beep™ card rolls out ‘first’ tap in – tap out scheme in Citylink buses

AF Payments Inc. announced that Citylink buses plying Newport City-Eastwood City and vice-versa are now accepting payment via beep™ card. This is the first distance-based fare implementation of the smartcard in buses, thereby applying the “tap in-tap out” scheme.

Passengers are required to tap their beep™ card twice ─ once upon getting on the bus and again before alighting ─ so the card reader can compute for the correct fare. To avoid errors, beep™ card holders must always make sure they have the minimum required load. For this route, it’s 39 pesos.

“We have added another reason for Filipinos to own and enjoy their beep™ card. Citylink is the first bus company to have an automated fare collection system that computes for distance-based fare. We’ll be implementing this scheme in most of our upcoming bus partnerships,” said Tere Ancheta, spokesperson for AF Payments Inc.

The buses are equipped with global positioning system (GPS) to determine the precise station a passenger gets in and alights. Citylink’s C5 route buses operate from Mondays to Saturdays, with the earliest bus leaving at 6 A.M. They carry about 1,500 passengers every day on weekdays.

“We are very excited to roll out this new system to our Citylink Buses. With this breakthrough innovation, we hope to serve more people going to and from our townships,” says Arnie Batac, head of estate management, Megaworld, the company that operates Citylink in its various township developments in Metro Manila.

With the multi-fare bus rollout plan in motion, more Filipinos will enjoy cashless transactions and worry less since they can manage their transportation budget by loading it into their beep™ card. Commuters who regularly ride the LRT or MRT, as well as point-to-point buses that accept beep™ card will definitely welcome the convenience of an integrated and seamless payment system.

The beep™ card may be purchased at any LRT or MRT station or select partner establishments. It is reloadable and is valid for four years. Reloading is now available at FamilyMart outlets and also at branches of Bayad Center, SM Bills Payment, Villarica, and Tambunting. More information about beep™ may be obtained at the website <www.beeptopay.com> and on Facebook (beep card) and Twitter (@beep_card).