Throughout the pandemic, we’ve been increasingly impressed with transit agencies’ abilities to adapt their services and balance the fine line between meeting the needs of riders while reducing costs and keeping both riders and drivers safe. 

This time, we’ve partnered with yet another notable agency, NFTA-Metro in the Buffalo-Niagara area of New York for contactless fare payments within the Moovit app. Now, over a million citizens in the region have the additional confidence they need to return to public transit, by being able to safely and conveniently pay for their rides from the palm of their hands. All types of passes, including paratransit and reduced-price tickets for eligible riders, are now available for purchase in partnership with Token Transit. 

Fare payments and mobile ticketing solutions have quickly gone from optional to essential as contactless payments become the best way to pay for anything in 2020. As we discovered in our COVID-19 survey asking riders what would entice them back to public transportation, contactless payments were the 3rd most popular choice by American transit-takers, following better real-time information and more frequent vehicles. 

Not only do contactless payments keep both drivers and riders safe, but they also embrace the technology passengers are already using and reduce the cost of ticketing infrastructure and management. They also speed up the boarding process and offer users the convenience of not having to have the right change (or any cash at all) or making sure a card is topped up, otherwise missing the bus. 

We’re thrilled to continue growing partnerships with forward-thinking transit agencies like NFTA-Metro to help make public transit safer and more accessible for all, and we’re excited to see how MaaS enables further transformation in the New Normal.