From smart ticketing to an innovative approach to public transport sustainability
Novacroft’s journey in smart ticketing has taken it from managing Oyster and other concessionary card schemes to creating value through developments such as self-service application portals. Now it’s also championing an innovative new approach to public transport sustainability with Ucan-do-it, a smartcard-based reward and recognition programme.
Novacroft has sustained its long-standing position in smart ticketing by working in partnership with clients to understand their challenges and develop solutions that help them get more for less. It has shown that by taking aim at clients’ target issues, such as budget constraints, inefficient processes, inaccurate data and low morale, its solutions not only drive down costs, they can also improve services and operational performance and meet passengers’ needs.
Getting more for less
Novacroft has helped West Yorkshire Combined Authority, for example, save £630,000 a year on its concessionary scheme for young people. Novacroft’s solution is also delighting passengers with its fast and easy online application process and delivering benefits in every area of the organisation, from financial accuracy to customer service and strategic planning to policy implementation.
WYCA believes implementing Novacroft’s Young Person’s Apply Online package is making an important contribution to service sustainability by, ‘Changing the image of bus travel and giving us a new way to promote public transport among the next generation.’
Making life easier
Behind the success of this project, and of every solution Novacroft develops, is a focus on using technology to simplify complexity and make life easier for all. This core purpose has led to continuous in-house innovation in response to clients’ different needs and the development of a wide range of products and services, many of them industry firsts.
Novacroft’s pick-and-mix selection includes smartcard production and encoding, online self-service application and payment processing, public transport CRM systems and a 200+ seat Customer Care Centre. Its recent launch of four brands is broadening this selection further – and opening up opportunities for cross-sector collaborations with the weight to make a real difference to the sustainability of services and businesses.
Pioneering sustainable solutions
Novacroft believes that bringing markets and organisations together is the way forward when it comes to supporting communities for the long term. And this is the thinking behind the company’s new brands, which will see its smart ticketing technologies joined by Loadmore, its smartcard remote loading/reading device brand, Deploysmart, which designs and delivers software, and Ucan-do-it.
Ucan-do-it is a smartcard-based reward and recognition programme that rewards active citizens, delivers cost efficiencies to the public sector, creates sustainable growth for public services and businesses and supports positive community action.
Each Ucan-do-it programme is tailored to help councils, commerce and the third sector work together to address specific national and local problems and priorities. Each programme partner is able to achieve – and evidence – the results that matter most to them. For public transport providers, benefits could include greater ridership among target groups, civic leadership through the empowerment of citizens in fresh and effective ways and the achievement of CO2 reduction targets.