Thursday, October 11, 2012
Soon-to-end PATCO pilot called success
A mass transit open payment pilot on the East Coast is set to conclude Oct. 20, 2012. Cubic Transportation Systems Inc., developer of the PATCO Wave & Pay Anywhere Visa Prepaid Card, said October 20 is the last day commuters will be able to use the Wave & Pay card, any other near field communication- (NFC) enabled contactless bankcard, or a virtual card via a mobile wallet, to pay at Port Authority Transit Corp. parking terminals or for fares on PATCO's high-speed rail line that runs between Southern New Jersey and Philadelphia.
Cubic officials said the pilot provided Cubic with technical information on how to successfully deploy and operate future contactless transit payment systems, including data that suggests mass transit riders will use the same media for general spending as they do to pay for fares.
"The information we gathered will go a long way in our efforts to create the payment programs of the future for transportation systems here in the United States and around the world," said Cubic President Steve Shewmaker.
The PATCO Open Payment Program launched in the fall of 2011. In phase one of the pilot, riders used Wave & Pay cards for transit payments. Phase two, which began in April 2012, gave commuters the opportunity to pay for fares with any NFC-enabled bankcard.
Phase two also corresponded to the launch of Cubic's Ride Free for 100 Days Contest, where three PATCO riders will win $600 each. The contest winners will be announced after the pilot ends and the funds will be loaded onto their Wave & Pay cards.
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