Overview
- The regional government approved a €2.7 million contract to hire specialised technical assistance that will advise and supervise CRTM during design, procurement and deployment of an Account‑Based Ticketing (ABT) system.
- The ABT model will let passengers use bank cards, mobile phones or wearables and shift fare calculation to a central account that applies the cheapest fare after travel.
- CRTM has shortlisted six international vendor groups for the main contract and is now verifying their technical capacity and financial solvency before inviting final proposals.
- Madrid projects the system to enter service in the fourth quarter of 2027 but officials warn complex integration across Metro, Cercanías and buses, vendor interoperability, data privacy and procurement delays could affect that timeline.
- The programme sits inside a wider reported regional investment of about €42.7 million and, if delivered, would simplify daily travel for millions while changing how tickets, revenue sharing and passenger data are managed.