Murcia University in southeast Spain is the latest school to employ HID iCLASS technology for multifunctional student ID cards. In the case of Murcia, a key component of the cards is their ability to serve as transit passes for buses that transport student around the university, and back and forth between its two campuses. The HID iCLASS system makes it easy for students to ride the bus as many times as they’d like, and have their fare payments handled electronically.

Each student receives an iCLASS contactless smart card which can be read by HID iCLASS RW300 reader/writers installed in university buses. When a student boards the bus, he or she simply waves the card at the reader. It checks the validity of the card, and the number of trips the student has left on their card, before flashing a green light of approval, or the dreaded orange light if things don’t check out properly. If the student is not authorized to ride, a text message appears on the screen to alert the driver to the reasons why.
The HID iCLASS cards can be personalized by the university as student IDs, and can also be reprogrammed when the purchased number of bus trips runs out. Another benefit of the iCLASS system is it allows the bus system to monitor usage. The program also save money by replacing temporary bus passes with HID cards that can be refilled and used over and over.