[telecom] Smartphone ticketing set for commuter rail

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Smartphone ticketing set for commuter rail

April 21, 2012|By Eric Moskowitz

Commuter rail riders will be able to purchase and display tickets on their smartphones later this year, instead of fumbling with cash or fishing for prepaid paper tickets and passes, under an agreement signed Friday by the MBTA.

With an estimated two-thirds of riders carrying smartphones, the application could also make fare collection more efficient on crowded trains and reduce on-board cash transactions for the MBTA, which runs the nation's fifth-busiest commuter rail network.

Mobile ticketing applications are widely used in England, but the T would be the first major US commuter rail to offer passengers an alternative to paper.

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