National Interoperable Transportation Payment Collection Program
Case study overview
Adecore supported the design and implementation of a national programme to modernise public transport through interoperable fare collection, fleet visibility and coordinated institutional oversight.
- National interoperable fare-collection framework established
- Cashless payments and fleet management integrated
- Offline-capable closed-loop payment infrastructure implemented
- Contactless cards, mobile money, QR and USSD enabled
- Transport, banking and telecommunications partners coordinated
- Immediate revenue from 200 pilot buses exceeded the previous 500-bus fleet
- Pilot advanced into the nationally launched Tap n Go platform
- Foundation created for fleet expansion and electric mobility investment
One transport ecosystem, operating as disconnected systems
Public transport was being delivered through a combination of state-owned fleets, intercity operators, transport unions, privately owned vehicles, taxis and informal minibus services. Each operator had its own operational processes, fare-collection practices and levels of technology adoption.
Manual ticketing and cash collection limited the visibility available to vehicle owners, operators and government agencies. Revenue reconciliation was difficult, fares could be inconsistently applied and operational decisions were frequently made without reliable data on passenger demand, route performance, vehicle utilisation or service delivery.
The challenge extended beyond introducing a payment card. A national solution needed to bring operators into a common framework while respecting their different ownership structures, commercial arrangements and operating realities. It also needed to support fare governance, passenger safety, service standards, financial settlement and the gradual transition from cash to digital payments.
Adecore Corporate Advisory: integrating policy, institutions and technology
Adecore Corporate Advisory acted as a programme architect and strategic implementation partner.
We worked across government, public transport operations, telecommunications, banking and technology to connect the institutional and commercial components required for a viable national programme. Our role included:
- Programme definition and implementation roadmaps
- Institutional and regulatory architecture
- Operator and stakeholder engagement
- Field research and operational assessment
- Commercial and partnership structuring
- Payment and settlement ecosystem design
- Technology architecture and integration oversight
- Pilot planning, monitoring and performance measurement
- Transition planning for national implementation
- Advisory support during transfer to the responsible authority
This ensured that the technology was designed around a workable national operating model—not introduced as a standalone application.
From legislative ambition to national implementation
Adecore helped translate the government’s transport-modernisation objectives into a structured programme with defined stakeholders, responsibilities and implementation phases.
The programme aligned cashless payments with wider transport policy, operator oversight and service standards. We also helped shape the governance model for a central authority capable of coordinating operators, setting common standards and overseeing national implementation.
Beginning with operational reality
Rather than designing the programme only from a central policy perspective, Adecore began with direct observation of public transport operations.
Our team assessed selected intra-and-intercity routes and studied the operating environments of state-owned, private and informal transport providers. This work examined:
- Manual ticketing and fare-collection practices
- existing constraints and testing of the operators current operational model
- Driver and conductor responsibilities
- Route and departure management
- Passenger onboarding and stopping patterns
- Fleet maintenance and vehicle availability
- Revenue reconciliation and leakage risks
- Luggage collection and accountability
- Network-connectivity limitations
- Passenger safety and service reliability
The assessment demonstrated that payment modernisation could not be separated from fleet management and service reform. The programme therefore evolved into an integrated transport-management and automated fare-collection initiative.
Designing for national operating realities
The payment infrastructure needed to work across different operators, passenger groups and levels of network connectivity.
Adecore helped design a closed-loop system with offline transaction capability. Certified terminals could process stored-value transactions without continuous connectivity and synchronise with the central platform once a connection became available.
The architecture supported contactless cards, mobile-money top-ups, mobile applications, QR payments, USSD access and certified onboard payment devices.
Corporate advisory and technology working as one
Adecore supported a three-party delivery structure connecting transport operations, telecommunications infrastructure and regulated banking services.
Vodafone Ghana provided mobile-money integration through Vodafone Cash and connectivity for payment devices and operational data. Consolidated Bank Ghana supported the custodial, settlement and regulatory banking architecture.
Adecore coordinated these relationships, helping align commercial responsibilities, technology integration, regulatory requirements and programme outcomes.
Real-time collections and operational visibility
Digital fare collection created a verifiable record of each transaction and reduced reliance on manual reconciliation. Collected revenue could be settled into designated bank accounts, improving visibility for operators, financial institutions and government authorities.
The payment layer was connected to a wider operational environment covering:
- Fare collections and settlement
- Fleet and driver locations
- Route and trip performance
- Vehicle utilisation
- Service delays and maintenance
- Passenger and safety information
- Operational alerts and exceptions
This gave operators and authorities the information required to identify problems earlier and make better operational decisions.
Revenue assurance through transaction visibility
The payment layer was connected to a broader operational-control environment.
Dashboards and control-room capabilities were designed to provide visibility across:
- Fare collections and settlement
- Vehicles and driver locations
- Route and trip performance
- Passenger activity
- Vehicle utilisation and idle time
- Service delays and overdue vehicles
- Maintenance requirements
- Customer-service events
- Safety and operational alerts
The objective was not merely to display information. It was to give operators and authorities the data needed to identify exceptions, intervene earlier and make better operational decisions.
Proving the model through phased implementation
The programme was piloted across selected vehicles and routes. Adecore supported operator onboarding, training, device deployment, performance monitoring and the transition from manual fares to digital payments.
The pilot demonstrated how payment collection, fleet monitoring and service oversight could operate together within a practical transport environment. It also allowed the programme to be refined before wider implementation.
From pilot programme to Tap n Go Ghana
Adecore subsequently advised the Ministry on the broader rollout of a dedicated national platform, co-branded as Tap n Go Ghana.
Working with selected Ghanaian technology delivery partner Global Icons Consultancy, we supported stakeholder coordination, programme alignment, operating-model development and transition into the appropriate national oversight structure.
Tap n Go expanded the original model beyond a single operator. It established a common platform designed to support intercity and inner-city buses, informal minibuses, taxis and ride-hailing services.
A nationally launched platform
Tap n Go was formally launched for Metro Mass Transit Limited in February 2024.
At the launch, the government reported that approximately 200 buses operating with Tap n Go were generating more revenue than 500 buses had generated previously. Collected income was also being deposited directly into the operator’s bank account, strengthening financial visibility and reducing opportunities for leakage.
Kaneshie became the first Metro Mass Transit terminal to operate on a completely cashless basis, demonstrating how the programme could move from a controlled deployment into everyday public transport operations.
Creating a platform for future investment
Transparent collections can do more than reduce leakage. They can create a reliable record of demand, route performance and operator revenue.
This information can help government agencies and operators present more credible opportunities to banks, development-finance institutions and infrastructure investors. Funding can be linked to observable transport activity and more reliable repayment mechanisms.
The programme therefore establishes a foundation for expanding:
- Public transport routes
- Vehicle fleets
- Intermodal services
- Operator-financing programmes
- Passenger infrastructure
- Electric buses and charging infrastructure
- Data-led transport planning
The same infrastructure that allows a passenger to pay for a journey can help make the wider transport ecosystem more visible, accountable and investable.
Delivering Impact
National transformation requires more than a technology provider. It requires institutional ownership, regulatory alignment, commercial participation and a realistic path from pilot to scale.
Adecore brings these elements together—helping governments define the programme, establish its governance, structure the delivery ecosystem and guide implementation into its long-term operating environment.
The result
The programme delivered more than a new payment method. It created the foundations for:
- Interoperable payments across multiple transport modes
- Greater transparency over fare collection and settlement
- Improved visibility into fleet and route performance
- Stronger accountability between operators and vehicle owners
- More consistent fare and service-governance mechanisms
- Data-led planning and operational decision-making
- A pathway for onboarding additional public and private operators
- Greater confidence for future fleet and infrastructure investment
- Expansion into electric mobility and other transport programmes
It demonstrates how Adecore combines corporate advisory, payment infrastructure and implementation capability to help move a national programme from policy ambition into operational reality.
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How intelligence
becomes impact
Understand Reality
We look beyond the immediate brief to understand the wider system, its evidence, stakeholders, constraints, dependencies and human consequences. We begin with reality, not a predetermined answer.
Make Evidence Visible
We distinguish what is known, inferred, assumed and still uncertain. This gives decision-makers the clarity to act with confidence grounded in evidence, not confidence alone.
Define the Better Future
We establish the outcome worth pursuing and the impact it must create. Human, economic, institutional and environmental consequences shape our work from the beginning.
Structure Responsibility
We align governance, capital, commercial logic, decision rights, risk and ownership. Ambition becomes executable when responsibility is clear and commitments can be honoured.
Integrate Capability
We assemble advisory, technology, research, delivery and strategic partners around the outcome. The client experiences one accountable institution, not a collection of disconnected services.
Execute with Accountability
We turn decisions into operating capability, building systems, deploying infrastructure and delivering programmes while keeping progress, risk, evidence and responsibility visible.
Measure what Matters
We measure more than activity or commercial return. We examine whether people benefit, institutions become stronger, economies gain capability and resources are stewarded responsibly.
Leave Capability Behind
We transfer the knowledge, ownership, systems and confidence required for the work to endure. Our responsibility is to leave every institution more capable than we found it.