Innovations and Best Practices in Transit Fare Enforcement

Public transportation systems continuously evolve to meet the demands of growing urban populations and advancing technologies. A critical component of these systems is the fare enforcement policy, which directly impacts revenue, operational efficiency, and passenger satisfaction. Many transit agencies face challenges in fare enforcement, such as balancing passive and active methods and adopting the latest fare collection technologies. They struggle to justify the costs and optics of hardening fare gates and implementing other security measures to ensure fare collection while providing transit service that makes riders feel comfortable on all transit modes. The evolution of fare collection systems and the use of proof-of-payment systems by some agencies necessitates an evaluation of their effectiveness and integration within modern transit networks. Agencies need guidance on the different fare collection approaches and fare products, including innovative concepts unlocked by the latest fare enforcement methods and technologies, and how to integrate these products, methods, and technologies into their fare enforcement policy. Agencies are looking for guidance on fare enforcement that balance operating revenue pressures with the capital costs. This research seeks to address these challenges by analyzing current practices, evaluating new strategies and technologies, and providing actionable recommendations for transit agencies seeking guidance on how to balance these elements. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this research is to produce guidance and resources to help transit agencies develop and implement an effective transit fare enforcement policy and integrate applicable fare collection technologies and strategies into their operations.

• Record URL:
  • http://apps.trb.org/cmsfeed/TRBNetProjectDisplay.asp?ProjectID=5824
• Supplemental Notes:
  • Contract to a Performing Organization has not yet been awarded.

Language

• English

Project

• Funding: $300,000.00
• Contract Numbers:

  Project A-54

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Transit Cooperative Research Program

  Transportation Research Board
  500 Fifth Street, NW
  Washington, DC    20001

  Federal Transit Administration

  1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Project Managers:

  Garcia-Colberg, Mariela

• Start Date: 20251101
• Expected Completion Date: 0
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Best practices; Fare collection; Fares; Law enforcement; Policy; Public transit; Transit authorities
• Subject Areas: Finance; Law; Policy; Public Transportation;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01937961
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Transportation Research Board
• Contract Numbers: Project A-54
• Files: TRB, RIP
• Created Date: Nov 25 2024 11:25PM