ITSO Ltd

ITSO Ltd is a non-profit membership organisation assisting standardisation of public transport ticketing in the United Kingdom.[1]

Its objectives are to:

  • maintain and develop the ITSO specification for transport smart cards
  • operate and manage an interoperable smart media environment
  • facilitate and support development of smart ticketing schemes that comply with the ITSO specification.

ITSO was established as a result of discussions between various UK passenger transport authorities concerning the lack of standards for interoperable smart card ticketing. These discussions grew to include other authorities, transport operators and government. ITSO membership covers the breadth of the transport sector including transport operators (bus, tram and train operating companies), suppliers to the industry, local authorities and public transport executives. Supported by the Department for Transport, ITSO has links with major transport industry organisations and established smart card schemes in the UK and overseas.

ITSO started out as the Integrated Transport Smartcard Organisation but this name has been dropped and is now just 'ITSO'. That is because the specification covers other forms of ticketing besides smartcards and transport.

The Department for Transport introduced in 2008 the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme for all people of retirement age and eligible disabled persons (according to the Transport Acts 1985 and 2000) using buses, which uses ITSO smart cards. Transport Scotland and the Welsh Government have implemented ITSO in their concessionary travel schemes.

Specification

The ITSO specification is a technical platform on which interoperable smart ticketing schemes can be built. It defines the key technical items and interfaces that are required to deliver interoperability between components of a ticketing system – smart media (smart cards), points of service and back offices – and separate ticketing systems. ITSO is unique in transport smart card specifications in that it covers all these components.

English National Concessionary Travel Scheme

The English National Concessionary Travel Scheme is a national scheme by the Department for Transport in conjunction with local authorities across England, in which ITSO worked to standardise and ensure interoperability of cards and readers. The ITSO logo features on the bottom right corner of the bus pass.

Members

The ITSO member list includes most of the major bus operators, ticket issuing system vendors and passenger transport executives.[2]

Non-ITSO systems

The largest commercial-based scheme is by Transport for London, marketed as Oyster. TfL has funded Oyster readers for all London rail stations in zones 1-6, and the Department for Transport has worked with TfL to ensure the readers are compatible with the ITSO specification.[3]

The UK's equivalent interoperability organisation for sectors other than transport ticketing is Lasseo, which provides an open specification for UK local authorities to add public services onto ITSO based cards. A Scottish consortium of local authorities looks at standard and interoperability issues in Scotland.[4]

ITSO on Mobile

In 2018, ITSO launched ITSO on Mobile, the first mobile ticketing solution that emulates an ITSO smartcard. ITSO partnered with Google to develop the solution that allows passengers to buy and use ITSO tickets on their android mobile phone. ITSO set up the solution to extend the ITSO technology and benefits to mobile ticketing. Transport operator members of ITSO can integrate ITSO on Mobile into their existing ITSO scheme structure, including their retail apps and websites. One of the key features of ITSO smartcards is now replicated on a mobile phone, the ITSO on Mobile engine securely delivers purchased tickets, within seconds, directly to the Google Pay digital wallet on the phone and are immediately read on ITSO enabled ticket validators on buses, rail and tram. ITSO on Mobile is the only mobile ticketing solution in the UK public transport industry that combines Google Pay functionality with the ITSO products. − ITSO on Mobile was first launched in 2018 with passenger transport executive, Transport for West Midlands. Swift on Mobile went live on the Midlands tram network. In 2020 Swift on Mobile launched a trial with rail passengers in the West Midlands and is working to deploy the system across the Midlands bus network in 2020/21. − ITSO on Mobile is delivered by Yotra Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary company of ITSO Ltd that has been created specifically to develop, deliver into service and then operate ITSO on Mobile.

References
  1. House of Commons Transport Committee (2006–2007). The Draft Local Transport Bill and the Transport Innovation Fund: ninth report of session 2006-07: Volume II. London: TSO (The Stationery Office). pp. 8 of 367. ISBN 9780215035851.
  2. "Members and Registered Suppliers of ITSO". Retrieved 20 January 2013.
  3. "The ITSO Specification". Retrieved 7 February 2013.
  4. Atkins, Wendy (2003). The Smart Card Report. Elsevier Science Ltd. p. 324. ISBN 9781856174176. page 176.
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