Join us as we journey through the evolution of ticketing and explore how cutting-edge innovation is shaping seamless, connected travel experiences. Learn about the real challenges and breakthroughs in unifying tickets across operators and modes, and uncover what it takes to make integrated ticketing a reality for passengers and cities alike.
Speakers and panelists:
Sarah Bew
Associate Director, SYSTRA
Sarah Bew is an Associate Director with 15 years’ experience in public transport ticketing and retail systems, specialising in multi-modal smart ticketing across bus and rail. A certified project manager (Prince2; APM PMQ), she has led complex programmes from specification and procurement through integration, testing, and delivery, consistently aligning technology solutions with customer experience and strategic outcomes.
Drawing on deep knowledge of ITSO, cEMV payments, mobile ticketing, and on-bus hardware, Sarah has managed end-to-end delivery of back-office systems and customer-facing applications. Her work spans data migration, multi-supplier integrations, and governance frameworks that enable seamless product retailing and collection across differing environments—key to delivering truly multi-modal experiences. Sarah has led major smart ticketing back-office migrations and integration, supported Transport for Wales in defining HOPS and CMS requirements and enhancing concessionary travelcard operations, and delivered transport app development programmes to consolidate multiple functions into a single customer journey. She has also enabled multi-operator, multi-modal rail and bus ticketing transitions to smart platforms, ensuring robust specifications, testing, and stakeholder engagement across operators, suppliers, and authorities.
Lauren Richards
Associate, SYSTRA
Lauren is a specialist economist with more than a decade of experience in fares integration, revenue modelling, and public transport policy. Lauren has managed and advised on landmark projects across the UK, Ireland, and Canada. She is recognised for developing innovative modelling methodologies, including multi-modal ticketing cost and revenue forecasting tools, and for producing in-depth analysis on market segmentation, elasticity, and customer behaviour to inform strategic fares decisions for both local and national authorities.
Her experience includes working on the National Fares Strategy for Ireland, advancing fares reform and multi-modal integration for Transport for Wales and Transport for the North-East, and advising on the ridership and fares strategy for a major intercity project in Canada.
Cathryn Jones
Project Director, SYSTRA
With over three decades in public transport across the UK, Ireland and the Middle East, Cathryn Jones is a leading authority on multi-modal fares and smart ticketing, specialising in Account Based Ticketing (ABT), ITSO, cEMV and QR solutions. A seasoned programme director, she has delivered complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives from strategy through procurement, system migration and go-live, ensuring schemes deliver measurable customer and operational benefits. She has also led strategic ticketing reviews and provided expert input for concessionary, youth, and park & ride smart schemes, demonstrating her comprehensive expertise in AFC technologies and programme management for public transport authorities and operators.
Her core expertise includes programme and project management, fares and ticketing design, system specification and procurement, customer portals and apps, testing and validation, and senior stakeholder engagement—always with a focus on practical outcomes for passengers, operators and authorities.