KARACHI: Public transport users in Pakistan want an interconnected and unified digital service that allows them to plan, book and pay ahead of time for all modes of transportation, according to a study by Visa, a global player in digital payments.

A press release said on Monday that 33 per cent of the survey audience in Pakistan uses public transit services as their primary form of transportation. Pakistanis mainly use public transport for leisure activities such as dining, shopping and spending time with friends (53pc), work-related travel (42pc) and commuting to the office and back (38pc).

The insights from Visa’s Future of Urban Mobility Survey in Pakistan are part of a global study conducted in 12 markets among 11,500 survey audience.

The survey results reveal that 95pc of commuters expect contactless payment options to be available on public transit. Furthermore, 53pc of the survey audience believes contactless payments significantly save time due to faster transactions, add convenience (49pc) and are easy to use and learn (43pc).

Going forward, transit users are more likely (42pc) to use contactless payment (debit or credit) either physically or in a digital wallet for transit rides.

Currently, 70pc commuters in Pakistan use four or more payment methods to pay for transport. About 57pc of the survey audience expressed their intent to use public transport more frequently in the coming 12 months.

The findings also reveal that with a single payment method covering all transport expenses, 54pc of the survey audience would be likely to try different forms of public transit.

A single-payment platform would entice 45pc of the survey audience to use public transit more days in a week than they do at present.

Published in Dawn, November 14th, 2023