FAIRTIQ enables innovative pricing and fare structures

Public transport agencies need new insights to refresh fares and pricing

Restrictions related to COVID-19 have deeply impacted public transport demand patterns and agencies can no longer rely on historical data. Decision-makers are keen to drive ridership and revenue, but there is often scant data to fully support fare and service changes.

As work patterns shift, monthly and yearly pass sales are falling all over the world, especially where the ticket-to-pass multiplier is high. Passes must be replaced with other solutions.

The reason why so many agencies retain a fare structure designed decades ago lies in the difficulty in making the case for change without good data, particularly on potential financial shortfalls of a new fare structure. Decision-makers will ask: how much more ridership and revenue will this create? Who will be impacted and how?

Reinvent your fares with FAIRTIQ
Capping

In most markets, FAIRTIQ is generally set up to scour the best available deal (caps, promotions etc) at the end of the day, but can be set to calculate the owed amount weekly or monthly. 

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Throughout Switzerland, FAIRTIQ applies daily passes retroactively in each fare association.
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In Halle, Germany, customers receive a daily cap through FAIRTIQ. In the Mittelthüringen area, a cap is calculated on a weekly basis. [In German]
Crediting (cashback)

Crediting - or cashback - is a relatively new concept in public transport, enabled by account-based ticketing. Customers pay the regular price for all their trips. Over a certain amount, they receive a credit usable only on public transport over the next month. Bonuses can also be offered based on consecutive days of use. Which agency has not heard “why can’t your fare system be more like my coffee app?” Now it can be.

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With 10 FAIRTIQ partners, customers who travel at least 5 times in a given month receive 5% off the amount they paid for their tickets.
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The bonus is paid as a credit the second day of the following month. Because it expires after a month, it encourages customers to return to the app.
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The bonus can be expected to pay for itself.
Modelling and testing fare changes

Agencies around the world have shown interest in new types of fare such as fare by distance, or “beeline” fare structures based on experience in Japan, Australia, the Netherlands and elsewhere. However, the data is often missing to allow decision-makers to make the important decision to change the fare structure. The pandemic will make it even more difficult to use historical data to establish reliable forecasts, let alone with a new fare structure. 

If recent data exists, FAIRTIQ can simulate the impact of various fare scenarios. Because nothing replaces actual customer input, FAIRTIQ allows agencies to test new fare structures such as zones and fare by distance with closed user groups (even concurrently) to collect the data needed to make a final policy decision. The result is actual customer input at a minimal cost.

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Both Cologne and Munich in Germany are using FAIRTIQ to test a new beeline or “as-the-crow-flies” fare instead of old zones. While most customers continue to pay their fares with legacy media using the old fare structure, a subset of a few thousand customers using FAIRTIQ’s “FTQ Lab” app are testing the new pricing model.
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The new structure can be designed with a base charge, plus a per-mile or per-kilometer charge based on the beeline or as-the-crow-flies distance or the actual distance travelled, up to a daily cap.
In Cologne, 84% of users called the new structure “fair” or “very fair”.
Promotions

Promotions can drive new ridership and revenue but the risk always exists that a promotion does not generate enough new ridership to make up for its cost. FAIRTIQ allows to test promotions with target groups and get the data needed to make quick decisions. Promotions with a positive ROI can be made permanent.

promotions
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TPF in Fribourg, Switzerland offered 30% off on FAIRTIQ on Black Friday in 2020.
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HAVAG in Halle, Germany offered 10% off between 10:00 and 1:00 pm and 5:00 pm and 4:00 am the following day during a limited period to drive off-peak ridership.
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VVV in Vorarlberg Austria tested a 14€ weekly cap + 5€ bonus for new customers with different promo codes during “Mobility Week” to see which communications channels are most effective.

FAIRTIQ allows employers, universities, tourist and shopping destinations to target special pricing and promotions to specific groups, at specific locations and times. Employers can achieve significant savings compared to purchasing passes, popular destinations no longer have to worry about parking capacity. Public transport agencies benefit from a new source of revenue and ridership. 

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Make the case for updated pricing with real data
The best way to find out is to try it. FAIRTIQ was invented and developed by ticketing and pricing experts who were told too many times that something could not be done in the existing system. As a result, FAIRTIQ is designed to offer almost limitless possibilities.
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