Buying a Muni ticket? Starting this summer, there’s an app for that.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency is partnering with Oregon-based mobile ticketing company GlobeSherpa to allow Muni riders to purchase and redeem tickets with a smartphone app, SFMTA officials announced today.
Riders will be able to purchase the tickets using a credit or debit card or PayPal, store them on their phone, and use their purchased tickets. This way, riders will no longer need exact change or access to a vending machine, Muni officials said.
The pilot program is expected to begin this summer with apps for Android and iOS operating systems.
“This mobile fare payment pilot program is part of our efforts to improve the customer’s experience on the Muni system,” SFMTA Director of Transportation Ed Reiskin said in a statement. “Customers will now have another convenient option to pay their Muni fares in addition to cash and Clipper.”
SFMTA officials hope the new payment option will lead to more mobile payment options for public transportation throughout the region, including on Clipper cards.
Transit officials intend for the next generation of Clipper cards, to be introduced by 2020, to have mobile payment options, SFMTA officials said.
“It’s very common to see transit riders using a mobile device while on the bus or train, and riders are asking their agencies to provide mobile ticketing technologies,” GlobeSherpa CEO Nat Parker said in a statement.
Scott Morris, Bay City News
