There are major disadvantages to paper ticket packs. Firstly, the sustainability of paper ticket packs is uncertain. Since operational requirements for buying, delivering, and keeping the ticket packs are extremely challenging and costly, we just cannot foresee a future other than one with the disappearance of [paper] ticket packs. Secondly, from both the operators’ and passengers’ perspectives, the actual utilization and validation of paper ticketing, as well as the recording of the process, are labor intensive and inefficient, especially having to transmit physical data (i.e. actual ticket count) into digital format (i.e. sales & usage reports as an xls file or pdf file.) Thirdly, the operators are losing a lot of money allowing ticket packs to be used at any given time of the year when the current market practice of dynamic pricing is in play. For example, you may only collect $20 (from a prepaid ticket pack purchased at $20 per ticket) for a one way ticket on Thanksgiving Eve valued at $50.
In contrast, e-wallet is extremely easy to promote via native website promotions, social media, and email campaigns. Instead of overspending on unnecessary paper products, you can now use virtual value packs that stay in your account within your website and app. For both the operators and passengers, the balance, reload, and usage history are completely transparent and visible at all times. Finally, the value pack can be used with any ticket on any pricing on any given days.