Greater Dayton RTA introduces cash payments for mobile tickets

Passengers in Dayton, Ohio, can now pay for contactless fares using cash at local retailers.

The Greater Dayton Regional Transport Authority (RTA) in Ohio will now offer customers the opportunity to pay for contactless bus tickets using cash, by topping up travel cards at participating local retailers. The authority has partnered with cashless technology partner T-CETRA to deliver the new scheme.

Passengers can now pay cash to load bus tickets to their RTA mobile Tapp Pay accounts. Greater Dayton RTA says paying via this method incurs no fees to the rider – an important distinction from pre-paid debit card payments which often charge monthly oe transactional fees to the user.

Tapp Pay mobile is part of RTA’s new contactless payment system, available through the Transit app. The Greater Dayton RTA says it has installed electronic payment readers onboard all vehicles, enabling customers to scan mobile passes from their Tapp Pay account, furthering RTA’s contactless payment experience.

Abdul Akel, Co-Founder of T-CETRA, said: “We are excited about the launch of the RTA mobile payment on our VidaPay network in Dayton and hope this improves equity and access to transportation in this market.”

Dayton is not the only city now offering this kind of service to its passengers in the U.S. Recently, the Regional Transport Commission of Southern Nevada (RTC) also launched a similar scheme, which enables passengers in Las Vegas to pay for contactless bus tickets in shops across the city.

As transport operators in the US shift to contactless forms of payment for their services, it has been noted that not all passengers are comfortable using a totally cashless system. After all, if you don’t have access to a smartphone or a contactless bank card, it is easy to see why paying for transport in the current circumstances could be difficult.

Instead, hybrid schemes such as the one launched by Greater Dayton RTA have come to the fore, enabling those who prefer using cash to pay for and board buses in a safe, contactless manner.