NFC TIMES Exclusive Insight - Up to a third of transit riders in several cities say contactless payments and mobile ticketing would encourage them to return to using public transit following the Covid-19 lockdowns, according to a survey results released by Israel-based trip-planning app Moovit.
Moovit said an even higher percentage of survey respondents–in some cases more than 50%–said they wanted to see transit agencies run buses, trains and other transit vehicles more frequently to reduce crowding on the vehicles. They also seek more real-time arrival information to reduce waiting times at crowded transit stops.
The survey mainly focused on cities in North America, Western Europe and Australia, where the Covid-19 pandemic saw ridership drop between 40% and 90%, according to Moovit. Ridership has been recovering somewhat, but in six months following the August 2020 release of the survey report, ridership is still projected to be down by an average 18% from prepandemic levels in the U.S., around 26% in London and 23% in Toronto, said Moovit. Until then, more people taking their personal cars, walking or riding bicycles and scooters when they can avoid transit.
