nimoca

nimoca

nimoca (ニモカ, Nimoka^?) is a rechargeable contactless smart card ticketing system for public transport in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Nishi-Nippon Railroad (Nishitetsu) introduced the system on May 18, 2008. Its name is an acronym of "nice money card", while nimo (にも^?) in Japanese means "also," as the card is usable also on buses, also on trains, also for shopping, etc. Like other electronic fare collection systems in Japan, the card uses FeliCa, RFID technology developed by Sony. On March 13, 2010, nimoca has been interoperated with two similar cards in Fukuoka—SUGOCA from Kyūshū Railway Company (JR Kyūshū) and Hayakaken from Fukuoka City Transportation Bureau—plus Suica, a card used in Greater Tokyo Area by East Japan Railway Company (JR East). ^[1] The card features a ferret as the official mascot.

Usable area

As of March 2011

• Buses:
  • Nishitetsu Group: All local bus lines, and some highway bus lines.
  • Showa Bus: All local bus lines in Fukuoka Prefecture and some express bus lines.
  • Oita Bus: All local bus lines and some express bus lines.
  • Oita Kōtsū: All local bus lines and Airliner airport report bus lines.
  • Kamenoi Bus: All local bus lines.
• Trains: All the lines.
• Others (as electronic money): Solaria Plaza, Solaria Stage, Tenjin Core, Nishitetsu Store (those along Tenjin-Ōmuta Line), and others.

Future plans

• Buses:
  • Showa Bus: All local bus lines in Saga Prefecture.
  • From 2013.

Types of cards

• nimoca: Does not require registration.
• Star nimoca: Requires registration. It can be reissued when a user lost it.
• Credit nimoca: A credit card with the above functions.

These three cards can be issued either as prepaid cards or commuters passes.

Mejiron nimoca

See also: Mejiron nimoca

The Mejiron nimoca (めじろんnimoca, Mejiron Nimoka^?) introduced the system on December 26, 2010 by Oita Bus, Oita Kōtsū and Kamenoi Bus in Oita Prefecture.^[2] The cute design combines nimoca mascot Ferret with Mejiron (めじろん?), the mascot character widely loved as Oita Prefecture's cheering squad.

References

1. ^ Official news release by JR Kyūshū, February 7, 2008. (Japanese)
2. ^ “ICカード『めじろんnimoca』大分都市圏で12月26日よりサービス開始” by Nishitetsu Press Release, November 2, 2010.(Japanese)

External links

• (Japanese) Official website