The thousands of beachgoers who are set to flock to Fire Island this summer will be able to go from beach to beach cash-free thanks to a new mobile app.
Unveiled Wednesday, Fire Island mTickets will allow Fire Island Water Taxi customers to buy advance tickets via credit card for the first time.
“It was very important for us to give people this option,” Anthony Bonventre, head of technical development for Fire Island Ferries, told Metro.
The app was deployed by Masabi’s JustRide ticketing system, which is used around the world in cities such as London, Boston and New Orleans, as well as by the MTA in New York City.
Users will be able to quickly create an account using their credit card and purchase one-way and round-trip tickets for the same price as a regular water taxi fare. Once they make their initial purchase, riders will only have to input their credit card’s security code for future purchases.
“Part of the fun of Fire Island is getting to jump around from place to place with the taxis,” Jason Gross, a New Yorker who has visited the island every summer for years, said. “Getting to pay for them without digging through your wallet for the fare is a mixed bag — it’s a great convenience, but it’s also tempting to keep spending on them to bounce around, which isn’t great for your wallet.”
Bonventre said Fire Island Ferries put the cashless system into works during its recent offseason, though actual execution of the platform took just about a month.
“We have gone live less than a month after contract signature, demonstrating the flexibility and rapid deployment capabilities of our platform,” Masabi CEO Brian Zanghi said in a statement.
Fire Island mTickets can be downloaded from the Apple App store and Google Play.
The app is currently only available for the Fire Island Water Taxi, which takes tourists and residents alike beach to beach from Cherry Grove, Fire Island Pines, Kismet, Saltaire, Fair Harbor, Atlantique and Ocean Beach.
Bonventre said the platform is slated to launch for Fire Island Ferry service, which goes from the Suffolk County mainland to the island, this fall.
