NO-BARRIER FARE COLLECTION

This paper reviews a study performed by the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority on the feasibility of a no-barrier fare-collection system and discusses the potential of this self-service concept in the United States. No-barrier fare collection (often referred to as self-service or automatic) is widely used in Western and Eastern Europe to handle fare-collection requirements. It is not used anywhere in North America, and good information on European experience with it is sparse at best. The assumption that cheating would be rampant in the United States if this concept were employed has unrealistically dominated discussions of it and overwhelmed any rational analysis of its benefits. This study found no large propensity to defraud; it estimated that 3 to 5 percent of daily passengers could be expected to evade fares. This figure is larger than that found in European cities, but can nevertheless easily be handled. The no-barrier fare-collection concept thus appears to have a good potential in the United States, particularly for certain applications. One of these is for integrated bus-rail systems using zone fare structures and another is for light rail systems.

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• Supplemental Notes:
  • Publication of this paper sponsored by Committee on Rail Systems Planning and Development.
• Authors:
  • Padron, Manuel
  • Stanger, Richard
• Publication Date: 1976

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 21-26
• Monograph Title: Transit facility operations
• Serial:
  • Transportation Research Record
  • Issue Number: 614
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 0361-1981

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Barriers (Roads); Economics; Fare collection; Feasibility analysis; Fraud; Mathematical models; Rapid transit; Transit operating agencies; Urban transportation
• Uncontrolled Terms: Fare gates
• Geographic Terms: Europe
• Old TRIS Terms: No barrier fare collection; Rapid transit economics
• Subject Areas: Economics; Finance; Highways; Operations and Traffic Management; Passenger Transportation; Planning and Forecasting; Public Transportation; Railroads; Security and Emergencies; Vehicles and Equipment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00159599
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 0309025907
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Sep 28 1981 12:00AM