12 June,2022 08:05 AM IST | Mumbai | Rajendra B. Aklekar
Most passengers don’t want to stand in queues to buy tickets. File pic
More and more commuters have begun switching to mobile ticketing on the go, lending a digi push to Mumbai local trains. Most of them said the system worked well but needed vast improvement as far as a complaint redressal mechanism was concerned. Post COVID-19, an increasing number of commuters are opting for the digital Unreserved Ticketing System (UTS) a mobile ticketing system, showing signs of increasing digital ticketing in the near future.
There has been a constant increase in the purchase of Mumbai Suburban journey tickets/season tickets through the UTS mobile app. Recently, UPI payments were also enabled in the app. "The past two years have been dealt a blow to everything on a global scale, with people confined to their homes due to COVID-19. The need for social distancing and decongestion of booking offices has pushed for adoption of a digital approach to buy railway tickets. During the pandemic, the UTS mobile app was re-opened for commuters to purchase suburban tickets. Since then there has been a constant increase in the number of passengers booking tickets through UTS mobile app," a senior railway official said.
"The app-based ticketing systems is an innovation that will outlast the pandemic and help both the passengers and the Railways in many ways, like paperless transaction and initiating a shift towards a more cashless, digital economy, etc." he added." In the month of March 2020, a total of 12,79,095 UTS mobile local train tickets were booked, whereas in April 2022 the suburban tickets booked through UTS mobile app were 14,00,060, showing an increase of 9.45 per cent. Till May 26, 14.20 lakh tickets have been booked through mobile app. A total of 78.13 lakh passengers travelled on Mumbai suburban trains with digital ticketing though UTS mobile app." reflecting a daily average of 54,635 tickets and 3,00,521 passengers each day," a Central Railway spokesperson said.
