Transportation

Touch And Pay’s New Innovation Makes Booking Transport Easier in Nigeria

Olamide Afolabi, Michael Oluwole, and Kabir Yabo started TAP in 2019. It was the first payment company in Nigeria to set up a system that lets contactless payment cards be used on buses and ferries. The company keeps up its history of coming up with new ideas by letting Nigerians use contactless payment cards for interstate travel. Most people don’t have bank accounts, but TAP is making it easier for them to get money by processing micropayments of between 10 cents and $10.

Touch and Pay Technologies [TAP], a Nigerian fintech company and the largest processor of micro-transactions in Africa, has announced that travelling from Lagos, Nigeria’s largest city, to other parts of the country will be easier and cheaper for everyone. Passengers can now pay for their trips with the Cowry app, even if they are going through multiple states. All formal and informal interstate travel operators in the city can now use this service.

TAP’s easy-to-use interstate booking feature on the Cowry app automatically handles payments and seat assignments. It also collects valuable information about how and when people book trips and which transportation companies can use to improve their services.

There are more than a million trips between states daily in the country, and 40% of those trips start or end in Lagos State. Passengers can use TAP’s state-of-the-art ticketing and booking system every year without using cash. The new digital technology emphasizes protecting the environment and making services better.

TAP has also teamed up with the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation to accredit and check all intercity bus parks in the state. This is in addition to the launch of digital payment for interstate travel. This makes it easier for the state government and operators to control transportation routes, schedules, capacities, and prices. Before, this took a lot of work to do.

The proposed transportation system aims to improve efficiency, safety, and security by adding key features like standard and licensed parks and a single dashboard for emergencies and quick responses. Bus owners and drivers will benefit from a cashless system, access to bus financing based on transportation data, and new incentives for mobility companies to participate. Commuters will have access to a single platform for booking, a cashless system, passenger trip data, and credit advance systems. Through a new platform that connects credit, private bus owners, and mobility companies, third-party systems and players will have more ways to join in. This will improve the overall efficiency of the system.

TAP’s software will manage and process state parks and transportation payments. It will also give commuters secure identification and combine its APIs into the Cowry Card mobile app. Under the terms of the partnership, TAP will offer efficient micro-transaction solutions to the state government, fleet owners, bus drivers, and union management. The goal is to reduce revenue losses caused by old booking methods as much as possible. Nigerian travellers now have access to real-time information about transportation availability and departure times, the ability to pre-book and reserve seats, the chance to compare prices and more protection against theft and bribery. Partnerships with insurance companies also protect travellers’ personal belongings.

Olamide Afolabi, co-founder and CEO of Touch and Pay Technologies, said this about the project:

“TAP is proud to be the first service to level the playing field when it comes to transportation in Lagos. Commuters often need to reserve tickets in advance to avoid waiting in lines. In the past, bus passengers had to physically visit counters and engage with attendants to book and pay for their trips. This is no longer the case. Customers taking an interstate trip can now access the details of their journey, including the ability to buy tickets and select the seats of their choice, without ever leaving the comfort of their homes”. 

Related Articles

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top button