At first the red and, since the last year, the green card have become symbols for loading prepaid city public and integrated transportation fares in Prague and the Central Bohemian Region. From the middle of 2018, the spectrum of the card colors will become even more varied. Furthermore, the passengers will be able to purchase their fare in a simpler way, regardless of the fact if they use the transportation services in Prague, the Central Bohemian region or both.
The main advantage of the new system will be the option to purchase fares comfortably. The passengers will especially appreciate elimination of the need to use the validators at the metro stops and the option to upload prepaid fares to any bank card used in the Czech Republic. “I am happy that the passengers will see an improvement in the fare accessibility in Prague and the Central Bohemian Region. This fact represents yet another condition for making sure that the Prague integrated transportation system will be used by more passengers. Moreover, this way the visions, with which ICT Operator was founded, are being fulfilled,” said the mayor of Prague Adriana Krnáčová.
ICT Operator has been working already several months on the idea that Lítačka should not become the only carrier of prepaid fares. “Starting July 1st, 2018, the passengers will be able to upload fares to any bank card that is available in the Czech Republic. One month later, we intend to introduce a new mobile application for smart mobile phones, which will allow for purchasing prepaid fares as well as individual tickets, which the passengers currently purchase using the ever popular SMS messages,” said Václav Strnad, one of the members of the Board of Directors of ICT Operator.
While you will be able to purchase prepaid fares for Prague or external tariff zones from the comfort of your home, the actual upload will take place only upon inserting the ticket to one of the validators. They are installed exclusively at the metro stops, which is an obstacle for the Central Bohemian Region development. This limitation will be eliminated as of the next year’s summer. “The upload will take place immediately and you will not have to visit the validators, which will become unnecessary. This step will allows us to develop electronic fares also for the Central Bohemian Region.” said Václav Strnad.
Opencards are not being issued since the end of February 2016. The red car had been linked to many scandals. Passengers began to obtain a new card, Lítačka, since the first day of March 2016. „Passengers are very interested in Lítačka. There are already 563,677 of them in circulation. Moreover, we are pleased that Prague residents have obtained more than half of them online at www.litacka.cz,“ said the general director of ICT Operator Michal Fišer and added: “Each month of this year we issued more than ten thousand of these cards, the largest number of them in January, when a majority of the passengers purchases the annual tickets, and in September, at the beginning of the school year.” There are 269,935 red Opencards that are still active. Last of them will expire in February 2020.
Nevertheless, Lítačka is not just a card for prepaid city and integrated transportation fares. You can already use Lítačka for borrowing books at the Municipal Library or for getting a discount when visiting, for example, the Charles Bridge Museum, Lobkowicz Palace or the City of Prague Museum or when booking a boat trip at the Prague Venice.
People will be eventually able to also use Lítačka as a safe identifier for entering the Municipal Library and for entering municipal swimming pools and other facilities in the capital.
