As of Wednesday, all Pittsburgh Regional Transit riders can use the agency’s mobile app to pay fares.
The agency announced that its 80 light rail vehicles now have validators to read the mobile app, called Ready2Ride. The service has been available on 700 buses since August 2021, but provider Masabi had to design a different type of validator to meet higher federal fire standards for light rail cars because they go underground.
The agency told the Union Progress last week it expected the system to be in place by early September.
About 13% of PRT riders currently pay fares using their smart phones. That happened without an extensive marketing campaign because the agency didn’t want to confuse riders who transfer from bus to light rail, so the agency expects usage to increase substantially with promotion and the expansion to all PRT vehicles, including the Monongahela and Duquesne inclines
“We are thrilled to finally launch mobile ticketing across our entire network,” CEO Katharine Eagan Kelleman said in a news release. “Now, whether you ride the bus, rail, either incline, or across different modes to get where you’re going, you’ll have access to the best our system has to offer.”
The agency’s ticket vending machines have been programmed to all riders to use cash or payment cards at the machine to load money onto their mobile app.
Ed covers transportation at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at eblazina@unionprogress.com.