Bahart continues its digitalisation plans in partnership with Delta Systems.
For the summer of 2022, the renewed BAHART (Balaton Navigation Ltd.) is preparing for the tourist season not only with a new timetable, but also with an online ticketing development delivered by Delta Systems. The iconic company of the flagship tourist region, which is celebrating its 176th cruise season this year, is also working on a number of other technical innovations, supplied by Delta Systems. We asked Gábor Veigl (in the foreground), CEO of BAHART, about this year's tourist traffic and BAHART's plans for the future.
After two years affected by the crown virus, how much of the public are you targeting with the first online ticketing facility introduced this year and what do you expect from the development?
Last year, we carried 650,000 passengers in passenger transport and 1.3 million in ferry transport, most of them, of course, in the peak season of July-August, and we broke our 24-year record in ferry passenger traffic. The figures show a strong start to this year, with both ferry (+25%) and passenger (+73%) traffic significantly exceeding the previous year. For the current season, online ticketing is mainly targeting our passenger passengers, with ferry passengers for the time being being targeting pedestrians and cyclists, and all other passenger segments to follow. In passenger shipping, we estimate that the share of online ticketing will be 10-20%, which is expected to increase in the future.
How many waterways or boats should we imagine all this traffic on?
BAHART currently operates 4 ferries and 16 passenger vessels with a continuous passenger service. In addition to the 2 ferry ports, our ferry services are available to passengers at 17 passenger ferry ports. In addition to the ferry services between the ferries and the municipalities, we also operate cruise boat services, party boat services and magic boat services, mainly for children, from the larger ports. In addition to mass departures, we also offer a range of individual programme boats and, of course, we also participate in events such as the Lake Balaton Crossing and the Blue Ribbon.
How can the online ticketing project be integrated into BAHART's ideas, developments and digitalisation efforts, are further developments and convenience services expected?
The currently launched online ticketing platform is only the first step in BAHART's broader digitalisation efforts, which will be followed by further innovations, relying of course on the expertise of Delta Systems. Once the ferry ports have been completely renovated and rebuilt, it will be possible to include passengers arriving by car in the online ticketing service, which is expected to significantly reduce the waiting time experienced by motorists at ferry ports. Electronic displays will be installed at passenger ferry ports to provide passenger information, and the new features will be followed by the installation of ticket vending machines, which will be added as a third convenient way of changing tickets, alongside online and ticket office sales. A fleet management system has been launched to support the automation of workflows and access to detailed business data, and the construction of 4 new Balaton boats to the latest technical standards is underway.
