How Keolis is using Calypso to Better Serve Occasional Passengers

Keolis is a leading global passenger transport business with a 25-year track record in managing public transport systems worldwide, including London, Boston, Dubai, Hyderabad, and Doha.

In our latest industry leader Q&A, CNA’s Marketing and Communications Manager, Manon Chaix, speaks with Christophe Badesco, Ticketing representative at Keolis, about the company’s vision for modern, highly secure ticketing. We also discuss how Calypso helps Keolis achieve its ambition to make public transport more attractive, and how it faced up to the challenge of changing passenger behaviours.

Manon Chaix (MC): Thank you for speaking to us today, Christophe. What can you tell us about Keolis’ role and aspirations within public transport?

Christophe Badesco (CB): Keolis is a global public transport operator that uses Calypso to support its operations across multiple deployments. We work as a committed partner to public transport authorities to create safe, smart and sustainable public transport solutions.

Our main aim is to make public transport the most attractive solution for mobility. We need to show passengers that mass transit is the best option for mobility today, encouraging people away from private vehicle usage and helping create more accessible, inviting, and affordable places to work and to live.

MC: Why did Keolis choose to join CNA?

CB: We have been a member of CNA since 2012, although we were of course aware of the valuable contributions it has made to transport ticketing since its inception over 25 years ago. We recognise the value that an open standard like Calypso provides, especially as it’s designed specifically for transit operators rather than to serve the needs of technology vendors or card schemes. We see Calypso as a sound foundation upon which we can build long-term modern ticketing strategies.

We joined the association to stay up to date with the latest updates to the standard, and also because of the valuable opportunity it provides to contribute to its ongoing evolution. Its events also help us meet fellow members of the ticketing community on a regular basis, sharing insights and knowledge that enables us to be better at what we do. This is invaluable to us as we continually forge strong working relationships with transit authorities, integrators, OEMs, service providers and other stakeholders, and has helped us successfully deliver and evolve multiple projects for many years.

MC: Why are open standards so important to Keolis?

CB: Networks around the globe are always looking to provide the best possible user journey, and ticketing plays a key role in this. It has long been the sandbox of innovation: the first contactless smart cards were deployed on Seoul’s bus network in 1995, giving travellers in the South Korean capital a groundbreaking validation experience. From this first deployment, countless other ticketing providers turned to contactless well before it became commonplace in the payments industry. We’re trendsetters!

The key to the dynamism and innovation seen in the ticketing space has always been the ability to be reactive. I’ve seen first hand the problems that can be caused by proprietary standards, and the crippling impact vendor lock-in can have on transit authorities and operators, especially when costs start to spiral and operators and authorities are stuck with expensive proprietary solutions.

Open standards are therefore crucial to sustainability in ticketing today. Let’s take just one example: a growing number of passengers now look for digital-first solutions, as new form factors emerge at speed. What Calypso gives us is the agility to adapt our offer quickly, as and when we choose, to adapt to these evolving behaviours. The standard is resilient across any form factor by design, so we can trust Calypso to be ready for any new trend, thanks to the collaborative way CNA works with ticketing players to evolve the standard and explore new use cases.

MC: Tell us why Keolis decided to implement Calypso Basic in the Orléans Métropole area

The ticketing system in Orléans, France, had initially been developed in 1989 as a magstripe system. In the 2010s, work was carried out to integrate contactless cards. In 2024, the decision was made to once again upgrade the system, but it became clear that the ST25 component used on the network’s smartcards was now too old to simply update. We therefore had the chance to completely rebuild the system from the ground up.

That might sound daunting, but Calypso Basic gave us all the tools we needed to build a new ticketing system that met the changing needs of our passengers. We already used Calypso Prime and adding Calypso Basic into the same systemenabled us to create a highly secure, cost-efficient ticketing system that now meets the needs of both regular users and infrequent travellers alike. Thanks to open standards, it worked seamlessly with the automatic vending machines already in place, helping us avoid the need for significant investment in hardware.

For passengers, we can give them more choice than ever at the ticketing kiosk, but in a way that remains familiar, so onboarding is a smooth process. This new offer is also key to the city’s sustainability objectives: not only does the new fare structure make public transport a more affordable and accessible alternative to private vehicle use, but the move to reusable paper tickets – which can also be topped up via mobile – is reducing waste from single-use plastics.

MC: How did you manage any challenges you encountered during your ticketing transformation?

Any large undertaking like this has several moving parts and so getting everyone round the table to discuss these was always going to be a challenge. We essentially had three projects at once: distribution strategies, new ticketing structures, and the rejuvenation of vending machines.

Thankfully, we had support from the CNA community. Alongside us on the project were Flowbird, Kuba, and Nagels, – all of whom are CNA members, which meant everyone was fully familiar with the Calypso Standard, making it easy to collaborate within the open framework it provides. When any issues did arise, CNA’s experts were on hand, answering key questions and ensuring the project stayed on track.

MC: What’s next for Keolis? Do you have plans for any future deployments of Calypso?

CB: Within two years, we’re hoping that we’ll be able to onboard up to 80% of our networks in France to Calypso Basic. We have a window of opportunity to make this a reality as authorities and operators recognise the need to invest in the next generation of ticketing solutions. To make sure we take full advantage of this opportunity, we’ll be looking to collaborate with fellow members of the CNA community and take advantage of the expertise of the CNA team.

In the meantime, we’re proud that Orléans is a shining example of what’s possible with Calypso. It’s a beacon for other operators and authorities looking to modernise their ticketing system, future-proofing you for continually evolving passenger preferences.