Commuters Would Pay More for Better Public Transit Tech, Study Says

(Wired) Public transit riders have spoken, and they’re expecting technology to make ticketing easier, reduce delays, and improve communication from transit authorities. And most of them are even willing to pay higher ticket prices for the privilege.

In a survey conducted by the consulting firm Accenture, over 4,500 transit users in nine major cities overwhelmingly said that they expect such technological advances as paperless ticketing, communication about delays through social media, and the ability to pay for travel using a smartphone app.

In the U.S. cities polled, 80 percent of riders said they’d be willing to pay more per ride for a journey that’s completely paperless. And over 75 percent of them said they’d pay more if they could use their smartphone for ticketing. In fact, a great deal of riders assumed such technology would be available as soon as 2014. ......................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.wired.com/autopia/2013/05/public-transit-tech/