A new report from Juniper Research found that 1 in 8 (13%) of North American and Western European mobile users will use their NFC-enabled mobile phone as a metro rail or bus ticket by 2016, compared with less than 1% today.

The report, "Mobile Ticketing Evolution: NFC, Forecasts & Markets 2012-2016,"found that, while mobile tickets of all types are growing in popularity, the ability to "tap" an NFC phone containing a mobile ticket against an entrance gate has tremendous user appeal. For operators, a mobile phone ticket also provides new marketing and sales opportunities previously not available using paper or contactless smart card tickets.

The report warns, however, that NFC Ticketing must be thoroughly tested before being launched to the public. For metro and bus tickets in particular, speed of passenger processing is of the essence and lines must not be allowed to build up as a result of ticket processing delays either in mobile phones, gating or back office systems.

Other findings from the report include:

• Worldwide mobile ticketing transactions are set to quadruple to 23 billion by 2016.

• By 2016, NFC mobile tickets will represent more than 50% of all mobile ticketing revenue.