The Suica 2.0 launch in the Tohoku region on May 27 is not simply a launch. It marks the transition to a whole new business model for JR East. The future is Suica as a mobile payment and services platform that leverages JR East transit infrastructure. It has to be […]
Final frontiers: How Suica 2.0 will solve the IC fare region barrier problem and much more
The Suica cross region problem, no thru transit going from the Suica area to the TOICA area for example, is a well known and criticized shortcoming of the Transit IC system. There has been some recent progress with cross region thru transit commuter passes but barriers remain for regular Suica […]
It all connects: JR East QR Eki-Net Tickets
One of the great things about Japanese trains is how seamlessly train travel connects nationwide. Reserve a ticket, get your seats assigned and travel to your destination anywhere in the country even on different JR company express trains and Shinkansen. This is the legacy of the JNR developed MARS system […]
The Suica 2.0 Reference
The new features that make up Suica 2.0 are called many things. JR East calls it ‘Next Generation Suica’, Yanik Mangan came up with ‘All-in-one Suica’ moniker in his limitless possibilities podcast. I call it Suica 2.0 because there are wider Suica platform initiatives based on the cloud and the […]