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Cubic Transportation wishes to change up the ticketing game with NextAgent, its advanced digital ticketing model. The device will allow operators to locate ticketing staff in a single loccation, talking with clientele through high-definition displays at stations.

Urban cities around the globe such as London, Paris and Bangkok could benefit from the advancement of this technology relieving over-crowding at travel centers in busy periods. This is something New Technology Could Accelerate Travel in Metropolitan Locations will need to consider investing in.

It typically takes some time for new plans to come to fruition in the rail industry. To be truthful though, there really is little room to play with it and definately not to make errors since the worlds premier capital cities support the transportation needs of an enormous number of people each day.

Transportation companies do still look to make the systems run better, swifter and cheaper however, so big scale improvements do take place at occasion.

A noticable case in point is the adaption to smartcard based ticketing systems such as Transport for Londons Oyster card or SMRT's Standard Ticket and Concession smartcards, ticketing in all the premier transport systems worldwide have made changes with their ticketing models.

At this year's UITP World Congress & Mobility and City Transport Exhibition in May, transport IT and services professionals CTS unveiled a ticketing concept that it hopes will lead a new wave of high-tech innovation for the transport sector. The software blends three aspects of business, which is ticket office, vending machine and call centre, CTS calls the application a 'virtual ticket office'.

The computer was made to give all the benefits of the classic operated ticket office with the more efficient functional features of vending machines. The NextAgent vending machine is designed with a high-definition computer screen that provides a video connection between the ticket purchaser and a remote ticket agent.

Once you have a look at why people use ticket windows today, instead of going to the web or making use of their mobile or a vending machine, there are numerous reasons why individuals who use the transit network on a daily basis need to speak to somebody.

What the designers are trying to accomplish with this project is to keep the human touch but streamline it with technology. They want to offer consumers the chance to speak to staff should they wish, but still try to automate much of the process and make things quicker plus more efficient for both parties.

As modern society advances to a place driven by technology it is sometimes hard to remember that we are reassured by the presence of another person and dealing with machines constantly isn't necessarily pleasant for lots of people. A touch of well-placed advice goes a long way, and that is something Cubic was determined to consider when designing its next-generation ticketing system.

A study found that pretty much 50% of all ticket purchases are carried out at a ticket window with National Rail, this is a astonishing figure considering the accessibility to ticket vending machines and online faculties to shop for tickets.

If making a large purchase worth £1000's, such as when choosing a season ticket, then it is understandable to not trust a machine or even be a little frightened of the human error aspect, the same goes for if you are in a hurry - errors cost time and you're already late for work. Dealing with a human can give the confidence that they're making the correct choice for their needs. Therefor Cubic thought if they were going to make improvements to the present ticket machine, they are going to have to integrate all the features of the manned booth which make people want to visit them rather than the self service machine.

A ticket machine, also known as a ticket booth, is a vending machine that generates tickets. As an example, ticket machines distribute train tickets at railway stations, transit tickets at metro stations and tram tickets at some tram stops and also in some trams.

Paper tickets are no longer really required by a world of leading-edge technology with smart cards and smartphones and bar code scanners, the NextAgent brings in the next level of technical progression by bringing in numerous additional features.