Pre-paid card for public transport gets Cabinet nod

Cabinet nod has been received to introduce an online pre-paid transit card for Sri Lanka’s public transport service and to implement an electronic system for charging fees, based on a proposal of Lanka Clear (Pvt.) Ltd under the National Card Scheme (NCS).

To implement the Central Bank’s NCS initiative, Lanka Clear had submitted a proposal to implement an online pre-paid transit card project for public transport services in Sri Lanka.

Accordingly, Transport Minister Gamini Lokuge on Monday sought approval of the Cabinet of Ministers through a resolution to take necessary measures to utilise the online pre-paid transit card developed for the country’s transport sector, subject to the approval of the project proposal.

The then Cabinet of Ministers approved a proposal in 2018 to setup a monitoring committee comprising representatives from all institutions relevant to the sector in order to implement a project to introduce an online pre-paid transit card for public transport buses and trains.

Under the second phase of the project, Lanka Clear is in the process of introducing ‘LankaPay 2 in 1’, a chip-based NFC card with both debit and stored value functionality to provide secure tap-and–go convenience for low value payments including public transport.