Rail Ticket Office Machines
Smart™ is Shere’s desktop rail ticket office ticketing system. Its development was based on experience with Fast™ (Self Service) and Tapps (bulk ticketing for call centres and internet operations), both tried and tested Ticket Issuing Systems of many years standing.
Smart™ was the first of the new generation of desktop ticket issuing systems for the UK rail industry, introducing many of the features that have become standard today and continues to be developed to meet the ever changing requirements of rail retailing, whether dictated at a national level or enhancements to aid business development at the operator level.
Our view is that Smart™ should be a catalyst for change in many related areas and so offer wide ranging opportunities for cost savings not only at the ticket window, but in the back-office, revenue accounting, refunds processing, banking etc.. It offers a menu of facilities from fast turn-up-and-go ticket sales, through advance purchase and TOD, to third party product retailing.
Smart™ also provides comprehensive access to transactions that have taken place whether by a Smart™ terminal in the station or a Fast™ ticket vending machine. This is an essential basis for good after sales customer care. Operationally, Smart™ provides for flexibility and cost effectiveness. For example, staff can move from window to window without having to close and balance their shift every time.
For efficient investment, Smart™ can be offered with a range of hardware configurations. such as touchscreen, customer screen, cash drawer and cash counting machines, not to mention ticket printer, keyboard and screen options. It is designed to work on-line, giving access to TODs, reservations, season ticket database etc. However, it can work off-line using its own fares database when circumstances dictate. Smart™ is fully accredited by the UK rail industry’s RSP.
