Praneeta Prakash 
Supplied
The Land Transport Authority is calling on the government to consider expanding the e-ticketing market to include additional providers.
Board Chair Inosi Kuridrani states that the existing system poses an ongoing burden to the public and complicates enforcement efforts.
Kuridrani highlighted a recent incident in which a LTA staff member encountered public criticism while enforcing e-ticketing regulations, illustrating the difficulties faced by enforcement officers.
The deficiency and the gaps in the system that will make the public struggle more in trying to get through to the e-ticketing and get into the bus and also the LTA. It is hard for us to do the enforcement because of the lack of systems, the lack of data.
Kuridrani says they have requested the relevant ministry to consider introducing another player.
“We have recommended that the government to open up the market, get second and third player into the market, so that the e-ticketing system is competed, among the competition and the best service that you can provide. I’ve already recommended that to government.”
However, Communications Minister Manoa Kamikamica says the local market limits the feasibility of having multiple e-ticketing service providers.
“I am not sure if that is the answer. The market is very small. We did have a tender and Vodafone won the tender so you know if Fiji was a 30million passenger market probably makes sense to have more than one operator so the tender is done so we can’t do much about that but next time in the next contracts for five years so maybe the next time we will look at dual but again it comes down to market size.”
LTA hopes competition will be considered in the next review.
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