Chatham Area Transit (CAT) has partnered with Token Transit to launch a mobile ticketing app that will allow riders to go cashless and reduce contact when boarding CAT buses.

To ride, passengers simply show the bus operator the ticket displayed on their smart phone instead of sticking a pass or cash into the fare box.

The service will allow riders to purchase any pass currently available, including half-fare discounted passes and CAT Mobility paratransit tickets. In addition, a fare capping feature ensures that the app’s user never pays more than what is in their best interest. For instance, if a customer takes two rides in one day, that customer won’t be charged any more that day because they’ve already paid the equivalent of a day pass. The same feature would apply to weekly and monthly passes. (With one-way passes, customers will still have to request a paper transfer ticket, if needed.)

The Token Transit app is free and is available in both Apple and Google Play stores. The digital tickets are not activated until the rider taps the fare on their phone. Once activated, passengers and operators will see the CAT logo with a pulsating circle around it and the current time. The pulsating circle indicates to the bus operator that the pass is valid. 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.

CAT riders will still be able to purchase paper tickets on the bus and at the Joe Murray Rivers, Jr. Intermodal Transit Center. In addition, riders still have the ability to purchase tickets online and have them mailed to their homes.