Among all the projects it is in charge of, the Spanish technology company has also won the contract to renew the ticket terminals in the 98 Washington DC metro stations, in an agreement that could reach 75 million dollars. Below these lines we tell you all the details.
Contract. Just like account The company in its official press release, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), the body that manages the Washington DC metro, has selected Indra to replace all the ticket sales machines in its network. The starting amount is 38.9 million dollars (about 33 million euros), but the contract includes additional options that could raise it to 75 million dollars (about 65 million euros).
At stake are 450 new terminals spread across the five lines and 98 stations of a network that moves more than 500,000 travelers every day.
What’s included exactly the order. In addition to manufacturing and delivering the equipment, Indra will also have to be responsible for the design, installation and maintenance for the next 15 years. The new machines will replace the current Fare Vending Machines, the terminals that have been in service on the network for years.
According to affirms company, the new devices will have high-resolution touch screens with an interface very similar to that of mobile phones, will support payments by card, mobile phone and digital wallets (EMV and ABT technology), and will be available in up to 15 languages. The design must also comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), including assisted audio and tactile elements for people with reduced mobility or vision.
According to the company, part of the assembly will be carried out in the new plant that Indra has just inaugurated in Olathe, within the Kansas City metropolitan area.
Indra puts its foot in North America. In recent months, Indra has been accumulating positions in the North American market. At the beginning of this year it was awarded a contract of nearly 300 million dollars to modernize FAA air traffic control, and more recently signed another agreement with Nav Canada to integrate drones and commercial aviation into Canadian airspace.
It also has previous experience in railway ticketing in the US, since it was the company that installed the last two generations of self-sales machines in the St. Louis (Missouri) metro. Winning a contract in Washington DC is at another level in terms of visibility, since WMATA is one of the largest public transportation agencies in the country, and consolidates Indra as a reference in a highly contested market.
What each part says. Raúl Ripio, general director of Mobility & Technology at Indra Group, assures that the company has been betting decisively on the United States for some time, where in addition to this project it develops traffic, connected vehicle and communications initiatives. For his part, Randy Clarke, CEO of Washington Metro, said in a statement that the investment “modernizes a critical part” of the system and that the new terminals incorporate payment technologies that users increasingly demand.
International expansion. This move comes months after Indra won the contract to modernize access to public transport in Londonvalued at around 1,000 million euros, one of the largest in its recent history. The one in Washington is more modest in numbers, but strategically it is just as relevant, since the company is fully integrated into the mobility infrastructure of the US capital, a country that is increasingly taking center stage among its expansion plans.
Cover image | Matthew Bornhorst
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