22.10.2024

Fairtiq: A one-way ticket for public transport

Building design

Local traffic, Mobility, PUBLIC TRANSPORT

Fairtiq has already significantly simplified public transportation in Switzerland and Austria. Now the technology is coming to Germany. Image source: Fairtiq

Fairtiq is a smartphone app from Switzerland that aims to simplify traveling by public transport. This is because there are often so many different fares within a city that confusion can quickly arise. But other countries and apps are also using this idea. For example, Munich and Regensburg with the “Swipe + Ride” pilot project. You can find out how the Fairtiq and “Swipe + Ride” system works here.

Fairtiq is a smartphone app from Switzerland that aims to simplify traveling by public transport. There are often so many different fares within a city that it can quickly become confusing. But other countries and apps are also using this idea. For example, Munich and Regensburg with the “Swipe + Ride” pilot project. You can find out how the Fairtiq and “Swipe + Ride” system works here.

With Fairtiq, it is possible to pay the cheapest price for every bus and train journey. To do this, you need a smartphone with the app installed and must be traveling within the Fairtiq area of validity. So far, the app is mainly available in its country of origin – Switzerland. There, you can simply press Start at the start of your journey and Stop at the end. The app then calculates the best fare and at the end of the month you are charged via PayPal or credit card. In Switzerland, this is already possible on all trains, buses, streetcars and ferries. 20 percent of all ticket purchases there are made via Fairtiq.

The app is also popular in France: around a quarter of travelers there use Fairtiq to get the cheapest fare on public transport and when traveling within the country. In Germany, around a third of ticket purchases are made via Fairtiq, particularly in North Rhine-Westphalia. And there is currently a pilot project called “Swipe + Ride” in Munich.

The founder of Fairtiq, a former SBB top manager, is Gian-Mattia Schucan and holds a doctorate in physics. In 2013, he resigned from the Swiss Federal Railways, which had decided against ticket-free boarding and alighting for cost reasons. The nationwide introduction of Fairtiq in Switzerland cost 5 million euros – significantly less than the 300 million euros SBB had budgeted.

Billing at Fairtiq is based on a kilometer-based airline tariff. To obtain these prices, you need to download the Fairtiq Lab app. In Switzerland and Austria, this is already possible without an access code. In test regions in Germany, such as Munich, you still need a code to use the system as a tester. The app has a daily cap and never charges more than 49 euros in Germany, which corresponds to the price of the 49-euro Germany ticket.

Fairtiq’s mission is to make traveling by public transport easier than ever before. The company is expanding and wants to reach users internationally. Travelers no longer need to know fares or zones, but can rely on automatically receiving a fair bill. Fairtiq always calculates the cheapest available ticket for the route traveled – transfers and changes between modes of transport such as train, bus, streetcar or boat are not relevant. You don’t have to decide on a final destination in advance, but can get off at any time.

When tickets are checked, travelers must have the Fairtiq app ready and show the barcode via “Show ticket”. There is a small risk here, because if the cell phone battery is empty, you no longer have a ticket. Another risk is forgetting to press the “Stop” button at the end of the journey. But the app promises to remind you. There is also a Smart Stop function which, according to the company, is designed to assist with check-out. Fairtiq also sets strict standards when it comes to data protection.

In Germany, it is now possible to travel by bus and train between the Munich and Regensburg transport networks using a smartphone. The pilot project from the Munich Transport and Tariff Association (MVV) called “Swipe + Ride” is intended to be the first step towards a nationwide electronic tariff for local public transport. This should make the sometimes complicated search for the right ticket at the best price superfluous.

MVV launched the “Swipe + Ride” pilot project last year. Now the model, which is based on the Fairtiq app, can also be used in the Regensburg public transport network (RVV) and for journeys from one network to another. Occasional travelers in particular, for whom a subscription is not worthwhile, should benefit from this.

In addition to MVV and RVV, Verkehrsverbund Großraum Ingolstadt (VG) and the railroad companies DB Regio, agilis, Bayerische Regiobahn and Länderbahn are also involved in the project. The Free State of Bavaria is supporting the project, officially called “eTarif in der Modellregion Donau-Isar”, with around 500,000 euros. The pilot project will run for a total of two years. Fairtiq is supporting MVV and its partners with the check-in/check-out technology.

So far, 10,000 codes have been issued to testers in the Munich region. Bavarian Transport Minister Kerstin Schreyer explained: “With the ‘SWIPE + RIDE’ pilot, we are further reducing the ‘fare system’ barrier to change. Occasional drivers in particular no longer have to worry about finding the right ticket. At the same time, pilot customers can actively participate in the further development of the fare system – as an important part of the project.”

The response has been great. And there is also interest elsewhere in ticket-free billing for public transport use. In Austria, the “SimplyGo!” app, which works with the same technology as Fairtiq, is popular. Denmark has also been experimenting with the Fairtiq method since September 2022. And in London, a similar method of checking in and out with an Oyster or credit card has been around for a long time. The system then selects the cheapest fare for all journeys made at the end of the day. Incidentally, the Oyster Card celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2023. Read all about the success story here.

Fairtiq wants to be even smarter. In future, the technology will recognize when you walk to deduct this from your travel costs. GPS tracking could even soon make it unnecessary to swipe to check in and check out. In Switzerland, the number of Fairtiq users is growing by ten to 15 percent every month. And Fairtiq is also revolutionizing the ticket market in Germany.

09.01.2025

Portrait

Baumeister of the future: In memoriam Syd Mead

Building design

Future, Graphic, Hollywood, Movie

Sid Mead's "Voight-Kampff Device" (Photo: Bernard Goldbach from Cashel

The American film designer Syd Mead passed away on December 30, 2019 at the age of 86.

The American film designer Syd Mead passed away on December 30, 2019 atthe age of 86.Thanks to him, films such as “Blade Runner” became the success – and cult film – that made them unforgettable. It was only on November 1, 2019 that his fans celebrated “Blade Runner Day”, as the futuristic film noir from 1982 was set in a dystopia in November last year. Now fans are mourning the death of the important visionary.

The appealing thing about the future is that it is neither tangible, visible nor graspable. And that it simply isn‘t yet. Science fiction graphic artists have made it their task to visualize speculative future universes, and there are many of them. But there was only one visual futurist – Syd Mead. The American designer, who achieved international fame through his illustrations for the film industry and the automotive industry, has just passed away.

Mead was born in the US state of Minnesota in 1933, served in the army and studied design. After graduating from the ArtCenter in Los Angeles, he worked at the Ford Motor Company’s Advanced Styling Center, where he projected futuristic vehicle designs into the near future. Mead went freelance in the 1970s and produced visualizations for large industrial corporations, including Philips, Sony and Chrysler. But that was not all: he populated his graphics with people and placed them in urban environments.

The myth of Mead is based on his visually powerful depictions of future worlds and their products. In the golden era of science fiction films in the 1970s and 1980s, it was therefore no wonder that Hollywood took notice of the visionary. With his designs, he was involved in Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Tron, 2010, Aliens and, last but not least, Blade Runner – probably his most relevant work in the medium of film. He not only designed machines and vehicles, but also the built environment in which these technological wonders of the future were used.

Syd Mead was more than just an inspiration for all those interested in visualizing the potential worlds of tomorrow. Among designers in the fields of film, industry and computer games, he is regarded as a titan, as unrivaled. His graphics are equally appreciated by architects and urban planners. In addition to his work for Blade Runner, the space habitat in Neill Blomkamp’s film Elysium, produced in 2013, is just another example of the fascinating settlement spaces of the future for which Mead was responsible.

An ongoing exhibition at the architecture gallery O&O Depot Berlin pays tribute to his visionary design art until January 30, 2020.

06.11.2024

Portfolio

Realize flush doors with ease

Building design

General

Flush-fitting doors with aesthetic shadow gaps and finishing edges are a feature of modern architecture. The trend towards the reduction of visible structures to purist solutions and the integration of technical and functional elements has prevailed in many areas in recent years. Design aspirations and reality meet on the construction site. Elaborate detailed solutions can quickly become a time and cost guzzler.

Teckentrup has developed the “Designprofil-FB” to achieve a high level of design aesthetics without a great deal of effort: This frame solution enables the simple installation of flush doors. The profile is available for Teckentrup’s 62 series fire protection, security and multi-purpose doors. It is simply combined with the standard frames. In combination with a block frame, the door is flush with the wall; as a supplement to corner or U-frames, the door leaf is flush with the frame and at the same level as the skirting board.

Technically, there is complete freedom: The door is available with smoke protection (DIN 18095/EN 1634-3), it is fitted with the tried-and-tested 3D hinges (galvanized or stainless steel) and also comes with optional flush glazing; fire protection is possible up to class T90, burglary protection up to class RC3 for thick rebate doors and up to RC4 for thin rebate doors. The clear passage width is not reduced.
Conclusion: With the design profile FB, functional doors with an aesthetic appearance can be realized securely and in line with building site requirements.

Product: Design profile FB
Manufacturer: Teckentrup Door Solutions
Design: Profile is mitred and applied to the frame at the factory