Ill.’s Rockford Mass Transit District (RMTD) bus passes may now be purchased using a new mobile fare app — Token Transit.

Token Transit is a free app that allows riders to purchase their bus passes on their smartphones using a credit or debit card. The app then displays a digital bus pass or ticket on the phone’s screen, eliminating the need for a paper pass or cash and more importantly, eliminating the need for hard surface contact at the farebox between operators and passengers.

While surveying passengers as part of RMTD’s Mobility Study, riders indicated that they would like a cashless fare option. The COVID-19 epidemic further demonstrated the importance of having a way to pay fares without having to come in contact with a hard surface that multiple people touch. Token Transit is an app that can be downloaded to a person’s smart phone and linked to their credit or debit card. The app is free and is available in both Apple and Google Play stores. 

Once downloaded, passengers can purchase any RMTD fare including paratransit tickets. Passengers can purchase their immediate fare payment or can purchase multiple fares at one time. Fares are not activated until the passenger taps the fare on their phone. Once activated passengers and operators will see the RMTD logo with a pulsating circle around it and the current time. The pulsating circle indicates to the driver that the pass is a valid fare and the driver will allow the passenger to board. When a pass has expired it will be noted on the phone and the pulsating circle will stop and change to grey. Passengers should not activate the pass until they are ready to board the vehicle for the first time.