Bhubaneswar: To facilitate purchase of unreserved tickets on GPS-enabled smartphones, the East Coast Railway (ECoR) on Wednesday launched mobile app-based Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS).
The new app was launched by ECoR general manager Umesh Singh at the Rail Sadan here.
Informing the media about the functionaries of UTS app, ECoR principal chief commercial manager Ajay Kumar Behera said with the availability of a Mobile App to book unreserved tickets, passengers can now have hassle-free journey in general compartments between any two stations.
“At present, the passengers stand in long queues for several hours at the booking counters of railway stations for train tickets, while some use Automatic Ticket Vending Machine (ATVM). With the implementation of this new system, the queues for general tickets will shorten,” he pointed out.
This app will also promote paperless transactions in Railways. Passengers can also make payment through credit/debit cards, net banking and Unified Payments Interface (UPI) without facing any hardships.
Several specifications have been taken into consideration while developing the app. To book an unreserved ticket and the app to function properly, a passenger has to stay between 20 metres and 2 kms from the railway station.
A passenger can also get a platform ticket or season ticket by following the same specifications for better functioning of the app.
In the system, passengers have to download UTS app from Google Play Store/Window Store/Apple Store and then register his/her mobile number, name, date of birth and identity proof, using sign-up option. After successful registration, a 4 digit Password SMS will be sent to the customer’s mobile and R-Wallet will be created with zero balance. Passengers then recharge minimum balance of Rs 100 and maximum of Rs 10,000 in multiples of Rs 100 in the R-Wallet. Passengers then book their unreserved tickets by logging in using User ID and Password to book single, return journey, platform and season tickets.
As this is paperless, there is no need to take a printout.
Tickets once booked cannot be cancelled or refunded.
Passengers will use “Show Ticket” option to show it to the ticket checking staff on demand. If the passenger is not able to show the ticket, he/she will be treated as travelling without ticket and fine will be imposed as per extant rules. ‘Show Ticket’ option will also work even if there is no internet connection.
This ticket cannot be transferred from one mobile to another in any mode including SMS. This mobile app-based ticket cannot be booked on railway premises including platforms and trains, as a facility called ‘geo-fencing’ has been used to prevent ticketless travellers from booking tickets at the sight of ticket checking staff.
For details, passengers may log in tohttps://www.utsmobile.
The app was launched by the then Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu in New Delhi in January, 2017.
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