Three months after the GO GEORGE Smart Card has gone live on 15 November 2018, passengers from all over town, young and old, are using their cards to board. The latest sales figures show that more than 19 000 Smart Cards have been sold to date.
Trips can be loaded onto cards in different price categories, costing only R9 per trip when bundles of 10 or more trips are bought, and R10 per trip when less than 10 trips are bought per transaction. However, despite the saving, most passengers seem to buy only two trips at a time.
“We have customers who cannot afford to buy more trips; that is why we have different options to suit everyone’s needs,” says James Robb, GO GEORGE Manager. “But we really want to encourage those who are in the position to buy 10 trips or more, to do so and enjoy the benefits of an affordable transport system.”
Hold the card in the right place
Most initial challenges of the automated system have been addressed but holding the card in the right place in front of the card reader, and long enough for the deduction of the trip to register, remains an issue. People seem to be over-cautious not to hold their cards in front of the card reader too long, but there is ample time to wait for the fourth green light and then remove the card.
Keep Smart Card safe
Passengers are reminded that they should treat their Smart Cards with the utmost caution and keep them in a safe place. No remaining trips on lost or stolen cards can be transferred to a new card.
For any enquiries about the location of Smart Card mobile vehicles and kiosks or top-up vendors, or how to use the card, phone the GO GEORGE Call Centre on 0800 044 044.