Public transit agencies and transport authorities have long struggled with delivering fare collection systems on time and budget. Custom-built, bespoke fare collection solutions have often led to delays, cost overruns, and cancelled projects. But there is a new model that agencies are turning to: SaaS fare collection, also known as Fare Payment-as-a-Service or Ticketing-as-a-Service.
SaaS platforms, such as Masabi’s Justride, are changing the game. In 2024, Masabi delivered 42 major fare collection project upgrades - already an industry record at the time (we believe). However, we have already outpaced that with 54 major upgrades delivered and counting, just over halfway through 2025, underscoring how SaaS isn't just a different delivery model - it's a faster, more scalable one.
This blog explores why the traditional approach has underserved the industry so often - and how SaaS, especially when powered by an enterprise-proven SaaS platform like Justride, is enabling a better way forward.
For decades, fare collection projects followed a frustratingly predictable pattern. Long procurement cycles, multi-year development timelines, frequent delays, cost overruns - and in some cases, total project cancellations after millions had already been spent. It wasn’t for lack of effort or intent; it was the delivery model itself that was broken.
Bespoke fare collection systems require every new deployment to be treated like a ground-up build. That means different codebases, one-off integrations, and unique team configurations for each project. This approach led to the infamous "A, B, and C" team dynamic: a strong team for flagship deployments, while others made do with stretched resources and limited support. When things went wrong, knowledge didn’t transfer easily across teams, and agencies were left waiting.
This siloed, resource-constrained model made it virtually impossible to deliver multiple high-quality projects in parallel. And in today’s world - where public expectations, funding environments, and technology change rapidly - that approach simply doesn’t cut it anymore.
Enter SaaS fare collection.
With platforms like Masabi’s Justride, agencies don’t need to commission custom systems that reinvent the wheel. Instead, they gain access to a configurable, modular platform that’s already been selected by over 200 agencies worldwide. It’s built to support Account-Based Ticketing using all major fare media including Open Payments, mobile apps, and smart cards, fare capping, integrations with partner systems, and it’s built to do it quickly.
There’s no need to develop from scratch. No unique infrastructure. Just a tried, tested, and continuously updated platform that’s configured and evolves alongside the agencies using it.
In our 2024 wrap-up, we celebrated the delivery of 42 major project upgrades - a record for Masabi at the time (and the industry we believe). But just over halfway into 2025, we’ve already delivered 54 major upgrades, with many more on the horizon.
This year’s projects span the full spectrum of fare collection innovation:
This kind of delivery velocity is only possible with an Enterprise-ready SaaS platform. In fact, as more agencies adopt this model, delivery is accelerating - not slowing down. The more projects we launch, the more efficient and streamlined each one becomes. Crossing the 50-project mark before the end of Q3 isn’t just a milestone -it’s proof that SaaS is enabling faster, more scalable innovation in fare collection than ever before. And importantly, every agency gets access to the same technology, the same global delivery team, and the same best practices.
Legacy vendors struggled with repeatability because every project was unique. In contrast, Masabi delivers every project using the same underlying platform - Justride - and a unified delivery framework.
Our team isn’t divided into tiers. Every customer benefits from the expertise and tooling that powered our largest deployments. And when an agency needs to accelerate a timeline or pivot to a new fare model, we can reallocate resources without friction, because we’re all trained on the same system.
This eliminates the resourcing bottlenecks that once plagued fare collection projects and gives agencies confidence in both speed and quality.
One of the most valuable aspects of SaaS is the ability to innovate incrementally.
Agencies can start small and scale smart. Some launch mobile ticketing with visual validation as their first step before launching a full Account-Based Ticketing system with bank cards, smart cards, and mobile apps (what we call the Mobile-First approach), others go live with Open Payments first and add smartcards and other fare media later (what we call the ‘Open Payments-First’ approach).
Account-Based Ticketing can be introduced with limited fare capping at launch and expanded once ridership patterns are understood. The platform supports this evolution by design.
But SaaS delivery innovation is no longer limited to smaller or mid-sized agencies. With Masabi’s enterprise-ready platform - proven in major cities like New York, Boston, Los Angeles, Denver, Birmingham (UK) with National Express, and most recently selected by ARTM in Montreal - large transit authorities are embracing the same model.
Agencies can take advantage of an open back office that integrates with existing systems through advanced APIs and SDKs, providing a powerful platform to build upon. This not only accelerates innovation but also reduces the burden of fare collection while dramatically lowering the cost of sale.
We’ve reached a turning point in fare collection. The old model - slow, risky, and custom - has been replaced by a smarter, faster, scalable alternative.
Masabi’s SaaS approach is delivering real results. With 54 project upgrades already live in 2025, it’s clear that agencies are no longer content to wait years to modernize. They want results now. And they’re getting them.
Don’t build. Configure. Don’t wait. Launch.
Masabi is ready to help you get there - faster, more reliably, and with greater confidence than ever before.