is a rechargeable contactless

smart card A smart card, chip card, or integrated circuit card (ICC or IC card) is a physical electronic authentication device, used to control access to a resource. It is typically a plastic credit card-sized card with an embedded integrated circuit (IC) c ...

ticketing system for public transport in

Okayama is the capital city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chūgoku region of Japan. The city was founded on June 1, 1889. , the city has an estimated population of 720,841 and a population density of 910 persons per km2. The total area is . The city is ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, introduced by

Okayama Electric Tramway The is a transportation company in Okayama City, Japan. The private company operates tram lines and bus lines. The company was founded in 1910, while their first tram line was opened in 1912. This is one of the few Japanese railway operators t ...

(Okaden), Ryōbi Bus, and Shimotsui Dentetsu (Shimoden), from October 1, 2006. The name comes from ''hare'' (sunny weather) and ''card'', meaning the card for Okayama, the sunny city. Just like

JR East The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are ...

Suica is a prepaid rechargeable contactless smart card, electronic money used as a fare card on train lines in Japan, launched on November 18, 2001. The card can be used interchangeably with JR West's ICOCA in the Kansai region and San'yō region i ...

JR West , also referred to as , is one of the Japan Railways Group (JR Group) companies and operates in western Honshu. It has its headquarters in Kita-ku, Osaka. It is listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange, is a constituent of the TOPIX Large70 index, and ...

ICOCA The card is a rechargeable contactless smart card used on the JR West rail network in Japan. The card was launched on November 1, 2003 for usage on the Urban Network, which encompasses the major cities of Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe (Keihanshin). It ...

, the card uses

RFID Radio-frequency identification (RFID) uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects. An RFID system consists of a tiny radio transponder, a radio receiver and transmitter. When triggered by an electromag ...

technology developed by

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

corporation known as

FeliCa FeliCa is a contactless Radio-frequency identification, RFID smart cards, smart card system from Sony in Japan, primarily used in electronic money cards. The name stands for ''Felicity Card''. First utilized in the Octopus card system in Hong Kong, ...

. As of October 2006, the card is usable for all the tramway lines by Okayama Electric Tramway, as well as 55 bus lines by the three operators for Okayama,

Kurashiki is a historic city located in western Okayama Prefecture, Japan, sitting on the Takahashi River, on the coast of the Inland Sea. As of March 31, 2017, the city has an estimated population of 483,576 and a population density of 1,400 persons per ...

, and

Tamano is a city located in southern Okayama Prefecture, Japan. The city was officially founded on August 3, 1940. As of October 1, 2016, the city has an estimated population of 60,101 and a population density of 580 persons per km². The total area i ...

. Within autumn, 2007, the card will be usable for all the bus lines by the operators. There also is a plan to introduce the card to other bus operators in Okayama. At the same time Hareca was introduced, the three operators also introduced

PiTaPa is a contactless smart card ticketing and electronic money system used in the Kansai region (and may also be used in some areas of Okayama Prefecture, Hiroshima Prefecture, and Shizuoka Prefecture) of Japan. The name ''PiTaPa'' is an acronym of ...

, meaning the latter card is also usable in those lines. However, Hareca cannot be used in PiTaPa-accepting area, as the former has its unique function, such as ''premium service'' (discounts). As PiTaPa and

have integrated services, ICOCA is also usable in Hareca-accepting area. As of December 2006, however, ICOCA cannot be recharged in the area.

Types of cards

*Blank card *Registered card *Children's card *Memorial card

External links

*
Official website by Okayama Electric Tramway
*

{{japan-rail-transport-stub Fare collection systems in Japan Contactless smart cards