User Days 2026: Three Takeaways from Marrakech

Yann Chermat, COO, Calypso Networks Association

For the first time, the Calypso User Days came to Africa, in February 2026. In Marrakech, Morocco, a rich cast of speakers, including Roland Cracco, CEO of Interparking, Macodou Gueye, Director of Operations at CETUD, Claude Camilli, Director of Economic and Tariff Development at IDFM and Michel Gruber, Director of Planning and Development at SNCF Connect & Tech, shared real-world insights with transport authorities, operators, and technology partners from across the globe. So what did we learn?

1- Open Standards are a philosophy for governance

No matter where attendees came from, the conversation was markedly unified: open standards are the strong foundation for modern, interoperable, real-world deployments. 

Delegates repeatedly emphasised the strategic imperative of maintaining sovereignty over fare systems, data, and technology roadmaps. Why? Because we are in a sector where digital infrastructure choices have long-term impact. No network goes into their procurement process with the intention of getting locked into binding and potentially unfavourable contracts with a single vendor. Those with a clear long-term vision prioritise open standards, sharing a philosophical – and commercial – commitment to collaborative, scalable, future-proof innovation, without dependency. 

SNCF Connect & Tech demonstrated how this philosophy delivers value across metropolitan, regional, and national networks. Michel Gruber, Director of Planning and Development at SNCF Connect & Tech, explained how achieving sustainable interoperability depends on technical compatibility underpinned by mutually beneficial frameworks that facilitate collaboration across organisational boundaries. 

Open, modular architectures allow networks throughout Paris to manage increased demand during periods of heightened tourism, as demonstrated during the Paris Olympic Games in 2024, without rebuilding entire systems at the expense of everyday users.

2- Certification and compliance is a tool for interoperability

One word that was used again and again in Marrakech was trust. 

Trust that a user’s ticket will work consistently, regardless of form factor or where it is used in the network, is the critical pillar upon which every single network in the world must be built.

Île-de-France Mobilités demonstrated how a comprehensive certification program, based on open industry standards, can provide trust to all stakeholders, ensuring that a ticketing solution works consistently within a harmonised network. Claude Camilli, Director of Economic and Tariff Development at IDFM, also explained how compliance frameworks reinforce this trust by ensuring that each component respects the required technical layers – even where no formal certification programme yet exists, as is the case for certain terminal components. By following these programs, innovation can be built upon a fundamental baseline of functionality, interoperability and security.

3- Multi-modal integration is the future of smart ticketing

As mobility evolves, the ticket in every passenger’s pocket can play a bigger role. When a single credential supports public transport, micro-mobility, access control, EV charging and other urban services, it becomes a fundamental part of our lives. Interparking shared an example of this in action, explaining to attendees how it uses Calypso for its Pcard offer, enhancing the customer payment experience, improve data modelling, and integrating EV charging into the same offer.

At the same time, many emerging markets are rapidly developing networks from the ground up. Free from the constraints of legacy infrastructure, CETUD uses Calypso Open Standards to develop and evolve an agile transit system aligned perfectly with the wants and needs of the people of Dakar. Passengers in the rapidly expanding Senegalese capital will increasingly benefit from simple, seamless movement across the city’s formal mass transit systems and decentralised artisanal transport options, integrated seamlessly with digital wallet and mobile money solutions.

User days : A Community that Sets the Standard High

The range of innovation, scale of collaboration and extent of transformation on display at our Marrakech User Days 2026 was another remarkable reminder that open standards reflect those that maintain them. Calypso is the result of its dynamic and engaged community of authorities, operators, and technology providers, willing to share challenges and experiences to help elevate the standard for the benefit of all. 

We thank once again all those who contributed to the success of this event, and to the continued evolution of the Calypso standard. Thank you also to our Platinum Sponsor, Arrive; our main sponsors: ENBI, Infineon, and Wizway Solutions; and finally our supporting partners: AVM, Landkreis Konstanz, RATP Group, SNCF, STIB, and TML.

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