Mumbai's national common mobility card set for wider rollout

MUMBAI: The Mumbai 1 National Common Mobility Card (NCMC), aimed at enabling seamless travel across public transport systems in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), will soon see a wider rollout, said chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.
There is no announcement yet on the exact month by which the cards will be accepted across all modes of transport. However, sources said the rollout is expected during monsoon. Metro commuters will be able to use the card by tapping it ar the automated fare collection (AFC) gates. Bus passengers will need to tap it on handheld machines carried by conductors while railway commuters can use the card to get a hard copy of tickets from machines at booking counters.

Speaking after a review meeting chaired by Union railway minister Ashiwini Vaishnaw, Fadnavis said, "The architecture for the Mumbai 1 card is expected to be ready in one month and thereafter the rollout will be undertaken."
Currently, the smart card is accepted on Metro Lines 1, 2A, and 7. However, it is not valid on the newly opened Metro Line 3 Phase I (Aarey-BKC). The smart card will be accepted on the underground Metro 3 corridor only after the entire stretch from Aarey to Cuffe Parade opens in July.
The city's lifeline—the suburban railway network—is still outside the NCMC umbrella. A senior railway official said implementation in the suburban system poses challenges due to its scale and the lack of gate-based access.
NCMC is a contactless smart card that will allow travel on multiple modes, including Metro, monorail, buses, and eventually suburban trains. It also enables payments at toll booths, parking lots, smart city services, and retail outlets. It supports offline transactions and can store value for monthly passes or season tickets.
Metro-2A and 7 (Gundavli-Dahisar-Andheri W) were built with NCMC compliance; Metro 1 (Versova-Ghatkopar), which uses a closed-loop system, also allows NCMC usage at entry points. Around 35% commuters on Metro 2A and 7 currently use the card. On Metro 1, the percentage of such card users is 10%. Adoption is expected to rise as more transport modes join the platform.
BEST was the first to implement NCMC. General manager SVR Srinivas said, "We are now working to introduce more feeder routes to Metro stations and create a fully integrated ticketing system."