The Autoritat del Transport Metropolitana (ATM) integrated the tickets of all operators more than 20 years ago and gave birth to the popular T-10 that many citizens have carried in their wallets for almost two decades. Now the goal is for everyone to carry a T-Mobilitat in any of its formats. The new general director, Manuel Valdés, has put the plastic card in the back of his iPhone case.
Android phone users can now validate with their mobile phone, when will iPhone users like you be able to do so?
If it were up to us it would already be available. The programming and technical developments have already been done, but Apple does not allow transport tickets to be entered into its Wallet, it only accepts directly commercial issues.
Other cities have achieved it…
No, they do it by using bank cards, but it is not directly the public transport card as we intend. We have made allegations in Brussels because Apple users are being discriminated against. And we have also spoken with the company's teams in California. In Paris they are just like us, waiting for the will of Apple or Europe to force them to allow access to public transport tickets.
Now you can have T-Mobilitat on a plastic card, a cardboard card or on your Android phone. What is called to be the majority mode?
The card helps people who do not want to do the process because they are here temporarily or because they don't feel like it, to be able to have a card and be integrated into the system. 28% of validations in February were in cardboard; Plastic is the majority, with 67%. And 5% on Android phones. In any case, they are still supports for the same thing. In the future you can put it on a ring, bracelet or whatever.
When do you expect to complete the deployment of T-Mobilitat?
T-Mobilitat is not the contactless card itself, it is the technological system behind it to offer a series of services that were unthinkable with magnetic tickets. This year it will be fully implemented with all those functionalities that are not yet implemented. For example, two titles can be carried on the same card. You will open the application on your phone, bring the card closer and you can change whether you want to validate with the one-zone card or the three-zone card depending on what interests you.
The final objective of T-Mobilitat is the disappearance of the zones to move to a mileage system. When will that be?
It is another stage, the next phase. I am glad if this year we finish the implementation in the Barcelona area with the titles that we already know and begin the rollout in the rest of Catalonia. That can surely overlap. And when everything is ready, then we can focus our efforts on seeing how the change to the kilometer rate is made.
Is the model already defined?
Yes, the basic documents with the general guidelines have been drawn up, it just needs to be timed. The number of resources is finite, so we must first finish the implementation and then dedicate ourselves to the next phase. When the decision is made to want to operate in a different way, with the kilometer rate, it can be done.
Is there any horizon marked on the calendar?
Not yet.
Therefore, the possibility of paying for Bicing, AMBici or a taxi with T-Mobilitat even less?
The system is designed to integrate all public transport systems and the public bicycle is a candidate to be part of it. It is not ruled out that in the future other private services for public use may enter, but it is not the most immediate objective, we have to go in steps.
After four months at the head of the ATM, have you already understood how this project can have so many accumulated delays, problems and unforeseen events?
I have not started looking back, I have focused on looking at what we have and working on what remains to be finished. It's such a big hole in time that digging into the past doesn't add anything.
The relationship with the concessionaire company in charge of the project, Soc Mobilitat, has been very tense at times. How it is now?
They have a contract, some commitments and a calendar. We make sure that they dedicate the resources they have to dedicate, that they put the involvement that is needed to obtain the desired results and that they are transparent.
Was it wise to leave a technological and model change of such magnitude in the hands of a dealership?
The important thing is that, unlike other systems, this one allows system governance. In cities that have it through bank cards, your data goes to the banks and you are much more limited to carry out certain actions. Not here, it has cost what it has cost and the story is what it is, but the moment it is fully implemented, we govern the system.
Rodalies is free and the most used cards, such as T-Usual and T-Jove, are half price. Is this policy sustainable over time?
We have not marked the bonuses. Public transport needs resources for its maintenance, it must be sustainable, not only environmentally, but also economically. A part of the financing comes from the user, now it is more or less over 36% of the total, and the rest comes from the administrations.
Before it was distributed approximately 50%...
There are places like Luxembourg where 100% of the system is financed. It is a model, but I don't think it is the best. We have not had many people who have left their cars and switched to public transport as a result of the discounts. Yes, people who are already users travel more.
In other words, more than attracting new travelers, has recurrence been gained?
The travelers captured from the private vehicle are very few, minimal. It has been more noticeable in a transition from T-Casual to T-Usual, and it is very good that that happens. If you pay for a title that allows you to make as many trips as you want, then maybe from here to there instead of walking, you take the bus.
Returning to original prices will be a complicated political decision.
Yes, of course. Everything can remain the same if the administrations decide that it is not the users who pay and there is a permanent commitment from all of them.
Do you contemplate that scenario?
It is unlikely. The bonuses that are being given are flat, at all hours and to the vast majority of users. They respond to a specific and exceptional situation. Now the aid from the administrations should be maintained, but it would be more interesting if each transport authority could decide to dedicate it to where it is most needed to offer the best possible solutions.
What would they use it for at the ATM?
There is a need for new rolling stock to respond to demand and for infrastructure that is about to run out. A better offer could be given, but you need money to buy trains, and that requires contributions that must be maintained, incorporating the flexibility to decide how the money is spent.
And would you maintain part of the extraordinary discounts in force?
There are discounted titles that general users could pay perfectly without representing any crisis. We are talking about about 20 euros more per month. A bonus can help make the system more equitable, like what we are doing with the titles of groups that have special needs, or make the system more efficient. In that sense, for example, off-peak travelers should be rewarded to make some of the people shift and thus gain more capacity during peak hours to incorporate more travelers. You have to start playing at that level of detail to give greater efficiency to the system.
Is it an option on the table?
When T-Mobilitat is fully operational, users who travel at certain times outside of peak periods or based on usage may be offered bonuses. Solutions limited to certain routes could also be made. If you have to give something a bonus, let it not be the entrance tunnels to Barcelona during rush hour.
After the pandemic, Barcelona City Council tried to flatten rush hour and reached an agreement with unions and employers, but no relevant changes have been seen.
It is not something that an institution can do alone; if flexible hours are made, it must be at the country level. And this is not going to be done in one year or two, it takes time to prepare everyone.
In addition to this, what other solutions can help deal with public transport that has record numbers of users and saturation?
Provide more offer so that there is better service. You can also stop making some stops, and only keep those that are most needed, although it is delicate because you always hurt someone.
And is there room to attract new users?
We must not fall into the trap that since there are so many people, if new investments are not made, there will be no new users. In the imagination of the car user there will never be enough attractions, but it is more of a cultural issue than anything else. Public transport already works well enough, there are many lines and many hours of the day when there is no saturation. Therefore, there is capacity to carry people.
The contributions from the administrations prevented a serious hole in public transport during the pandemic. Has financial health been restored?
The problem with the system is that we are paying for it year after year and it is difficult to plan. We are going day-to-day instead of being able to have a four-year plan. A financing plan is urgent, ideally for ten years, but I am happy with it being four.
Meanwhile, is new debt being generated?
It is not that a hole is being opened, the means are being provided to be able to assume the expenses, but there are a series of pending investments that require a financing plan to be able to address them as soon as possible. Administrations must introduce this need into their priorities. If not, there will be no improvement in the offer.
