Greater Anglia

One year on - GA’s experience with Team Technologies GTV app

It’s over a year now since Greater Anglia launched a new barcode validation app, developed by Team Technologies to rail industry standards. The app was designed with GA’s specific requirements at the forefront. This app puts an easy to use interface in the hands of nearly 500 front line staff on trains and at gatelines to validate barcoded tickets quickly. The app carries its own dataset, synchronised with the main validation database in near real time - which means that when the user is out of range of a decent WiFi or Mobile signal, the TOC can still be confident of identifying potentially fraudulent use of barcodes.

When defining this Android app, Team Technologies and GA wanted to lead the industry in bringing to the market a solution that is not only compliant with RDG specifications, but challenges the norm and allows the TOC to capture and use data to improve their business.

Since implementation, we’ve been working together to add functionality through different phases of the project. Users can now scan ITSO cards as well as barcode tickets, without the need to switch between apps or carry separate devices. Any product waiting on RDG’s Part 11 gateway will automatically be applied.  The app can also scan bar coded railcards, validating discounted tickets quickly and simply.

In the back office, the system collects scans from the third party gateline supplier system and ITSO scans from a third party MTIS supplier, shares bar code scan data with other retailers, and allows the customer services team to process delay repay or refund applications quickly and efficiently - giving an instant picture of if, where and when a barcoded ticket has been used. The system pulls together all the ticket usage information in one place, allowing easier reporting and analysis of journeys across the network.

In this collaboration we know that both parties are ‘in it for the long term’, and we’ve recently completed both ‘on-train’ and 'at gateline' experiences, where one of Team Technologies’ experienced consultants spent a day shadowing on-train and revenue protection staff, seeing first hand how the app performs in a real life situation. Feedback from users and passengers is helping to shape the next exciting phase of the project.  This type of close working with TOCs is a fundamental element of Team Technologies’ philosophy - customer driven development using the latest technologies.  

Malcolm Cotter, GA’s Head of Retail Systems said:

“From previous experience of working with Team Technologies, we already knew them to be open and honest, with a value-for-money philosophy and a real desire to deliver high-quality user focussed solutions. They have worked closely with us to deliver an app with all the functions we wanted, in super-quick time and at a fixed cost. It was great to be involved in the development stages, seeing the app as it evolved and being able to make changes and improvements during the project phases. They supported us in our communications with the user community, too, hosting Q&A sessions and demonstrations, and have been keen to receive and act on user feedback.”