KTC’s ‘Go Goa’ app delayed, may be launched on April 1

Panaji: The delayed launch of the ‘Go Goa’ transport app prompted the Kadamba Transport Corporation (KTC) to float a fresh tender on Tuesday for a comprehensive integrated transport management system (ITMS), with officials citing data security gaps and operational challenges with the existing arrangement.KTC managing director, Rohan Kaskar, confirmed that while ‘Go Goa’ was originally scheduled for launch in Oct 2025 and later pushed to Jan this year, it could not be rolled out on a larger scale due to “structural and contractual limitations” tied to the current vendor, who was appointed under a smart city project.The KTCL has set April 1 as the tentative date for the launch of the app.“The app was developed under the smart city framework, where only 48 buses were covered.

That same system was extended to KTC, which operates over 500 buses. The low-volume smart city solution was not designed for such scale,” he said.A major reason for the delay, officials said, was the absence of clearly defined roles, liabilities, and data ownership clauses in the existing agreement. “Nowhere is it mentioned that the data belongs to KTC or that the vendor is duty-bound to provide it. If something goes wrong, we may not get access to our own operational data,” he said.

“The newly proposed ITMS will be far more comprehensive, integrating multiple modules under a single platform. These include passenger space-recognition cameras, digital audit systems, WhatsApp ticketing, vehicle-tracking, and National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) integration,” he said.He further said the NCMC will enable use across different modes of transport and services. “This card can be used beyond buses and even for advertising-linked services,” he added. Adhering to the Motor Vehicles Act’s rules, KTC ensured its buses are equipped with vehicle location tracking devices. “The new vendor only needs to integrate the existing GPS data into a unified system so that everything is visible on a single interface, even on a mobile phone,” he said.The corporation expects the new system to be implemented in phases from the upcoming financial year.