Smart Subway Vending Machines

If you have ever traveled or lived in New York City, you have most likely experienced the city’s famous subway system. The MTA, the organization responsible for public transportation in New York, is constantly trying to come up with ways to improve commuting for the millions of people that use the subway system daily.

Since 1993, commuters have used custom vending machines to purchase a plastic or paper MetroCard in order to ride the subway. Until now, scanning credit cards and debit cards in the machine or paying with cash and coin were the only options available to pay for your MetroCard.  The MTA is now testing a new method of payment in which customers are able to press their card against a Smart Card reader on the machine and wirelessly. This form of credit card scanning has been used in retail stores for a while now, but the technology is still widely unused due to concerns about credit card security and slow adaptation by credit card companies and consumers.

Intelligent Dispensing Solutions sees this version of credit card payment slowly replacing traditional credit card scanners because of its ease and ability to process thousands of vending transactions without any physical wear on the machine.