The Gironde Region

In June 2006, the local council of "La Gironde" (CG33) published a call for tenders in order to acquire a contactless ticketing system, to modernize and also to harmonize all the existing systems in the county.

In response to this call for tenders, Veolia Transport created the company Cartrans Gironde Service along with nine other interurban transport operators in "La Gironde". Their mission is to provide and administer the new system developed by ERG.

The local council's objectives were to:

• acquire an intermodal and integrated ticketing system that allows compatibility of transport tickets between the interurban and urban network of the Bordeaux urban community;
• implement a reliable system of revenue redistribution between the various operators;
• acquire reliable statistical data in real-time in order to obtain a fine-tuned knowledge of how passengers are using the network;
• prepare the launch of the new system to the customers.

• Participation in the choice of technology and integration guidelines.
• Assist with setting parameters, thanks to an extensive knowledge of the territory.
• Field evaluation of the feasibility of technical operations.

• Putting an experienced (internal) team in place:
  a generalist for technical and functional administration, a maintenance manager and a commercial assistant.
• A key contact person, commissioned by Citram-Veolia Transport to pilot the launch and set the parameters of the ticketing system, acting as the liaison between CG33 et ERG.
• An IT expert, commissioned by Citram, to develop the technical functionalities of the system and ensure that it functions optimally.

• Systematic validation when boarding vehicles:
  identification of lines most used by the customer is made easier, even when the journey includes transfers.
• Before redistribution, revenue is put into an account - managed by Cartrans Gironde - in which every transport operator has a positive or a negative balance.
• Monthly breakdown of revenue by the ticketing system manager. This is guaranteed between interurban transport operators and the urban network of Bordeaux.
• Reliable redistribution of revenue thanks to Citram's expertise and local knowledge.

• Transfer and analysis of data, thanks to the GPRS system that allows vehicles to communicate statistics without having to return to the depot.
• Service improvement proposals supported by ridership data provided by the ticketing system.
• Better knowledge of mobility habits and customer needs enabling the introduction of targeted marketing initiatives.