TMB and GMV are improving the Barcelona Bus Turístic user experience with a new boarding system

Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB) and GMV will be improving the user experience on the city’s tourism buses, thanks to a new boarding system that will be installed on all 64 vehicles used for that service. The system will rely upon optical scanning of QR codes to validate paper tickets, as well as tickets displayed on mobile phone screens.

Development of this system was awarded to multinational technology firm GMV through a public tender. By using the latest generation of onboard ticket validation equipment, tourists will be able to access these hop-on, hop-off buses quickly, improving the efficiency of the service’s commercial operations. The equipment being supplied by GMV will also be capable of reading contactless NFC cards and EMV bank cards. This will allow expansion of the system in the future with no need for new hardware, to allow passengers to board using transport cards and bank cards.

These new validation devices, which will go into operation before the end of 2023, can be monitored from TMB’s control center. It will receive data on how passengers are using the tourism buses by times and places of interest, as another way to ensure optimal service.

The Barcelona Bus Turístic travels along two different routes, with 30 stops and 4 transfer points allowing passengers to switch routes. The system will send geolocalization data to provide information about which parts of the city are being visited most heavily. This will allow the service to be monitored and managed in the most effective way possible, with adaptation to the needs of the business and the users.

Because GMV is already a supplier of multiple technological solutions for TMB, these new ticket validators can be easily integrated with various other onboard systems and those at the control center.

TMB, a long and fruitful relationship

With this contract, GMV continues to strengthen its presence in the city of Barcelona as a key supplier for TMB, which is a leading operator in terms of its use of intelligent transportation systems (ITS).

The relationship between Transports Metropolitans de Barcelona (TMB) and GMV as a technology provider dates back to 2005, when GMV was awarded a contract through public tendering to install an onboard traveler information system for the city’s entire bus fleet. Then through a second contract, GMV equipped TMB’s fleet with its computer-aided dispatch and automatic vehicle location (CAD/AVL) system. 

Over the course of these 17 years, the collaboration between GMV and TMB has remained productive, with ongoing renovation of both systems and awarding of other projects, such as Bluetooth beacons to assist passengers with visual impairment, information systems at bus stops, and most recently in 2022, a contract to supply onboard security systems, a passenger information system, and video-surveillance systems for the operator’s fleet of urban buses.

In addition to these collaborations involving buses, GMV has also been awarded contracts for equipping the Barcelona metro with a video-surveillance system and for installing an access control system for the city’s Montjuïc cable car.

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