Report Summary

The global Automated Fare Collection (AFC) System market was valued at USD 5,467 million in 2017 and is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 10.9% during the forecast period. AFC systems automate the ticketing process for transportation network while replacing paper tickets with electronic tickets. These systems offer functionalities such as process control, maintenance, and monitoring of issuing, sale, and distribution of transport tickets. Use of automated fare collection system enables fast access to transport, easy maintenance and security against fraud. It also provides easy collection of usage data through transaction logging, enhanced services, improved customer experience, and flexible pricing schemes. This system comprises an automatic gate machine, a ticket vending machine, and a ticket checking machine. The tickets generated by the system can be in the form of magnetic strip cards, contactless smart cards, and dual interface smart cards. This system can be easily integrated into transportation infrastructure for simplified and efficient operations of roadways, railways, and other services.

The major driving factors of the market include increasing government investment for development of transportation infrastructure, rising need for automation to increase efficiency, and reduce overall operating cost. Automated fare collection systems are increasingly being used to manage traffic efficiently. Governments across the world are investing significantly in this technology to reduce costs, enhance traveler experience, and reduce frauds. However, high initial investment and slow adoption rate in developing countries is expected to restrict the growth of the market. Installation and implementation costs of AFC systems are high, thereby making them impractical to use at locations servicing small commuters.

Segment Analysis

The global automated fare collection market is segmented on the basis of component, technology, end user, and geography. Based on the type of component, the market is segmented into hardware, software, and services. The technology segment is categorized into Near Field Communication (NFC), smart cards, magnetic strips, Optical Character Recognition (OCR), and others. The end users of AFC systems include public transport authorities, private transport authorities, and others. This report comprises a detailed geographic distribution of the market across North America, Europe, APAC and South America, and MEA. North America is further segmented into U.S., Canada, and Mexico. Europe is divided into Germany, UK, Italy, France, and Rest of Europe. Asia-Pacific is bifurcated into China, India, Japan, and Rest of Asia-Pacific. North America accounted for the largest share in the global automated fare collection market in 2017.

Competitive Landscape

The vendors in the market are launching new products to meet the growing customer needs. In addition, the leaders in the market are acquiring and collaborating with top companies in the market to enhance their offerings in the market and expand their customer base. For instance, in October 2014, BEA Transit Technologies, Diginome, Inc. and GlobeSherpa Inc. collaborated for development of technologically advanced AFC solution. Through this collaboration, the equipment development expertise of BEA, the software experience of Diginome, and mobile ticketing and mobile payment leadership of GlobeSherpa was combined to develop an AFC system providing open standard payment environment for transit agencies. This solution aims at offering cost savings, ease of use, and enhanced customer convenience. Thales Group is a provider of AFC solutions to Delhi Metro in India. The Dream Gates offered by Thales enables boarding of Delhi Metro through QR code on mobile phones of commuters. This solution enables easy, quick, and smooth ticket generation and validation, enhancing overall experience. Other leading players in the market include Thales Group, Longbow Technologies S/B, Cubic Corporation, Advanced Card Systems Holdings Limited, Atos SE, Indra Sistemas SA, UL Transaction Security, Siemens AG, Samsung SDS Co. Ltd., GMV Innovating Solutions, Masabi Ltd., and Omron Corporation among others.