California transit agency Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District said it plans to launch a pilot of contactless open-loop payments in early 2022, as it seeks to increase customer convenience and reduce use of cash on board its buses, NFC Times' sister publication Mobility Payments has learned.
The planned pilot, not yet announced, would be conducted under the California Integrated Travel Project, or Cal-ITP. The state initiative aims to help the 300-plus transit agencies in California to procure interoperable open-loop payments technology, as well as offer more real-time transit information and discounts to riders. With these enhancements, officials hope to begin reversing chronically falling public transit ridership and ultimately to reduce the number of cars on California’s clogged freeways.
Pete Rasmussen, transportation planner at Santa Cruz Metro, told Mobility Payments that the agency decided to test the technology to provide more convenient payments options to customers. “Many people these days prefer to use debit or credit cards rather than carrying cash, and even if someone carries cash, having the exact fare for the bus requires pre-planning,” he said.
