involved, as we continue to realise our vision of making Vizag, India’s first cashless city and the FinTech Valley of India."
TR Ramachandran, Group country manager, Visa, India & South Asia, said, "Today, people want a new experience that is frictionless and seamless. We are excited at the role that contactless technology such as Visa payWave cards can play in enabling citizens across the state pay for their utilities.
