New ticket service will speed up city buses say company boss

The service which sees riders able to buy tickets on their mobile via an app will also reduce bus dwelling time by as much as 50 per cent by 2020, the bus company hopes.

Hoped to be rolled out by the beginning of next week, the service is being introduced after a review found customers were left frustrated by having to pay with the correct change.

The system will be provided by tech company Masabi and its CEO Brian Zanghi says the service will significantly speed up buses around the city.

”Every second that a bus is parked at a stop collecting passenger fares is time that it is not transporting people to where they need to be,” he said.

“By introducing mobile ticketing Preston Bus hopes to reduce the time buses spend at bus stops by as much as 50 per cent - dramatically increasing efficiency and improving the customer experience.”

Passengers can use of the service by downloading the Preston Bus app to their Apple or Andriod smartphone. They will then choose from the full range of Preston Bus tickets and pay using a credit or debit card.

The virtual ticket is then stored in the passenger’s phone and shown to the driver when boarding the bus.

“Our goal has always been to streamline the travel experience, showing passengers the benefits of choosing Preston Bus,” said Bob Dunn, managing director of Preston Bus.

“Using technology can remove the hassles that we know are associated with using cash to pay for tickets and the knock-on delays that can cause.”

Preston Bus will release the service when it is signed off by Apple.