While it was great to see TravelMaster mentioned as a great delivery mechanism for integrated transport ticketing in the last issue of routeone, I would like to point out some inaccuracies.
I think the most notable issue was the statement that TravelMaster is a local authority initiative, while TravelMaster’s initial inception around the period of deregulation in the late 1980s was through a South Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executive (SYPTE) initiative.
Since 2019, TravelMaster has moved to become an operator partnership. TravelMaster is governed by a Board of local
operators that act as Directors for the company.
The South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority (as SYPTE has now become) is an observer on the Board, and while there are still joint workings between SYMCA and TravelMaster to ensure the scheme is a success, the company is a separate entity.
The article blurs between Enhanced Partnerships, MTOs and Bus Service Improvement Plans so I do think the history could be portrayed a little better. TravelMaster tickets started around deregulation and at inception were weekly tickets valid on any bus in the region. I think the timeline could be clearer: Around 2013 TravelMaster started making its tickets smart using ITSO, but the tickets themselves existed in one form or another (as did many other metropolitan areas) and mostly were just electronic versions of their paper versions.
The article’s focus on politics and technical points are interesting, although from my own experience in multi-operator ticketing, politics is probably more down to commercials and collaboration.
As we move further into the Enhanced Partnership process in South Yorkshire, in the name of simplification, a bus only South Yorkshire-wide ticket is forthcoming. I am sure we will send you a press release about it in due course.
