Masabi announced May 1 that New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has selected the company to provide mobile ticketing for both the Metro-North Railroad (MNR) and Long Island Rail Road (LIRR).
Masabi’s mobile ticketing technology will allow riders to buy train tickets using their smartphones, anytime and anywhere, eliminating the need to ever carry a paper ticket again.
Customers will be able to quickly and securely buy and use electronic tickets for both railroads using a mobile ticketing application or website. This technology means that customers no longer have to wait in line at ticket machines, or fumble for cash to pay onboard, revolutionizing the process of buying tickets on the two largest commuter railroads in the United States.
The MTA will be using Masabi’s JustRide platform, a deployment proven, end-to-end mobile ticketing and fare collection system. The award-winning product includes features such as ticket purchase, user display and easy validation together with sophisticated back-end infrastructure for secure payments, ticket management, customer service, reporting and real-time analytics.
“This is a step forward as we look to use the latest technologies available to make fare payment at all our agencies easier, faster, and more convenient,” said Thomas F. Prendergast, chairman and CEO of the MTA.
"Mobile ticketing is all about making life easier for transit riders," said Ben Whitaker, CEO of Masabi. "By transforming smartphones into vending machines, we are making waiting in line a thing of the past. We are excited to be working with Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road to bring our award-winning technology to New York's commuters."
Through the app, all ticket types will be available for purchase including one-way, round-trip, ten-trip, weekly passes, and monthly passes: from any origin or destination with payment being made via either debit or credit card. Tickets are sent to users’ phones in the form of an electronic ticket that can be validated visually by conductors, or as an encrypted barcode that can be scanned by a conductor’s handheld device to verify that the barcode is valid.
“As a lifelong Metro-North rider, it is exciting to be bringing our technology to New York’s commuter railroads,” said Josh Robin vice president of North America, Masabi. “With our technology, the MTA will be able to deliver industry-leading innovation to its riders at a fraction of the cost of traditional fare payment technology.”