Andreea, 05/07/2022

Transit payments talking points

3 hot topics from in transit payments

What a comeback. Transport Ticketing Global 2022 did not disappoint.

We had back-to-back conversations, meeting many old and new faces. Days after we announced our pivotal role in Costa Rica’s national contactless EMV transit payments system, it was great to be able to talk about this project and other transit ticketing hot topics.

The following three talking points resonated with transit agencies and operators. There was an enthusiastic response as we explained the ways in which contactless EMV can help them meet strategic objectives. For instance, helping them to offer seamless payments across all payment channels, and across all transport modes; and enabling EMV fare models that offer value to passengers whose travel habits have changed.

1. Omni-channel transit payments

Did you know Littlepay offers mobile payments processing? We provide SDKs and APIs that allow developers to build checkouts for transit websites and apps. These can be used to buy and top-up smart cards and pay for mobile tickets.

Using our Buy now, tap later functionality, passengers can also buy a travel product in advance and attribute travel rights to their contactless card. As a result, they can tap and ride whenever they want using the linked card as a ticket with no further charge taken.

With tokenisation across payment channels, operators using Littlepay for both contactless and mobile payment processing get a ‘single customer view’. They can use this omni-channel data to design passenger-focused services.

2. Multi-operator capping

A multi-operator fare cap can be applied in the Littlepay back office. It limits the amount passengers pay when using cooperating services.

Each operator’s fare model is unchanged. The multi-operator cap – for instance a £5 daily fare cap – is overlaid. It only comes into play when the cap criteria are met.

Multi-operator ticketing shifts passengers’ perception of regional transport. They don’t need to consider ticket prices or which operator’s services they use.

They can choose the transport modes that make sense to get from A to B. And they can trust they will benefit from any multi-operator discounts automatically.

3. Flexible fare capping

Flexible fare capping helps transit operators to respond to changing work patterns. With hybrid working normalised, and demand for season tickets falling, flexible capping is a simple alternative to period passes. It brings value to those who travel regularly, but not every day.

Tap-on, tap-off systems with flexible capping can be configured to work similarly to a period pass. The flexible cap creates incremental discounts each time a rider travels over a given time period. The value increases with more frequent travel. Once a weekly or monthly cap is triggered, further trips during that period are free.