Case Study: Charlotte Area Transit System achieves 60% mobile adoption and 2.3x ticket sales growth with Passport

Charlotte Area Transit System - Customer Case Study

Charlotte Area Transit System (CATS) operated a decade-old light rail fare system that relied on paper tickets from vending machines, creating long lines, missed trains and limited convenience for a rapidly growing ridership. To modernize payments and improve access, CATS launched the CATS Pass mobile ticketing pilot powered by Passport.

Passport delivered the CATS Pass app enabling riders to buy fares anytime from their phones, with features for cash-loading (serving unbanked riders) and a TNC partnership for first/last-mile trips. The Passport-powered pilot sold 142,000+ tickets (2.3× more than expected), hit 60% utilization within six months and achieved 99.98% uptime, reducing TVM dwell time, lowering printed-fare costs and improving overall rider experience.

Charlotte Area Transit System

John Lewis

Chief Executive Officer