TICKETING & FARE COLLECTION
vending machine is an easy way to provide the key departure information where pas- sengers are queuing. The next step is to provide information in context on screen, so the passenger is advised which train to start their journey on, which platform it is on and whether it is on time. Beyond that, passengers could be advised if their jour- ney is likely to be subject to disruption and indeed whether it’s better not to buy a tick- et at all because there is no service running to their chosen destination.
Another area of recent innovation is seat reservations. AVANTIX WebTIS users can now see where their seats are located on se- lected services and where permitted move their reservations to other seats. In the near future, enabling reservation altera- tions between trains will allow customers to select seats on the train they are actually going to use and free up previously booked seats for other passengers.
Scanning barcoded and smart tickets ena- bles better customer services. Train crew and operational controllers can make bet- ter decisions about how to handle service disruption armed with detailed informa- tion on the journeys passengers are trying to complete. Knowing the typical passen- ger fl ows can help operators know which connections they need to hold.
The current performance regime encour- ages trains to run on time, but there’s not much value in the train running on time if most of the passengers are late because they’ve missed it.
Research from retail suggests that custom- ers are willing to trade identity information if the services they receive are delivered more effectively and they perceive that they are receiving additional value.
An identifi er that a person uses does not need to be consistent across all channels, as long as all identifi ers of one person at some touch point can be linked to the same person. This ensures that a customer can use the method of identifi cation that is eas- iest to use at the given time, whether the identifi er is a physical ticket, a document with a barcode, a smartcard or an applica- tion on a smartphone.
Once the data is included in a single cus- tomer view database along with the online data captured at ticket sales then a mean- ingful and deep understanding of what cus- tomers actually want can be formed. Such a view is aided but not led by technology.
Once such an understanding has been gained, train operators can reward their customers for supplying this information by offering customised content, options and user experiences that will increase the customer satisfaction and increase the train operator’s revenue opportunities.
Further enhancements to self-service chan- nels can be made to support moving cus- tomers from the traditional ticket offi ce by making their interaction with Ticket Vend- ing Machines more in line with a human contact experience. For those customers who require further assistance, advanced help function screens can be included that walk them through their purchase as if they were interacting with an experienced book- ing offi ce clerk. If they do need to speak with an operator during the purchase pro- cess then this can be made available by the introduction of a ‘remote teller’; a link to a
Above:
What is the future for the paper ticket?
contact centre allowing agents to take over control of the machine and complete the transactions up to the point of payment.
Quickly and automatically identifying where the passenger is trying to get to ena- bles journey replanning if there is disrup- tion or the passenger is not on the right train.
In the future, rail travel could become similar to air travel, with baggage scan- ning, check-in and executive lounges for business travellers. Loyalty schemes will become widespread and, by understanding the behaviour of various customer groups, it will be possible to model the travel expe- rience accordingly. Advances in technology will remove much of the frustration associ- ated with travel and make it easier for op- erators to develop customer relationships that will deliver more profi table business.
Which brings us back to inspection by te- lepathy. Detecting passengers who haven’t paid the right amount won’t work if the passenger thinks they have. The increase in competing operators and the complexity of some products sometimes means they don’t realise they have made a mistake.
Regardless of the ultimate ticket medium, giving the passenger the right information means they can choose the right product, and, possibly more importantly, feel con- fi dent that they have made the right deci- sion. Improving the quality of informa- tion on self-service channels is key to the passenger buying the ticket in the fi rst place.
Lesley Gray
FOR MORE INFORMATION Visit
uk.atos.net
rail technology magazine Feb/Mar 12 | 37
© chris
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