The MBTA is excited to offer more of its customers access to the “revolutionary” and innovative mobile ticket purchasing technology that allows riders to buy train passes on their smartphones.
Starting on Wednesday, November 28, the T is expanding the smartphone services even further down the tracks and introducing the mobile ticket purchasing app to users that ride Commuter Trains from South Station as well as Commuter ferries.
“We could not be more excited,” said Joshua Robin, the T’s director of innovation. “We have had a lot of positive feedback so far.”
Robin said there are more people on the “South side” to work with and they expect to have a lot more success in terms of use.
They are also offering monthly pass purchase options using the smartphone technology starting Wednesday.
By downloading the free app and using a credit or debit card, customers can also purchase a one-way, 10-day or round trip pass, according to the T’s website.
On November 12, all North Station Commuter Rail Line customers got the first taste of the new system and had the ability to board their train and purchase a ticket using the app, allowing them to skip the daunting lines by paying the fare on their phone.
Since it was first launched, mTicket has been downloaded by more than 13,000 smartphone users and used to handle more than $54,000 in transactions, T officials said.
With the launch of the system for South Station customers, officials expect that number to increase significantly.
The paperless system is also expected to save the MBTA some money, since it will eliminate the need for additional ticket kiosks and knock out the use of printing expenses. Train conductors are trained to check tickets using a smartphone device, potentially curbing fare evasion and ticket scams, T officials told BostInno over the summer.
The app has been in the works since the MBTA signed an agreement with British mobile-ticketing company Masabi US several months back. The company developed the concept for the MBTA, making it the first in the country to have mobile ticketing.
A select few Commuter Rail riders had a chance to get their hands on the MBTA’s mobile ticket purchasing app prior to its official launch in November—and for the most part, participants were pleased with the product.
“I like it. I think it’s easy to use,” said Tracy Heather Strain, when she tested the app for the T over the summer. “It’s an exciting step forward.”
Strain, who takes the Commuter Rail three times a week, described the app as having a “brightness and energy to make usability better.”
“It is pretty intuitive,” she said at the time of the tryouts.
You can download the apps here:
iOS: http://bit.ly/SZ1Leu
Android: http://bit.ly/Q759Vp
