Taiyuan releases national bus card

Taiyuan released its new bus card which can be used in more than 220 cities in China on Jan 15, according to a press conference by Taiyuan Public Transport Holdings Co on the same day.

Unlike the previous cards, the new bus card contains a registration code of a nationally unified card issuer and is a new type of card that can be used in many cities and on various modes of transportation.

Besides Taiyuan and other cities in Shanxi province, it can be used on 22,000 bus routes and 52 urban rail transit lines in more than 220 cities across China including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.

The new card frees residents who often travel between cities from buying and loading bus cards in the cities they visit. As it uses a nationally unified key management system, the new bus card offers the user secure transactions and protection of personal information.

Currently, Taiyuan has opened five sites for locals to buy and charge the new bus card which costs 7 yuan ($1.04): the bus card service center at Wuyi East Street, Taiyuan South Railway Station, Shengli Bridge East Station, Xiayuan and Taiyuan Stadium.