Elly Yates-Roberts |
Andy Grove, former CEO of Intel, once said: “Bad companies are destroyed by crisis, good companies survive them, great companies are improved by them.” On this note, a company that is delivering consistent technological innovations for public good brings in great value not just to its shareholders, but to a city or a community. We at PayiQ wish to be addressed as a great company that concentrates on the future of travelling in the challenging times of the current crisis. Innovation and speed to market have always been our core focus areas, accompanied by superior team competence and perseverance.
PayiQ TaaS smart ticketing platform is a smartphone-based system for public transport that is quick, secure, easy to use and easy to take into use. At the core of the system is a Microsoft Azure-based back end with intelligent fraud prevention and versatile payment methods supported by several payment service providers, such as Cybersource. Travellers can access both city public transport services and private sector mobility solutions with a single smartphone application that is branded according to the city’s or operator’s visual guidelines. Transport operators are provided with the necessary ecosystem that is executed to align with city administration and operator needs through TaaS back-office administration. Roll-out can be done without having to replace existing infrastructure and with minimal upfront investment. Furthermore, cities can have a Covid-19-resilient smart ticketing system up and running in a few weeks.
From an end-user perspective, this will be a single app to take the bus or metro, share cars, pay for parking or other free-floating rides, as well as to have access to services like events and food courts. Tickets can be bundled so the traveller only buys a single ticket that grants access to different modes of transport and covers the whole journey. Our platform also includes ticket validation and integrations to various validation methods and equipment manufacturers. In effect, buying, using and validating tickets is contactless and safe.
We can help operators to manage ticket products, assist in route resourcing and fleet management, risk assessment and in monitoring revenue collection on a real-time basis. All this in a secure environment that is co-owned by the city transport operator. Our platform is universal and easily adaptable to any transport operator, like a plug-and-play solution for instantaneous smart ticketing. We believe that smart ticketing can help public transport to overcome this crisis.
Shyam Sunder is vice president of global sales at PayiQ
This article was originally published in the Autumn 2020 issue of The Record. To get future issues delivered directly to your inbox, sign up for a free subscription.