Qld signs Cubic to run Go Card for three more years

Cubic Transportation will continue operating Queensland’s electronic public transport ticketing system until 2019 under a three-year contract extension signed last week.

Cubic, which is the company behind London’s Oyster Card and Sydney’s Opal card, won the job of building and supporting the Go Card in 2003, under a $134 million deal with state government rail operator TransLink.

The contract expires in 2016, and TransLink has asked Cubic to stay on for another three years while it tests the market for new suppliers and solutions.

A spokesman for TransLink said the value of the extension was commercial in confidence. iTnews has requested comment on why the agency decided not to release the financial terms of the deal.

TransLink is currently talking to suppliers about overhauling the Go Card contract in favour of a "next generation ticketing solution”.

It envisions that Queensland commuters will in the near future be able to pay for their fares using a contactless chip in their smartphone or bank card.

September tender documents said the state expected to be able to announce the winner of the refreshed contract by March 2017.

Cubic confirmed it had thrown its hat back into the ring to manage the renewed Go Card system.

The Go Card is currently used to pay for 85 percent of all trips made on public transport in South East Queensland.