Fury as public transport smart card firm makes €55m in profit

The company behind the Dutch public transport smart card has made €55m profit on the plastic cards in five years, the AD said on Tuesday. Consumer organisations are furious because Translink always said the price of the ov-chipkaart simply covered the cost. However, the cards, which are €7.50 to consumers, cost just 88 cents to produce, the paper said. Consumer organisation Consumentenbond spokeswoman Sandra de Jong said: ‘The cards must be cheaper, last longer, replacements should be free and everyone should be able to take their money off the cards without a fee.’