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Mumbai (Metro Rail News): After opening technical bids on Tuesday, Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRCL) identified three bidders for the upgrade work of Navi Mumbai Metro’s Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) system. The upgrade will enable the AFC system to accept QR codes, smart cards, and the National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) across all Navi Mumbai Metro stations.
Navi Mumbai Metro’s Line 1
Navi Mumbai Metro’s Corridor 1 runs 11.1 km from CBD Belapur Terminal to Pendhar, passing through 11 stations. This line became operational in November 2023. Currently, Navi Mumbai employs RFID tokens to provide access to the AFC system.
To streamline the commuter experience and enhance convenience, MMRCL launched a new plan in January 2024. This plan aims to upgrade the Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) system, allowing commuters to use various methods for fare payment. These methods include the NCMC card, paper QR tickets, mobile QR tickets, message-based ticketing, NFC media, and web ticketing. To implement this plan, a tender was floated with a 6-month deadline to upgrade the AFC system.
Firms
Following are the three firms who submitted bids for the upgrade work of the AFC system for Navi Mumbai Metro.
- Aurionpro Solutions Ltd
- Satyam Software Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
- Paycraft Solution Pvt. Ltd.
Scope of work
The MMRCL’s scope of work encompasses the design, supply, installation, testing, and commissioning of the AFC system by re-engineering/upgrading existing Stations AFC Automatic Gates (AG), Ticket Office Machines (TOMs), Excess Fare Offices (EFOs), Station Computers (SC), and Central Computers (CC). The upgrade will include hardware and software to support various payment methods, including Contactless Smart Cards (Type A) for a certain period, all NCMC cards, paper QR tickets, mobile QR tickets, message-based ticketing, web ticketing, and NFC media.
The scope of work also includes the design, supply, installation, testing, and commissioning of the Central Computer System (CCS) and Acquirer Bank/Financial Institution (FI) for NMML-1. The proposed solution shall work seamlessly to facilitate passenger movement and manage day-to-day data and reports.
The bids will now undergo technical evaluation, a process that can take a few months to complete. Following the technical evaluation, MMRCL will reveal the financial bids of the technically qualified bidders to identify the lowest bidder for the contract.
