'Beep' cards supply to normalize early 2023 —DOTr exec

The supply of stored-value passenger train cards or “Beep” cards is expected to normalize in the first quarter of 2023, Transportation Undersecretary Cesar Chavez said Thursday, amid the cards' impending shortage.

To mitigate the effects of the shortage, Chavez urged users to share their Beep cards with others.

"Ang pakiusap namin, share a Beep. May mga tao na dalawa o tatlo ang Beep cards. Ang pakiusap namin gamitin ninyo 'yan. Puwede niyo ipahiram sa inyong mga kamag-anak, kaklase, katrabaho," he said on Unang Balita.

"Share a beep po 'yung pakiusap natin. Magiging normalize 'yan first quarter of 2023," Chavez added.

(We are asking users to share a Beep. Some people have more than one Beep cards. We're urging them to use these cards. They can lend it to their relatives, classmates, workmates. Share a Beep is what we're asking from them. The supply will normalize in the first quarter of 2023.)

Chavez, the Undersecretary for Rails of the Department of Transportation (DOTr), said the problem is due to the shortage in global chip supply caused by the COVID-19 lockdowns in China and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.

A DOTr statement earlier quoted Chavez as saying that Beep card provider AF Payments Inc. (AFPI) "cannot fulfill the delivery of 75,000 SVCs vis-a-vis the card forecast demand of Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT3) for the month of July 2022 despite its repeated and diligent coordination with card suppliers abroad."

Measures are in place to address the shortage and meet the demand of commuters for contactless cards even as the DOTr and its Beep card provider continue to look for alternative ways such as the use of single journey tickets (SJTs), the DOTr statement said. —KBK, GMA News