I have seen that . It seems that ERG sent down some fast balls...

I have seen that .
It seems that ERG sent down some fast balls to the NSW Govt....

The relationship between the NSW Govt and ERG has gone through some interesting phases recently.

1. Mr Watkins asked his legal dept to investigate the option of terminating the Tcard project in NSW.
2. In April Mr Watkins wrote to ERG saying that its software and service were inferior.
3. “However, the company's response - a plan to get the card delivered by its current deadline of 2009, or earlier - was so thorough that Mr Watkins tried to retract the letter.”
4. “Dithering about fare reform - with its risk of a political backlash - after such a detailed response may have put the Government in a difficult contractual position”.
5. “There is understood to be concern that the Government, having complained in the first place, might not be able to supply enough buses to meet ERG's proposals to introduce the Tcard faster. Only 14 days after receiving ERG's response Mr Watkins approved another letter to be sent to ERG, to say the Government's previous correspondence did not constitute any official move towards ending the contract”
6. “But while software malfunctions continue to cast doubt about the ability of the company to deliver, the Government has repeatedly postponed important decisions about its public transport ticketing policies.”
7. “Transport bureaucrats have argued that the card is an opportunity to overhaul Sydney's mix of 70 different fare products.”
8. In May a fare reform model prepared by Ernst & Young recommended shelving all integrated tickets and instituting a distance-based fare that would be charged for every leg of a commuter's journey. This echoed a 2003 report by the Government's top pricing adviser, Professor Tom Parry, which strongly urged fare reform.
9. If the latest model is adopted it would transform Tcard - which could theoretically calculate the cheapest price for trips across different modes - into a stored value "Tpurse", similar to an electronic Travel Ten.
10. It would eliminate the TravelPasses, which can be used on buses, ferries and trains, as well as the weekly RailPass. Last financial year government agencies sold almost 10 million of these combined.
11. Although each leg of a trip may be slightly discounted under the new model, distance-based fares could hurt those who travel to Sydney from further out, such as the Blue Mountains.
12. It seems that the ball is now in Mr Watkins court.