L.A. county awards transit smart-card deal
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority has tapped Affiliated Computer Services Inc. of Dallas to deploy a smart-card system for transit riders.
The five-year, $31.5 million contract has a pair of two-year options that could raise its overall value to $60 million.
Under the contract, ACS of Dallas will build and operate a regional service center to administer the Regional Transit Access Pass program. The company will furnish an array of services, including cardholder registration, card inventory and distribution, and point-of-sale network management.
Customer contact will be conducted through a Web site, an interactive voice response phone system, customer service representatives, mail and fax.
The pass lets riders in the Los Angeles metro area use a single smart card for transit fare payment on all regional bus and rail systems.
In addition to the metropolitan transportation authority, 11 other agencies are participating in the smart-card program from the outset, and more area transportation agencies are expected to sign on in the future.
William Welsh is the deputy editor of Government Computer News'
sister publication, Washington Technology.
About the Author
William Welsh is the managing editor of Defense Systems.