Greater Wellington and Metlink welcome National Ticketing Solution milestone

Greater Wellington and Metlink welcomed news today that Cubic has been chosen to deliver the next stage of the National Ticketing Solution.

At the contract signing with Cubic today Hon Michael Wood, Minister of Transport, outlined how the National Ticketing Solution will deliver a nationally consistent payment system and provide a range of easy-to-use payment methods across all public transport in New Zealand.

Samantha Gain, General Manager for Metlink – Greater Wellington’s transport arm - said the signing was an important milestone in the delivery of an improved, simpler to use public transport system at both a local and national level.

“This is great news for our passengers who tell us that they want more and easier ways to pay across all modes of public transport, whether that be train, bus or ferry.

While Environment Canterbury will be the first council to implement the National Ticketing Solution, Metlink will work with Waka Kotahi to adapt the system to best meet the needs of Wellingtonians.

In the meantime, Metlink introduced a contactless electronic payment pilot with existing supplier, Snapper, on its Johnsonville Line in November 2021 to help pave the way for the eventual National Ticketing Solution in Wellington. The Johnsonville pilot gave Metlink the opportunity to trial the best approaches to design, installation and running of contactless electronic payment system on its rail network.  The high customer satisfaction associated with the pilot gave Metlink the confidence to roll out Snapper across the whole of its rail network which is happening in November 2022.

“This obviously complements the system that has been in place for Metlink buses since 2018 and the technology, infrastructure, data and passenger feedback will help inform the next stage of the fully integrated National Ticketing Solution which is expected to be implemented in Wellington by 2026.

“The Snapper on Rail project is an important part of our transition to the National Ticketing Solution - this will ensure our rail passengers have early access to electronic ticketing as well as undertaking the important step of transitioning passengers to a modern way of payment for rail journeys across the region,” says Samantha Gain.

The National Ticketing Solution (NTS) is a collaborative project delivered by Waka Kotahi, in partnership with public transport authorities across the country.

Read more about Snapper on rail in the Wellington region.

Read more on the National Ticketing Solution.