Solent Transport has become the first UK local transport authority grouping with accreditation to retail rail tickets through its Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) app.
Tickets are available through Solent Transport Breeze travel app under a partnership with smart ticketing and payment solutions provider Unicard, using the firm’s Rail Suite platform, which is designed to support rail accreditation.
Established in 2007, Solent Transport is a partnership between the councils of the Isle of Wight, Hampshire County, Portsmouth and Southampton.
It was awarded £29m by the Department for Transport to implement innovative future transport solutions around personal mobility and freight movements as a Future Transport Zone (FTZ) programme and in 2021 appointed Unicard as part of a consortium to develop a MaaS app.
Unicard said its Rail Suite effectively manages the complex data integrations and certifications required for the app to interface with the back-office systems of the Rail Delivery Group (RDG), the body responsible for selling and issuing tickets for travel.
The Breeze app allows users to bus, rail and ferry tickets and to unlock e-scooters and bikes for hire.
It advises users that it can only load (as e-tickets) anytime and off-peak rail tickets, rather than cheaper advance tickets and, conversely only sells multiple bus tickets, advising users that cheaper single tickets may be available on board.
Unicard CEO Sean Dickinson said: ‘The addition of rail accreditation to the Breeze app marks a significant milestone in our long-standing relationship with Solent Transport.
‘Rail accreditation is yet another component that local authorities can add to their transport offerings. It’s in line with the UK Government’s Williams-Shapps Plan for Rail that encourages transport authorities to sell rail tickets directly in their respective regions.
‘Our rail products are designed to remove the barriers to entry for local authorities looking to offer those types of services. We’re able to speed up the process so that new rail accreditation services can be rolled out much faster.’
Solent transport manager Conrad Haigh said: ‘We have plans to transform access to public transport services in the region with the help of our new Breeze app.
‘We are now taking that vision a step further, having achieved rail accreditation as an agent. Solent Transport is proud to deliver rail ticketing for a UK MaaS product.’
He added: ‘There is still more to come with new products been introduced to the app regularly.’
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