December 23, 2005
RFID-enabled Phones Take the Bus in Oulu
The Finnish city's bus operator, Koskilinjat, and transportation applications provider Buscom are testing a system that lets passengers use mobile phones as transit cards, reveals RFID journal.
The trial, set to last until next summer, has begun with 10 employees receiving Nokia 3220 phones equipped with Nokia-provided shell enabled for near-field communication. The NFC tags connect to a new application loaded onto the handset. This allows users to pay for travel on any of eight specially prepared buses operating on two bus routes in the Finnish city of Oulu.
Starting in March, the trial will add the option for a participant to use a phone's Internet connection to buy travel credit. The payment will be made either by deducting from the passenger's bank account or by credit card.
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