Masabi, the company bringing Fare Payments-as-a-Service to public transit, today announced the launch of My Fare, a contactless mobile ticketing app for Calgary Transit that lets passengers buy tickets and passes anytime, anywhere, using their smartphones. It’s fast, easy, contactless and a safe way to pay and ride transit. The network-wide deployment follows the successful completion of a pilot mobile ticketing project on four routes. Multi-format Justride Inspect validation devices have been installed across 1000+ buses for safer and faster boarding.
The My Fare app, which is powered by Masabi’s Justride platform and can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play, allows riders of Calgary Transit services to purchase and use fare products such as regular monthly and day passes, airport boarding pass, and single ride tickets directly from their mobile device.
As part of the project, over 1000 new validation devices have been installed across the bus network covering 155 routes. Passengers scan their dynamic and encrypted mobile passes on the devices when boarding the bus, with an audible beep and a colored screen identifying the ticket as valid for use. These validation units will help speed up boarding times making riding Calgary Transit services faster and safer by enabling contactless fare payment and validation. The validation units are powered by Masabi’s Justride Inspect software and also read NFC and contactless EMV (cEMV) technology, giving the agency the flexibility to turn on Account-Based Ticketing and other account-based tokens, if required.
“Calgarians, like citizens in towns and cities around the world, are using smartphones in almost all aspects of their day and made offering the option for riders to use their phone instead of a paper ticket a logical step for Calgary Transit,” said Brian Zanghi, CEO of Masabi. “The change in people’s behaviour brought about by the current requirement for social distancing has made mobile ticketing and the move towards a more contactless journey experience a must-have for transit agencies. We’re delighted to be working with Calgary Transit to launch a network-wide mobile ticketing option for their riders, helping passengers and agency staff to stay safe and make public transit match-fit for the ‘new normal’.”
After downloading My Fare, passengers can either create an account using their myID account information or continue as a guest. They then simply select the product they wish to buy, enter payment information, and confirm the transaction. The purchased product/s will be electronically delivered to the My Fare ticket wallet on their smartphone and a receipt for the purchase will automatically be sent to their email address.