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Gemalto is to supply 3.5 million contactless transit smart cards to the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority for the MBTA's CharlieCard electronic ticketing initiative. The French smart card company did not disclose the value of the contract.
The CharlieCard program, which was launched in December 2006, is designed to replace paper tickets on the MBTA's bus and subway system.
CharlieCards are contactless smart cards that can either act as stored-value e-ticket cards or as the electronic equivalent of a time-based bus or subway pass. Commuters can load cash and passes to CharlieCards at fare vending machines and MBTA ticket offices. To
To gain entry to a bus or train, commuters hold their CharlieCard close to a reader that deducts the fare from the card or validates their pass.
Gemalto says that by the end of March 2007 it will have delivered 2.4 million contactless transit cards for the MBTA's CharlieCard program. The MBTA serves a population of 4.7 million people over an area of 3,200 square miles, with around 1.1 million passengers riding on its network every day.
In addition to the MBTA project, Gemalto has also supplied transit cards to transit authorities in the Netherlands and in Paris, London, Sao Paulo and Santiago. The company says it has delivered over 100 million transit cards worldwide.
Gemalto was formed in June 2006 through the merger of Axalto and Gemplus.
