A New Approach to Collecting Transit Tolls

摘要

Transportation agencies across the U.S. are exploring smart-card options for public transportation that will accommodate all travelers. The technology has been available in Hong Kong, Korea and the U.K. for many years. Most U.S. transit systems use paper passes, tokens or plastic cards that work only within their individual, closed-loop systems. A 2008 study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston determined that the adoption of contactless smart cards may increase as aging transit collection systems, installed during the 1970s and 1980s, reach the end of their useful life.