Malta Public Transport yesterday said it has put measures into place to beat bus ticket cheats who may try and abuse of the company’s decision to offer ticket refunds to those who have not yet received their new tallinja discount cards in the post.
MPT said it was aware that there may be cases where card applicants abuse of the refund system made available by MPT by claiming multiple ticket refunds for tickets they did not purchase or use themselves. Put simply, people could just pick used tickets up from the floor and claim that they had paid for them.
Tallinja card applicants who are using the bus service are to pay for the service until they receive their card. As from tomorrow (1 July), they would have to pay €2 for every trip, opposed to the current €1.30 since the rates have been revised, at least until applicants receive their discount card. The majority of the holders are to receive their card by today, however some may receive their cards later in the week, according to MPT.
The operator received as many as 128,000 applications to date ever since it launched the card system earlier this year. Those who registered for the card by 19 June are to receive the card by 1 July. The number of applicants who are bound to receive the card by 1 July out of the 128,000 registered applicants are 100,000-plus, MPT said. MPT said it has received around 25,000 applications in the last 10 days or so.
Card holders who have not received their card as yet and paid for their fares will get a refund from the operator. The operator will be giving the refund in top-ups.
Asked by this newsroom if any measures are in place to beat potential cheats, a spokesman for MPT said that the bus operator’s top-most priority is to give a good service to their customers. However, the spokesman did not rule out that there may be cases whereby commuters take advantage of the situation and attempt to claim a refund for tickets they did not use themselves.
MPT explained that tickets have a validity of two hours so if one were to present more than one ticket used in that same two-hour period, it would be obvious that the commuter is making a false claim. MPT also highlighted that the company is working 24/7 to ensure that the rest of the cards – around 28,000 – will be distributed by this coming weekend. This, they said, will help minimise the risk of commuters making any false claims in terms of tickets purchased.
A mitigating measure, the spokesman explained, is that MPT has a record of the date and time each and every card was posted and when it is likely to arrive at the home of applicants. Therefore, he continued, if such cases arose, MPT will be able to determine whether the refund claims are genuine.
“We would know whether the tickets were purchased by the applicants of the card before or after they received the card at their home since if we posted the card on Tuesday for instance, they are likely to receive the card by Thursday or Friday latest.
“Commuters who purchase any tickets after that time-frame will not be eligible for a refund,” the spokesperson said.
But this newsroom insisted that there still exists a ‘loophole’ when it comes to commuters who claim that they ‘purchased’ multiple tickets before they received the card to which the spokesman said: “We have implemented a number of safety measures and have controls in place to minimise this risk,” MPT said.
The new tallinja card will entitle holders to reduced fares and will make it easy to use the bus without having to purchase a ticket. It is an intelligent card and will be personalised with the holder's photo and name and can be topped up with credit easily either online, over the phone, at one of Malta Public Transport's sales outlets or at any MaltaPost post office. The credit on the card will not expire.
The new concept will also aim to make up for lost time which normally comes as a result of commuters having to pay their fares in cash when boarding a bus which, at times, slows the boarding process and which in turn leads to motorists getting stuck behind buses. The card concept will also make the bus service more efficient, resulting in shorter journey times, punctuality, and less air pollution. The government has been hammering on the fact that buses heavily contribute to traffic congestion and measures implemented in the bus service will help reduce traffic on our roads.
Day ticket eliminated for adults, foreign students
Asked whether foreign students will have the option of purchasing a day ticket, MPT said that adults and foreign students won’t have the option of purchasing a day ticket, unlike Kartanzjan holders, children and persons with a disability who can make use of the ticket as a result of the capping of 0.50c a day or €2 a week.
However, MPT explained that foreign students, for instance, can opt to pay 0.75c per trip but the amount will not exceed €26 per month. In the event such students will be eligible for student rates, the total amount one would have to pay for the service for a month would be reduced to €21.
Complaints being seen
This newsroom today received several complaints from customers who applied for the tallinja card in April but still haven’t received it, at least until early this afternoon.
Contacted, MPT said that besides the cards which were delivered this morning by post, the operator will be running a second delivery of cards through MaltaPost this afternoon.