Masabi has launched the RTS Go contactless fare payment solution for the Regional Transit Service (RTS) of Rochester, N.Y.
The technology, powered by Masabi’s Justride platform, means riders will no longer need to buy a ticket and will be able to use their RTS Go smart card or RTS Go mobile pass in the Transit app to tap, ride and then be charged the best possible price for their journey.
Masabi says the roll-out of RTS Go marks a turning point in the fare collection industry. Transit agencies no longer need to purchase their own design-and-build bespoke ticketing systems, which are expensive, slow and risky to deploy, and do not update regularly with new features and functionality unless significant amounts of money are invested. Instead, this solution uses a Fare Payments-as-a-Service approach, combined with a Mobility-as-a-Service app experience.
Fare Payments-as-a-Service delivers agencies the latest fare payment innovations quickly, using a cloud-native multi-tenant platform like Masabi’s Justride, which is constantly updating and adding new features. This helps improve the journey experience for passengers by delivering constant innovation, helping agencies keep up with the pace of technology change. It also reduces the total cost of fare collection as the costs are shared between all users of the platform through reduced build, update and maintenance costs.
Thanks to Masabi’s integration with Transit app, RTS customers are now able to add stored value to their accounts and seamlessly tap around the transit network. The combination provides RTS customers with an integrated mobility experience including trip planning, real-time information and connections to third-party mobility services, so they can plan their complete first/last mile journeys and tap and ride when they’re ready to travel, all from within the same application, powered by Masabi’s Justride SDK.
Customers using RTS Go will pay $1 per ride, but thanks to fare capping, never more than $3 a day or $56 a month - which corresponds to the price of a daily and monthly pass. The account-based back office fare engine knows when a rider has reached these limits and stops charging them for the rest of that day or month, rewarding them the more they use RTS services. Ensuring the availability of fully contactless journeys for riders shows RTS’ commitment to a transport-led recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic, keeping transit working safely for the people of Rochester.
“As businesses in our region continue to open and adjust to new realities from the COVID-19 pandemic, RTS is happy to implement our new RTS Go fare payment system and provide customers with new and safe options to manage and pay their fares,” RTS CEO Bill Carpenter said. “In addition to integrating a new mobile app and reloadable smartcards into our system, the technology behind RTS Go adds a new layer of safety for customers on the bus through contactless fare payment. I thank our partners at Masabi and Transit for their innovation and for helping us bring this project to life.”
Customers who don’t have a smartphone are able to purchase an RTS Go reloadable smart card online or at one of the new ticket vending machines. RTS Go cards can be topped up using Transit app, online using the new web portal or from a ticket vending machine.
When boarding the bus, passengers tap their mobile pass or smart card on the new Justride Validators. These validation devices bring the benefits of Account-Based Ticketing to agencies of all sizes and enable all major ticketing formats including Barcode, NFC and Contactless EMV (for contactless bank cards).
“This deployment is the beginning of the end for the traditional fare collection industry as we know it, with full fare payment systems delivering agencies of all sizes the latest fare payment innovations as a service quickly and for a fraction of the cost of bespoke systems. At the same time, Fare Payments-as-a-Service is helping agencies keep up with the pace of technology change with constantly improving features and functionality, including the foundations for MaaS,” said Brian Zanghi, CEO of Masabi. “It's a genuine win-win for both riders and agencies and will be the de facto way agencies run their fare payment systems. With this world first, RTS is leading the way and it’s a testament to their forward looking, passionate and dedicated teams that this project was possible.”
