The Eastern Cape Transport Tertiary Cooperative (ECTTC) has partnered with the Forus Digital Group and Ecentric Payment Solutions to introduce a digital platform for taxi commuters in the province.
The initiative, announced in Mthatha this week, is known as the “Wealth on Wheels” (WOW) Cashless and Digitisation Project, and is spearheaded by the South African National Taxi Council (Santaco). It will be a web and mobile app used by scholar transport and commuter taxis.
ECTTC is a tertiary cooperative established in 2014 and is the business arm for Santaco. It is owned by its members, who are all operators in the minibus taxi industry.
According to a statement, the initiative, which will be rolled out in two phases, will provide commuters in the Eastern Cape with a convenient cashless payment solution, as well as a GPS tracking system and real-time camera monitoring.
The first phase is focused on modernising scholar transport, to offer a safer and more efficient service for students and their families. It will be implemented early in 2024.
The second phase will introduce cashless payments for all taxi services, effectively eliminating the need for cash transactions.
“The WOW digital platform is designed to create a safe and efficient transport system, while benefiting local communities,” says Santaco.
“By migrating from cash to the WOW card or wallet, commuters will enjoy a streamlined and secure payment experience. The platform will allow commuters to access a card top-up experience through a variety of channels, including online, in-store, kiosks and through an agent network.”
Additionally, commuters will be able to store their ticket balances in multiple near-field communication formats, such as wristbands, key fobs and on their smartphones.
Ecentric is the system operator of the Forus Digital Group’s platform. Ecentric says it enables the integration of the platform with the legacy banking system, system rollout, configuration and 24/7/365 monitoring.
Forus Digital Group's technology enables seamless digital payments and transactions in a transaction fee-free model. This is coupled with digital applications that streamline business processes.
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