易通卡
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易通卡(EZ-Link)是 is a contactless smartcard based on Sony's FeliCa smartcard technology, used for payments in Singapore especially for transportation in Singapore . Established in 2001, it was promoted as a means for faster travel due to speedier boarding times on buses. EZ-Link cards are sold, distributed and managed by EZ-Link Private Limited, a subsidiary of Singapore's Land Transport Authority. As of 2005, there are over 8 million EZ-Link cards in circulation, with 4 million card-based transactions occurring daily.
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[编辑] Uses of the card
The card is commonly used in Singapore as a smartcard for paying transportation fees in the city-state's Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), Light Rapid Transit (LRT) and public bus services. The card also serves as a supplementary identification and concession card for students in nationally recognised educational institutes, personnel serving in the Singapore Armed Forces, or senior citizens who are over sixty years old.
The system has since been expanded, with EZ-Link cards being used for payments in Singapore branches of McDonald's, food centres, supermarkets and libraries, and even soft drink purchases from vending machines. Some schools in Singapore have also started to adopt the EZ-Link card as a way to mark the attendance of students and to pay for food served within the school campus.
The same system is used by the Octopus card in Hong Kong and will be used for public transit in The Netherlands.
On December 3 2005, EZ-Link Pte Ltd announced that it was working with NETS to create a new hybrid card which will have the functions of both the EZ-Link card and the CashCard. This card would make it possible for one card to be used for payment on three popular modes of land transport in Singapore — ERP, bus and MRT. Work on this card is expected to be completed in 2007.
[编辑] Technical data
The EZ-Link card operates on a radio frequency (RF) interface of 13.56MHz at 212 kbit/s, with the potential for communication speeds in excess of 847 kbit/s. It employs the Manchester bit coding scheme for noise tolerance against distance fluctuation between the card and the contactless reader, and implements the Triple DES algorithm for security.
[编辑] 价格
Fares range from between S$0.65 to S$2.98 for standard adult EZ-Link cards on the Mass Rapid Transit. Concessionary users usually do not exceed fifty cents a trip on both MRT and bus systems. The fare for a bus trip for adult card users, including line changes usually never exceeds S$1.90.
On the MRT system, there are forms of EZ-Link cards which are meant to be used as single-trip tickets, but the prices of which range are between one or two times the expense of non single-trip tickets, from S$0.90 to S$4.10. In addition, a S$1.00 refundable ticket deposit is charged for each Standard Ticket. This refund can be collected from any General Ticketing Machine when the card is returned to the machine within 30 days of purchase. The smartcard technology contained in each Standard Ticket makes each one costly enough to necessitate recycling of Standard Tickets.
To deter commuters from attempting to evade paying the full fare, which was a problem with the prior magnetic farecard system, the EZ-Link system imposes a maximum deduction at the end of the route of a bus when a person taps his card on the entry card reader, but failed to tap his card on the exit reader prior to disembarkment. If he taps his card on the exit reader when he disembarks, the system will deduct the fare according to the length of journey in stages, instead of the maximum deduction. Initially, this system was not very well received by Singaporean commuters due to numerous glitches. However, most of these glitches were rectified by the second year of operation. To ensure that commuters pay their fares, bus drivers are required to ensure that all commuters tap their EZ-Link cards on the entry reader (this gives off a discernable beep), and as with magnetic farecards, inspectors sometimes board arbitrary buses and check the status of commuter's cards to ensure they have paid their fare. Commuters who paid not using EZ-Link cards and used cash would similarly have receive a proof of purchase for the particular bus trip.
[编辑] 批评
Some people question the need for a children's concession card to be an identity card as well. Indeed, the loss of the concession card would cause much distress to its owner, because administration charges of up to S$10 would be levied for the replacement of a new personalised EZ-Link card.
最初的使用易通卡是必要的，但是许多家长批评易通卡可以在快餐店使用(目前可以在麦当劳使用)。家长说这样给他们定孩子吃“垃圾食品”的量带来了困难。
[编辑] 参考
- Network for Electronic Transfers
- CashCard
[编辑] 外部链接
- EZ-Link Official Site
- QB (non-transit applications agent)
- All-in-one travel card for cars, trains and buses - The Straits Times - 3 December 2005 - 1頁
- ERG Announces Successful Rollout of Singapore Smart Card System - press release on the ERG Group's website
