Amtrak Ticket Collectors Using iPhones to Scan Tickets

[Maura]

A story in The New York Times today reports on how Amtrak train conductors are now using the iPhone as an electronic ticket scanner. According to The Times, Amtrak has been training conductors since last November to use the iPhone to scan tickets, but only on a few routes, including Boston to Portland, Me., and San Jose, California to Sacramento. By the end of the summer, 1,700 conductors will be using iPhones to scan tickets on Amtrak trains all over the U.S. The new system will enable passengers to either print out their tickets, or display a bar code on their smartphone screen for the conductor to scan. The system will also enable the conductor to more easily keep a tally of how many passengers are on board the train.

“You don’t even need to print the document and bring it with you,” Matt Hardison, chief of sales distribution at Amtrak, who helped plan the iPhone program, told The Times. “We’ve made a number of important improvements for both our customers and Amtrak, all in one fell swoop.”

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/07/t...eamline-service.html?_r=3&partner=rss&emc=rss
Via AppleInsider.