Two Together with one PlusBus?

[Joshua_Harman]

Don't Stagecoach driver's actually issue smartcards on the spot when buying a ticket? Where as Go Ahead companies like Transport for Cornwall/Citybus/Bluestar will only issue them online to be posted out or from a travel shop? So it makes more sense logically for somebody to try and buy their ticket off a stagecoach vehicle. I know the weekly version of the Plymouth skipper can only be brought on a smartcard so effectively Transport for Cornwall/Citybus cannot sell these to new customers on the bus, where as Stagecoach obviously can which seems very daft on Go Ahead's part.

Yes, Stagecoach will give them out to you (if not purchased online) for a weekly ticket, (at the charge of £1!) with no way to buy a paper weekly ticket (as far as im aware).

Go-Ahead, can issue them at their travelshop's I Do believe, but that combined with online issueing is much slower than stagecoach's system.

 

[XAM2175]

Don't know the scientific detail between standard QR codes and Aztec railway ones bit your point about potentially adding plus bus to Etickets and paper roll tickets could be feasible.

All but the cheapest and most-basic of 2D barcode scanners will be able to read Aztec codes just as easily as they do QR codes - the challenge, as you've noted, is how the ticketing computer handles the data it gets from the scanner.

 

[Wallsendmag]

Plus bus is already available on Paper Roll Ticket (PRT) format

 

[Argyle 1980]

Plus bus is already available on PRT

As a show the driver format opposed to a QR scan on bus "Ticketer" machine systems?

 

[py_megapixel]

Go-Ahead, can issue them at their travelshop's I Do believe, but that combined with online issueing is much slower than stagecoach's system.

Also they charge you £5 which is extortionate in my opinion. Go-Ahead are also particularly fussy about not putting tickets on any other ITSO card.

ITSO in its current form is a farce. Compared to a paper ticket, you get extra complications and expense in exchange for absolutely no meaningful benefit to the passenger.

 

[Wallsendmag]

As a show the driver format opposed to a QR scan on bus "Ticketer" machine systems?

Yes, the Bus companies would have to all the rail barcode keys to their databse to allow it to scan

 

[skyhigh]

I don't fully understand the technical details (@Wallsendmag will probably know) but as I understand it the barcodes issued by Ticketer machines on buses aren't compatible with the Aztec codes in rail use. As an example- West Yorkshire day tickets issued on buses can't be read by conductor's handheld scanners, and those issued on train can't be read by bus ticket machines. However, the West Yorkshire app now has an option to display both bus and train barcodes depending on where you're using the ticket. So it seems like that's an easier fix than getting the machines to read the opposite barcodes.

 

[Wallsendmag]

I don't fully understand the technical details (@Wallsendmag will probably know) but as I understand it the barcodes issued by Ticketer machines on buses aren't compatible with the Aztec codes in rail use. As an example- West Yorkshire day tickets issued on buses can't be read by conductor's handheld scanners, and those issued on train can't be read by bus ticket machines. However, the West Yorkshire app now has an option to display both bus and train barcodes depending on where you're using the ticket. So it seems like that's an easier fix than getting the machines to read the opposite barcodes.

Each barcode has an encryption key that need to be loaded either intothe device or back office. I doubt that the National Rail systems could cope with adding every bus company key as it would increase the scanning time considerably.

 

[XAM2175]

I don't fully understand the technical details (@Wallsendmag will probably know) but as I understand it the barcodes issued by Ticketer machines on buses aren't compatible with the Aztec codes in rail use.

They are almost certainly capable of reading both the QR and Aztec symbologies, but they can't decrypt them. As @Wallsendmag notes, this relies on the key being available and valid.

 

[Flying Snail]

Each barcode has an encryption key that need to be loaded either intothe device or back office. I doubt that the National Rail systems could cope with adding every bus company key as it would increase the scanning time considerably.

A simple solution would be to use a single separate key for all multi-modal/multi-operator tickets that way neither rail or bus companies need give access to their base keys and only 1 extra needs to be added to each operator's system.

 

[skyhigh]

They are almost certainly capable of reading both the QR and Aztec symbologies, but they can't decrypt them. As @Wallsendmag notes, this relies on the key being available and valid.

You're probably right, but when you try and scan a bus code it completely ignores it, rather than the 'Decryption failed' message you occasionally get with train tickets, which is what confused me

 

[XAM2175]

You're probably right, but when you try and scan a bus code it completely ignores it, rather than the 'Decryption failed' message you occasionally get with train tickets, which is what confused me

In fairness it is possible that the scanner software is in fact not configured to support other symbologies, but the hardware for reading is the same across all the types of 2D barcode.