Pre-printed tickets

Pre-printed tickets are more common on flat-fare and zone fare systems than in graduated fares systems, as only a limited number of fare values or products can readily be handled. Pre-printed tickets may be purchased and issued on board vehicles, although off-system purchase of pre-printed tickets at ticket booths or sales agency outlets are sometimes seen, especially in the emergent economies.

Pre-printed tickets are usually pre-numbered. They require a counterfeit-prevention design and a secure printing method and then secure handling, bulk storage and onwards distribution. The processes also require careful accounting and documentation of all ticket movements, including those of the ticket stocks held and sold by the vehicle crews. The logistics and accounting requirements are exacerbated where a wide variety of fare products are promoted and each requires different ticket denominations to be held.
Occasionally regulatory regimes require payment receipts to be provided, and a physically cancelled (torn or punched) ticket can serve that function.