Breaking: Cubic Transportation Systems Files Legal Challenge to Transport for London Decision on Revenue-Collection Contract Award
Cubic Transportation Systems president Peter Montgomery-Torrellas told employees today that the vendor was legally challenging the decision last month by Transport for London on award of its lucrative revenue-collection contract. While Montgomery-Torrellas didn’t mention it in his memo (see below), there is no doubt now that TfL had awarded the contract to Cubic rival Indra Systems of Spain.
The companywide memo confirms a report by Mobility Payments yesterday that Cubic was likely planning to challenge the award, approved by Transport for London’s finance committee July 14.
Special Report: Ultra-Wideband Holds Much Promise to Power Hands-Free Ticketing; but Backers Must First Overcome Significant Challenges
Pitched as a technology to enable completely hands-free mobile ticketing at busy gated metro stations, ultra-wideband is likely still years away from possibly making good on its promise of providing an alternative to contactless tap-in and tap-out and other fare-payment methods.
Ultra-wideband, or UWB, offers a faster and more accurate option as compared with such other location-based technologies used for mobile ticketing as Bluetooth or GPS–potentially enabling hands-free ticketing at fast-paced subway gates with throughput of 60 customers per minute or more.
Tip Sheet: Speculation Aside on Contract Winner, Losing London would be ‘Big Blow’ to Cubic
Also: Cubic, Other Vendors, Don’t Appeal Loss to Masabi in Montreal; Baltimore Transit Agency Plans Open Loop; but Timeline Unclear
Transport for London Committee Approves New Revenue-Collection Contract, but Agency Stays Mum on Winner; Speculation Grows
Transport for London’s finance committee approved the agency’s new revenue-collection contract earlier this week, but the agency declines to say who won, promising only that the winning vendor will be announced “in due course.”
As Mobility Payments reported on Friday, the committee’s much-anticipated decision determined whether TfL would stay with its long-term incumbent, U.S.-based Cubic Transportation Systems, or switch to challenger Indra Systems of Spain. These were the two short-listed vendors for the contract, as Mobility Payments has reported.
London Contract Award Decision Imminent; Cubic Faces Challenge from Spain’s Indra
Transport for London’s finance committee is scheduled to take a key vote on the proposed award of the agency’s new revenue-collection contract on Monday.
The much-anticipated contract decision is expected to be worth nearly
Masabi wasn’t Low Bidder for Montreal Fare-System Contract; Vendor was Likely Helped by Special Pricing Clause in RFP
UK-based Masabi won the recently announced contract to provide a new fare system for Montreal-area transit authority ARTM with what is believed to be a substantially higher total bid than at least part of the competition, Mobility Payments has learned.
ARTM has not released the price bids for the up to the 14-year, CA$183 million (US$133.7 million) contract, counting extensions. But a spokeswoman for the authority confirmed to Mobility Payments that
Paris Transport Authority Still Insists Costs Too High to Support Open Loop, but Resistance Appears to be Falling
Claude Camilli, a longtime ticketing official with Paris transport authority, Île-de-France Mobilités, when asked last week why the authority doesn’t support open-loop payments, responded that costs are too high. He added that the authority had decided a better option for customers was for IDFM to expand use of closed-loop payments with smartphones, he told Mobility Payments.
It’s a common refrain by transport-ticketing officials in Paris, which remains one of the few European capitals that has declined to launch open loop as a payments option.
Transport for London Expected to Reveal Winner of Major Revenue-Collection Contract within Weeks
Transport for London is expected to soon announce its long-awaited award of a major fare-system contract–choosing between two vendors, including incumbent Cubic Transportation Systems–Mobility Payments has learned.
The contact for the so-called Project Proteus could be worth up to
In-Depth: Washington, D.C., Launches Open-Loop Payments on Subway with Overlay Technology; but Transit Agency Incurs Extra Costs
The Washington (D.C.) Metropolitan Area Transit Authority launched open-loop payments Wednesday for full fares on its subway system, following a fast-track, five to six-month implementation that met its target of launching on the subway in time for most WorldPride 2025 events being held in the U.S. capital.
The project is noteworthy because it uses an “open-payment overlay” to enable WMATA’s closed-loop terminals to accept credit and debit cards, including in mobile devices. The concept can offer a quick time to market and potentially cut costs, though is not an option for every agency and comes with some drawbacks. And in WMATA’s case, the agency is spending millions more by paying other vendors to help set up the new system, in addition to its main overlay vendor, Littlepay, Mobility Payments has learned (see below).
Vix Technology Agrees to Pay $2.1 Million to Settle Covid Relief Loan Fraud Case; CEO Says Penalty Won’t Affect ‘Operations or Financial Position’
Vix Technology Group recently agreed to pay $2.1 million to settle a fraud case alleging Vix made false claims on its application for a low-interest Covid relief loan. Vix CEO Aaron Ross insisted to Mobility Payments that the damages will have “no impact” on the company’s “current operations or financial position.”
The settlement stems from a lawsuit filed last June by a whistleblower, which stood to gain a share of the damages, alleging that Vix had violated the U.S. False Claims Act when it applied for its second government-backed Covid Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan in 2021.