I believe that Collecting all the cards, IDs, procedures and more on your mobile is a great idea in terms of comfort and practicality and as an example, how magnificent are applications like MiDGT or My Citizen Folder (be careful, the latter only allows you to view the passport, the DNI will arrive with the DNI 4.0 application). In this way, you avoid carrying a wallet.
The holy trinity is transport tickets: you have an ID (the driver’s license scanned in the app works), you can pay with cards entered in Google Wallet and you can even enter the subway or bus with your mobile phone. Carrying your wallet everywhere has its hours.
I like to carry everything on my phone, but it’s too much responsibility.
…or not. In practice, card payment on city buses and the metro is quite widespread, but it has a drawback: the prices per single ticket are significantly higher than with subscriptions. There is therefore the possibility of take the transport card on your mobilesomething not so common and that, for example, Madrid is in the testing phase to implement it with the “Virtual Transport Card”, which adds the Multi card in virtual format to access public transport with your phone.
It seems like a real step forward, but ultimately what I use the most and What makes the difference is being able to load the card from your mobile. Let me explain: I normally continue to carry my wallet for two reasons: the first is that there are some documents that are not yet digitized (the DNI is the clearest example) and the second is simply in case.
I mean, leaving everything in the hands of your mobile phone carries the risk that if it is lost, stolen or runs out of battery, you will no longer be able to use all these documents. The one that matters the least to me is the transport card for obvious reasons, but paradoxically This is the one I will use the most when leaving my house.
We rarely talk about how useful it is to be able to load the card anytime and anywherenot having to go to a tobacconist or other shops (as is the case in Pamplona), nor to wait for a machine in the Madrid metro, which is a huge waste of precious time or to adapt to the timetables. I use it on my card, but I also charge the card to other people around me who are unaware of this function or who simply do not like the technology.
Transport card
This application allows you to load (or check the balance) of the PUBLIC TRANSPORT CARDS of the Regional Transport Consortium of Madrid (CRTM), via NFC.
Cover | Montage with photo by Ramon Albiol on Unsplash and screenshot of the app
In Xataka Android | Your mobile is your ticket: how T-Mobilitat works, the application that takes you on public transport in Barcelona
