Reading Buses is introducing age verifications to its app for people who purchase ‘Boost’ child and young person’s tickets. The Boost tickets were introduced by the operator in 2016 and are available to anyone aged 18 and under, and college and university students.
From 1 June the company will be introducing a verification process for those using Boost tickets on its mobile app; customers, including parents who wish to gift Boost tickets to their children, will be able to purchase tickets in the same way as at present, but the person using the ticket will need to be verified as a young person or student to activate and use it. Verification will be performed through the app with customers uploading a picture of themselves and a picture of ID confirming their age. The company says the process of being verified will take less than 48 hours, but will usually be much quicker on weekdays.
The photo will be displayed on the app ticket to allow the driver to check that the person using the ticket is the person who has been verified. Said Robert Williams, Reading Buses’ Chief Executive Officer: “We are introducing this verification process after a successful trial at our sister company, Thames Valley Buses. The process is very simple and will help us to ensure that the substantial discount we offer to young people to help them travel about more easily is protected.”
