Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license.
Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat.
We can research this topic together.
The Shanghai Public Transportation Card (SPTC) (Chinese: 上海公共交通卡; pinyin: Shànghǎi gōnggòng jiāotōng kǎ also known as 交通一卡通; Jiāotōng Yìkǎtōng) is a contactless card, utilising RFID technology, which can be used to access many forms of public transport and related services in and around Shanghai. Shanghai public transportation card is also provided in the form of Apple Pay as well as QR codes, which are accessible through WeChat, Alipay, APPs and miniprograms, and enjoy the same price discounts as cards.
Uses
The SPTC is a form of rechargeable cash card, and allows access to, among other things in Shanghai:
Metros
Airport maglev
Trams
Buses and trolleybuses
Ferries
Taxis
Tourist centers
Car parks
Fuel stations
Expressways
Auto repair service
Among the list above, metro, maglev, trams, buses, trolleybuses and ferries also accept Shanghai Publis Transportation QR codes.
Shanghai's latest transportation card utilizes China T-Union and can be used in most cities in China that also utilized T-Union.
Purchase and funding
A variant of Shanghai public transportation card: a small sticker that can be attached to anything, e.g. to a phone
There are five types of SPTCs:
Standard
Memorial
Mini
Personalized
Watch
Only the Standard card has a refundable deposit (20 RMB); other cards cannot be refunded, but have a lower deposit (20 RMB) and are resalable through other means. Cards can be reloaded in multiples of 10 RMB, at selected convenience stores, banks throughout Shanghai and service counters at all metro stations, or in multiples of 50 RMB in many local Metro stations (by machine; this is only possible for standard-sized cards with the exception of some machines in line 8 stations that are capable of taking most sizes). Furthermore, Android phone users can reload the cards (numbers started with U only) on the SPTC App, using NFC. Should a cardholder attempt to board a bus, ferry or the metro without sufficient funds in their card, an overdraft will be allowed if the balance (prior to the overdraft) is non-negative and the fare is less than 10 RMB.
Personalized cards are also available upon request at the Transportation Card Service Center on West Nanjing Road for a fee of 60 yuan (not inclusive of any credit).
Discounts
The following discounts are available to card holders and QR code users:
Interchange discount
When cardholders take a different bus within a 120-minute period from first touch-in on the previous bus, the second trip is discounted by 1 RMB, likewise the metro (while the 120-min window starts from touch-out). But no discount is applied when taking two consecutive metro journeys. For example, a trip from Jinshajiang Road/Zhenbei Road (118 Plaza) to Zhangjiang High-Technology Park costs 7 RMB in cash (Bus 94 -> Metro Line 2), but with the SPTC, the cost is reduced to 6 RMB. On some bus routes which have a one-yuan fare, trips will be free. For example, exiting from a metro station and then taking a four-digit-route bus (usually serving a residential district quite far from the station, and having one-yuan fare due to subsidy), the bus section would be free.
Metro discount
When 70 RMB is used on the same card or QR code account on the Shanghai Metro within one calendar month, further metro fares are discounted 10%. This discount is applied after the Interchange discount, i.e. when both discounts are applied to a 4-RMB metro trip, the cost will be 2.7 RMB (The metro fare is 3 RMB after 1 RMB Interchange discount, then 10% discount on 3 RMB is 2.7 RMB).
Virtual transfer
For various reasons, free in-system transfer is not yet possible at some stations, such as Shanghai Railway Station. While passengers with single-ride tickets must exit and re-enter at these stations to transfer between lines (and therefore re-purchase tickets), Public Transportation Card holders or QR Code users are charged as if the two segments were one, as long as they re-enter within 30 minutes after they exited the other station. Fares are reduced during this process.
Shanghai Metro
Trams
Bus
Shanghai Suburban Railway
Other CR railways
