Transit agencies have found that when speed and schedule reliability of buses improve, costs go down and customer satisfaction goes up. In Europe, all-door boarding in trams and buses is commonplace, and a growing number of North American cities are expanding all-door boarding from light rail and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) to conventional bus routes, for example on articulated buses and busy corridors.
The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy’s BRT Standard is used by cities around the world to design new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) services and improve existing bus services. 85 points are required to achieve the Gold level. Off-board fare collection is one of only five basic features of BRT: just providing proof-of-payment earns 7 points.
SFMTA’s Muni system implemented all-door boarding systemwide in 2012. Key findings:
- Dwell times fell by 37% and are 42% more consistent.
- Overall bus speeds increased 2% despite a 2% increase in boardings, and the fare evasion rate fell to 7.9% from 8.6% in 2010.
- Buses were more evenly loaded, and more customers paid using the Clipper Card than with cash. The increased cost of enforcement was offset by revenue from fares and citations.
New York City Transit's Select Bus Service (SBS), a rapid bus service launched in 2009, looked to reduce boarding times with off-board fare collection. Depending on the route, boarding time improved between 28% and 40%, ridership grew between 6.3% and 30%, and dwell time per passenger dropped between 42% and 51%.
Since 2010, RapidRide uses proof-of-payment fare control with a mix of on-board and off-board payment methods. In 2014, a study found that off-board fare collection and related improvements led to a reduction in overall travel times of up to 8%.
Vancouver Translink’s 99 B Line bus route is one of North America’s busiest bus routes and has employed proof-of-payment fare collection with all-door boarding since 2007. Following implementation, trip times on the line fell by 3% (1 minute), with per-passenger dwell time falling by 17% (1 second per passenger), despite rising ridership.
FAIRTIQ can facilitate all-door boarding by eliminating or reducing the need for vending machines and validators. Installing validators at every door of every bus adds up.
- The app replicates “tapping on” and “tapping off”, provides proof of payment and sells the ticket.
- Unlike other apps, FAIRTIQ doesn’t ask the customer to choose the fare in advance. The right product is determined at the end of the day or the week based on overall usage.
- FAIRTIQ provides accurate data on the customer’s origin like a fare validator, but also provides the destination and all points in between.
FAIRTIQ inherently includes all the functions of fare collection hardware