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Passenger Trains > ACE to sell instant tickets onlineDate: 09/07/04 09:32 ACE to sell instant tickets online Author: NI030 Published Friday, September 3, 2004, in the Modesto Bee
By Chris Tognery Bee Staff Writer Altamont Commuter Express passengers soon won't ever again have to stand in line to buy a ticket, unless they want to, of course. As of Oct. 1, passengers will be able to purchase "instant tickets" via the Internet. ACE then will ship them to the buyer's home, ACE officials said Thursday. Passengers also will have the option of printing the ticket themselves. "We are the first in the world that we know of to do this," said Hal Singer, ACE information technologies manager. "We can't find anyone else -- in terms of regional transportation (like) bus, rail, light rail and commuter rail -- offering instant tickets." Because of anticipated Homeland Security Department demands, Singer said he expects more regional transportation companies to launch similar systems. "Ideally, Homeland Security would like to know the name of every passenger on every train in the U.S.," he said. "We're hearing that loud and clear. The way our system is being set up, it will enable us to easily implement their future requests." To get an instant ticket, passengers will go to the ACE Web site (www.acerail.com), pay for the ticket with a credit card, then print it or have it sent to them. The instant tickets will look like regular ACE paper tickets, Singer said. They will be valid for 12 hours from the time of purchase. The instant tickets will be electronically verified by ACE fare inspection officers on the train. ACE will offer the service for a 60-day trial period, during which passengers only will be able to buy one-way tickets, Singer said. At the end of the trial period, depending on passenger feedback, the system will be expanded to include all tickets, including monthly passes, Singer said. "This will make it as easy as possible to get a ticket for our commuter service," Singer said. "We expect there will be a very positive response." Date: 09/07/04 10:37 Re: ACE to sell instant tickets online Author: reindeerflame Nice that ACE is doing this, but it may be a "delusion of grandeur" for ACE to think that it is first.
Hardly so. DB (German Railway) allows people to print their own tickets at home. And this past May, I took advantage of LIRR's on line ticket ordering system. The LIRR tickets were mailed at no cost to me, and were offered at a 5% discount from the ticket machine price. Try to beat that! |