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Beijing Municipal Administration and Communications Card (北京市政交通一卡通) is a store-value contactless smart card used in Beijing, China, for public transportation and related uses. Colloquilly, the card is often called Yikatong, which means "one card pass" in Chinese, reflecting on the eventual "Swiss Army Knife"-like usage of card services. It is similar to the Octopus card used in Hong Kong.
History
The card was introduced after previous IC-card test systems proved to be successful. However, these cards never even reached much of the general public, and their usage scopes were extremely limited.
First introduced to the general public in 2003, the card was first put into use at the end of 2003 (in part possibly due to the impact of SARS that year, which brought minor delays), when Beijing subway Line 13 switched to the AFC ticket inspection system.
The card can be bought city against a deposit of CNY 20, and can have its value refilled in units of CNY 10. The deposit is only used in the case that card is used for a transaction exceeding the value of the card remaining.
As of July 2004, the card can be used on Beijing's Bashi Bus Company buses, as well as underground line 13 and some Beijing taxis.
On May 10, 2006, the Yikatong card system was extended to Beijing's entire subway system, buses, and some taxis. Initial problems with implementation led to long queues at bus stops and subway stations and complaints by users; however, the system has now been adopted by many Beijing commuters.
The card is expected to be expanded so that parking and expressway fees, as well as water transportation charges, can be paid using the card.
Penetration
For several years after its introduction the yikatong card was not widely adopted due to its limited usefulness, relatively high deposit and limited availability. However, the expansion of the system in May 2006, along with the opening of more outlets for users to buy and recharge their cards and a 20% discount for travellers on the city's bus system who pay with the cards, has caused the system's popularity to quickly increase. On Tuesday the 16th of May, 2006, 4,471,800 transactions were made using the Yikatong system.
"Beijing Municipal Administration and Communications Card"