East Japan Railway Co. is looking to introduce walk-through ticket gates at stations that will enable passengers to access gates via a specialized smartphone application instead of carrying physical prepaid commuter passes, sources familiar with the plan said Wednesday.
The company, also known as JR East, aims to launch the new system in two to three years, the sources said. Under the envisaged system, millimeter waves will be emitted from an antenna on the ceiling above the gate, which will open once data sent from the passenger’s smartphone application has been received.
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