THE NATIONAL TRANSPORT Authority (NTA) has awarded a contract worth €3.6 million for the development of a new mobile ticketing app that’ll allow public transport users to purchase and have their tickets on their phone.

The app – which is initially earmarked to be rolled out on a number of Bus Éireann routes – would allow users to search for tickets on a route, purchase them and be able to present them for validation to be able to travel.

It would be free to download and available on the Apple App Store for iOS and Google Play for Android.

Although there are no indicative timelines for when the app will be rolled out, the NTA has said it will eventually be deployed nationally “across multiple public transport operator services in Ireland”. 

The tickets available for sale through the app are likely to include “multi-operator and multi-modal tickets”. 

People will be required to register with the service and purchase tickets through it. 

The roll out of this mobile app will form part of the NTA’s wider plans for ticketing on transport operators in the future.

It wants to create a system where people can travel across different modes of transport through what it calls an “account based ticketing” system.

This account-based system will mean passengers don’t purchase physical tickets for their travel, but use their devices to purchase them and produce them when required, such as when an inspector is checking tickets or when boarding a service.

Three companies submitted applications to win the tender, with the contract being awarded to UK-based company Cubic Transportation Systems.

The total value of the contract is €3,608,434.