RFID application
Throughout Europe, and in particular in Paris in France (system started in 1995 by the RATP), Lyon and
Marseille in France, Porto and Lisbon in Portugal, Milan and Torino in Italy, Brussels in Belgium, RFID passes
conforming to the Calypso (RFID)
international standard are used for public transport systems. They are also used now in Canada (Montreal),
Mexico, Israel, Bogotá and Pereira in Colombia, Stavanger in Norway, etc.
T-money
cards can be used to pay for public transit in Seoul and surrounding cities. Some other South Korean cities have
adopted the system, which can also be used in some stores as cash. T-money replaced Upass, first introduced for
transport payments in 1996 using MIFARE technology.
JR East in Japan introduced SUICa
(Super Urban Intelligent Card) for transport payment service in its railway transportation service in November
2001, using Sony’s FeliCa (Felicity Card) technology. The same Sony technology was used in Hong Kong’s
Octopus card, and Singapore’s EZ-Link card.
In Hong Kong, mass transit is paid for almost exclusively through the use of an RFID technology, called the
Octopus Card. Originally it was launched in September 1997 exclusively for transit fare collection, but has
grown to be similar to a cash card, and can be used in vending machines, fast-food restaurants and
supermarkets. The card can be recharged with cash at add-value machines or in shops, and can be read several
centimetres from the reader.
In Singapore, public transportation buses and trains employ passive RFID
cards known as EZ-Link cards. Traffic into crowded downtown areas is
regulated by variable tolls imposed using an active tagging system
combined with the use of stored-value cards (known as CashCards).
RFID is used in Malaysia Expressways payment system. The name for the
system is Touch ‘n Go. Due to the name and design, one must touch the
card for usage.
The Washington, D.C. Metrorail became the first U.S. urban mass-transit
system to use RFID technology when it introduced the SmarTrip card in
1999.
In Turkey, RFID has been used in the motorways and bridges as a payment
system over ten years.
The Chicago Transit Authority has offered the Chicago Card and the
Chicago Card Plus for rail payments across the entire system since 2002
and for bus payments since 2005.
The New York City Subway is conducting a trial during 2006, utilizing PayPass by MasterCard as fare
payment.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority introduced the use of a CharlieCard RFID as a fare payment
system which is cheaper than its paper or cash equivalent.
Six transit agencies in the King County region of Washington State are collaborating to introduce the Smart
Card, or Orca Card.
The Moscow Metro, the world’s second busiest, was the first system in Europe to introduce RFID smartcards in
1998.
In the UK, op systems for prepaying for unlimited public transport have been devised, making use of RFID
technology. The design is embedded in a creditcard-like pass, that when scanned reveals details of whether the
pass is valid, and for how long the pass will remain valid. The first company to implement this is the NCT
company of Nottingham
City, where the general public affectionately refer to them as “beep cards”. It has since then been implemented
with great success in London, where “Oyster cards” allow for pay-as-you-go travel as well as passes valid for
various lengths of time and in various areas.
In Oslo, Norway, the upcoming public transport payment is to be entirely RFID-based. The system is to be put
into production around spring 2007
In Norway, all public toll roads are equipped with an RFID payment system known as AutoPass.
Since 2002, in Taipei, Taiwan the transportation system uses RFID operated cards as fare collection. The Easy Card
is charged at local convenience stores and metro stations, and can be used in Metro, buses and parking lots. The
uses are planned to extend all throughout the island of Taiwan in the future.
RFID tags are used for electronic toll collection at toll booths with Georgia’s Cruise Card, California’s FasTrak,
Illinois’ I-Pass, Oklahoma’s Pikepass, the expanding eastern states’ E-ZPass system (including Massachusetts’s
Fast Lane,Delaware, New Hampshire Turnpike, Maryland, New Jersey Turnpike, Virginia, and the Maine
Turnpike), Florida’s SunPass, Various systems in Texas including D/FW’s NTTA TollTag, the Austin metro
TxTag and Houston HCTRA EZ Tag (which as of early 2007 are all valid on any Texas toll road), Kansas’s
K-Tag, The “Cross-Israel Highway” (Highway 6), Philippines South Luzon Expressway E-Pass, Brisbane’s
Queensland Motorway E-Toll System in Australia, Autopista del Sol (Sun’s Highway), Autopista Central
(Central Highway), Autopista Los Libertadores, Costanera Norte, Vespucio Norte Express and Vespucio Sur
urban Highways and every forthcoming urban highway (in a “Free Flow” modality) concessioned to private
investors in Chile and all highways in Portugal (Via Verde, the first system in the world to span the entire
network of tolls), France (Liber-T system), Italy (Telepass), Spain (VIA-T), Brazil (Sem Parar – Via Fácil). The
tags, which are usually the active type, are read remotely as vehicles pass through the booths, and tag
information is used to debit the toll from a prepaid account. The system helps to speed traffic through toll plazas
as it records the date, time, and billing data for the RFID vehicle tag. The plaza- and queue-free 407 Express
Toll Route, in the Greater Toronto Area, allows the use of a transponder (an active tag) for all billing. This
eliminates the need to identify a vehicle by licence plate and saves the end user money.
The Transperth public transport network in Perth, Western Australia uses RFID technology in the new
SmartRider ticketing system.
MARTA
(Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority) has transitioned its bus and rail lines from coin tokens to the
new Breeze Card
system which uses RFID tags embedded in disposable paper tickets. More permanent plastic cards are available
for frequent users.
In Rio de Janeiro, “RioCard” passes can be used in buses, ferries, trains and subway. There are two types, one
you cannot recharge, the other one can be recharged if it’s been bought by the company you work for, if they
provided it (only in Brazil).
A number of ski resorts, particularly in the French Alps and in the Spanish and French Pyrenees, have adopted
RFID tags to provide skiers hands-free access to ski lifts. Skiers don’t have to take their passes out of their
pockets.
In Santiago (Chile) the subway system Metro and the recently implemented public transportation system
Transantiago uses an RFID card called Bip or Multivia.
In Medellín
(Colombia) the system Metro and the recently implemented card system uses an RFID card called Cívica.
In Colombia, “Federación Nacional de Cafeteros” uses an RFID solution to trace the coffee.
In Dubai(United Arab Emirates)drivers through certain roads use RFID tags called Salik
In Milano (Italy) the ATM “Azienda Trasporti Milanese” has implemented RFID tags for frequent users.
In Barcelona its used to identify users in a bike sharing system called Bicing to prevent bicycle theft and detect
the periode of bicycle usage.