BEST approves proposal on RFID card

Mumbai: A RFID (radio-frequency identification) smart card will no longer be required for a one-day pass of Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) buses. The BEST committee has approved a proposal pertaining to the RFID card. Earlier, exemption from RFID cards was given only over weekends (Saturday and Sunday). The move will help thousands of commuters who want to purchase one-day passes sans the RFID card. However, the decision, which is effective August 29 onward, will affect BEST earnings.

At present, one-day BEST passes are available for Rs 50 (island city), Rs 60 (suburbs) and Rs 90 (entire Mumbai).

An official of BEST said that many people, who came to visit the city, could not get RFID cards for short periods of time. Hence, the decision had been taken to provide them with the one-day pass without the smart card.

In August 2015, the BEST provided exemption from RFID cards over weekends to that people who wanted to travel could get the one-day pass without hassles.

A BEST committee member, requesting anonymity, said that the BEST was already facing a financial crisis and that if commuters were allowed to purchase a one-day pass in the absence of the RFID card, it would further dent the earnings of the undertaking as most commuters would prefer a one-day pass over tickets.

According to the proposal, the commuters’ response would be gauged before allowing them to purchase the one-day pass permanently sans RFID cards.