Bangladesh should adopt an integrated digital ticketing system across buses, trains, launches and airlines to improve fare transparency, curb revenue leakage and generate passenger data for transport planning, policymakers and industry stakeholders said on Wednesday.
A unified platform could give passengers access to different transport modes while generating data on passenger flows, peak periods and route demand, with interoperability among transport and payment systems, secure transactions and coordination among public and private operators seen as crucial to its implementation.
The call came at a Dhaka roundtable titled “Digital Ticketing to Transform Lives”, presented by policy platform Benchmark Dialogue and powered by online ticketing platform Shohoz.
Information and Communication Technology Division Senior System Analyst Md Nabir Uddin said passengers should be able to use different transport services through one system, with multiple service providers and payment methods operating in the background.
Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) Deputy General Manager Sukdev Dhali said its digitisation efforts had been under way for years, with fully online ticketing already introduced on the Pink Bus service. Digital payments could improve accountability by assuring passengers that fares were properly accounted for and deposited with the government, he added.
Shyamoli Paribahan Director Rajat Ghosh said fully digital ticketing could bring discipline to the largely unstructured sector. While online demand rises during Eid and other festivals, many passengers still use counters at other times, and a terminal-based system could accelerate the transition, he said.
Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) Administrator Fazlul Hoque said there was no major policy barrier to online ticketing, though fare bargaining at counters encouraged offline purchases and created an uneven competitive environment.
Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology Assistant Professor Kazi Saifun Newaz said the country did not significantly lag in digitalisation but lacked an effective digital ecosystem.
“Simply collecting data will not be enough. We need to analyse and use that data,” he said.
Route- and time-specific passenger data could help operators adjust services, identify where additional transport was needed and improve safety and security management, he added.
Centre for Policy Dialogue Distinguished Fellow Fahmida Khatun said transport should keep pace with the digitalisation of banking, tax payments and government services, while ensuring accessibility, data security, simple procedures, appropriate pricing and logistics.
Consumers Association of Bangladesh President A H M Shafiquzzaman called for greater automation, accountability and protection of passengers’ personal information. Keeping digital and analogue systems running in parallel for too long could discourage full adoption, he said.
Jatri Kalyan Samity President Sharif Rafiquzzaman said digital ticketing alone would not solve the sector’s problems, calling for passenger insurance, an end to overcharging and better transport management, particularly in Dhaka.
Sena Kalyan Travels and Tours Director General Brig Gen Moahammad Khaled Kamal said railways and several road operators had adopted digital ticketing, but some passengers remained hesitant over whether online purchases would guarantee seats.
Speakers said digital ticketing therefore needed to be simple, reliable, secure and accessible, particularly for people less familiar with digital technology.
Shohoz Chief Executive Officer Col (retd) Md Aminul Haque delivered the welcome address, while Ticketing Director Shakil Joad Rahim discussed the state of digital ticketing. Benchmark Dialogue Chairman Ashraf Kaiser moderated the discussion.
US-Bangla Airlines General Manager Kamrul Islam and Fantasy Island Amusement Park Managing Director Maj (retd) Maksudur Rahman Adnan also spoke.
