BETHPAGE, NY – AUGUST 27: Riders get ready to board a Long Island Rail Road train prior to the planned noon shutdown on August 27, 2011 in Bethpage, New York. Irene, now a Category 1 hurricane, has made landfall in North Carolina on its way up the eastern seaboard. (Image credit: Getty Images via @daylife)
Now LIRR commuters will be able to download tickets to cellphones or print them out during a pilot project during a golf tournament next month, according to The Times Ledger. The debut will be limited to the duration of the Barclays PGA Tour, from August 21 to August 26. The pilot is being run in partnership with the LI tech firm CooCoo. Helena Williams, LIRR President, told The Times Ledger that, “For the first time in the history of the LIRR, our customers will be able to buy their train tickets online and print them at their home or office for the Barclays Event. They also can simply download an LIRR ticket to their smartphones. This pilot program offers great customer convenience and allows the LIRR to test out the CooCoo technology during the six days of the Barclays Event.”
Coocoo is based in Huntington, LI, and has provided real-time arrival and departure times to LIRR riders since 2010. One third of the expected 35,000 fans for the Barclay’s Tour are expected to take the LIRR to and from the tournament. During the tournament, the LIRR will provide extra half-hourly trains to Farmingdale. Once the online ticket purchase is made, riders will be able to either print the ticket at home, or save the email to their smartphone device to be scanned later by handheld code readers. LIRR tickets bought via Coocoo are only valid for the say specified on the ticket.
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