US micropayments company Peppercoin is looking to cash in on the mass transit market with a new contactless fare collection system that allows passengers to pay for travel using their existing credit or debit cards.
The Massachusetts-based vendor has teamed with contactless card outfit On Track Innovation (OTI) to develop a prototype of the system, which allows transit passengers to use their preferred credit or debit card as a pass.
The system, which features OTI's Saturn 5000 contactless card reader, can also be used to pre-pay for multi-ride, season or period passes, which can be virtually loaded onto a credit or debit card.
"Contactless fare payment with a regular debit or credit card brings added speed, convenience and efficiency to people's mass transit travel, including their daily commute," says Mark Friedman, president and CEO of Peppercoin. "The system will be a great benefit for transit operators as well.
Peppercoin did not disclose details of when the system - which is still at the prototype stage - would be launched.
However in January Citibank said it was launching a a six-month trial of contactless payments technology at ticket barriers on the New York subway. The technology enables passengers to pay for their fare at the point of entry by tapping their Citi MasterCard card or payment tag on a specially equipped reader.
Meanwhile in the UK Transport for London (TfL) is planning to add contactless payments functionality to its Oyster travel card which will enable passengers to use the card to pay for low value purchases at retail stores.