Smartcard plan means Oyster card style travel could be coming our way
Edinburgh’s ticketing lags behind other European cities
Last week’s announcement that the Scottish Government will explore a single-ticketing system for the nation’s public transport could be a game-changer for Edinburgh.
Net Zero minister Màiri McAllan revealed the move as the country’s climate targets were dramatically rolled back having been dubbed unworkable by experts.
But while you’ll struggle to find anyone in Auld Reekie who doesn’t fancy the convenience of the smartcard schemes used in other major cities, commuters have plenty of reason to wonder if it will amount to hot air.
The prospect of introducing Oyster card-style travel to the Capital has been on the agenda for several years but never come to fruition.
Meanwhile, public transport users in London have been tapping on and off tubes, overground trains, buses and trams for more than two decades now.
Across the water, Dublin’s Leap Card was introduced in 2011 and covers buses, trams and commuter rail services.
Countless other European cities have been using payas-you-go smartcards for several years.
The Cpital’s Ridacard works in a similar way to those systems but only covers those modes of transport delivered by Lothian Buses and Edinburgh Trams.
That means people travelling into the city from further afield often have to buy more than one ticket as
Passengers in London have been tapping on and off tubes for more than two decades
their journey involves more than one provider.
Contactless payments were introduced by the city’s main bus firm in 2019 in a major boost for passenger convenience.
But proponents of an integrated ticketing system argue it would offer much greater compatibility between providers.
Then deputy first minister Nicola Sturgeon first unveiled plans for a Saltire Card back in 2012 but that plan never got off the ground, but the city council has advocated for a local version throughout the 12 years since. Four years on, Edinburgh still lags behind other cities when it comes to integrated ticketing.