Greater Dayton RTA has today announced that riders can now use cash to purchase tickets for its Tapp Pay mobile ticketing service at participating T-CETRA retailers across Dayton. Tapp Pay mobile is part of RTA’s new contactless payment system, available by downloading the Transit app on Google Play or the App store.
Customers who have a smartphone and want to pay with cash can now simply purchase and load RTA passes to their Tapp Pay account at T-CETRA retail locations across Dayton. This has been made possible through a partnership between Tapp Pay’s Fare Payments-as-a-Service provider, Masabi, Transit and T-CETRA, a leading payments technology company. Once purchased, tickets are stored in a rider’s Tapp Pay account ready to use when required.
RTA has also announced the installation of Justride validation units onboard its fleet of buses. Justride Validators (JRVs) support all major ticketing formats including paper and mobile barcodes, smartcards (NFC) and are future-proofed for cEMV and bluetooth. Designed from the ground up by Masabi, the JRVs possess the necessary capabilities to meet the demands of account-based ticketing, even in large cities, all at a price point that for the first time makes next-generation ticketing accessible to transit agencies and operators in towns and cities around the globe.
Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, RTA has worked diligently to create and maintain a safe transit environment for customers. In May, Tapp Pay mobile payments were introduced via the Transit app to reduce the amount of physical interactions with on-board payment equipment. With the addition of cash conversion outlets, more customers will have the ability to utilize RTA’s new payment system, Tapp Pay.
“We understand that some of our customers have a smartphone but do not have access to a debit or credit card. These retail outlets will provide customer access to Tapp Pay when paying with cash,” said Brandon Policicchio, RTA’s Chief Customer and Business Development Officer.
“It is vitally important that advances in technology do not exclude those who may not have access to banking services. This means that cash digitization is a key requirement to allow everyone to enjoy the benefits of mobile ticketing,” said Brian Zanghi, CEO at Masabi. “Thanks to our integration with T-CETRA, RTA’s customers will be able to use local retailers to add funds to their Tapp Pay app, ensuring a safe, contactless service and removing the need for the agency to handle cash and issue tickets.”