Success of mobile ticketing in 2020 suggests positive sign for recovery, says CEO Carl Partridge
Mobile bus ticketing use was up by 200% in the fourth quarter of 2020, according to research undertaken by smart ticketing provider UrbanThings.
The tech supplier has released a white paper examining public transport and smart cities, where it demonstrated the impact of the pandemic on its own mobile ticketing sales and app usage through 2020.
“From September to November, we saw a huge surge in m-ticketing usage and app downloads across our customer base as restrictions eased, schools returned and passengers were encouraged to use contactless payment forms, such as mobile ticketing, as a safe payment method,” explains CEO of UrbanThings Carl Partridge.
“As a result, mobile ticketing demand on the UrbanThings platform increased to double the pre-pandemic average, with the number of mobile ticket sales peaking at 208% in November and the monthly average users reaching 197%.”
Mr Partridge says the statistics demonstrate that smart travel has been incentivised by changing passenger behaviour and that it is a “promising sign for recovery.”
Tech aiding confidence
Data from an UrbanThings public confidence survey last year showed 70% of respondents did not feel confident staying socially distanced on public transport, which led to the release of predictive vehicle occupancy software for passengers thanks to Innovate UK funding.
“The feedback on this so far has been fantastic,” adds Mr Partridge. “We wanted to provide passengers with the means of travelling safely with social-distancing in mind, so now they can see how busy a vehicle is likely to be at the time of arrival. This works hand in hand with our new reservations feature, so that even scheduled services can be booked and paid for in advance.”
The white paper contains analysis and predictions from industry experts and analyses industry trends towards demand-responsive transport.
