LAGOS Metropolitan Area Transport Authority, LAMATA, is working with the vendor of the e-ticketing system to resolve identified teething challenges associated with the payment platform.

LAMATA, the regulator of the BRT and BFS systems, said it was not unaware of the challenges which commuters have been experiencing with the use of the Lagos Connect Card, which was introduced in July, 2013 to improve commuters’ experience using the bus services.

The authority said that one of the major drawbacks of the system was the significant drop in the operator’s revenue, a development which had seriously affected its operational effectiveness, typified by the non-availability of the payment equipment on all the buses, a situation that has discouraged many users of the bus system.
The drop in revenue has been linked to slow pick up of the scheme with large number of commuters still using paper tickets thereby making the discount offered on the e-ticket card non-effective as planned.

This is further worsened by the dishonesty displayed by some commuters who do not pay the correct fares by tapping in and tapping out after they travel short distance while remaining on the bus, thus robbing the operator of the expected revenue.
According to LAMATA, the drop in revenue has continued to impact on the operator’s operational effectiveness including deployment and servicing of validators among other responsibilities. This has necessitated the need to review fares for the minority undertaking short journeys.

As a result, LAMATA has approved an adjustment in the minimum fare paid using the card to N50 during peak period and N45 during off peak period. The cost is still lower than the minimum fares of N70 for the paper tickets. The adjustment is to enable the operator recover cost in order to be able to meet up recurrent expenses and overhead costs.
LAMATA has assured that the new plan will ensure the fixing of all the identified teething challenges associated with the system which includes dysfunctional bus validators, non-availability of the Lagos Connect card at all stations, absence of bus validator on some buses and inability to top up at all stations, among others.