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We are very excited to announce that the world’s largest open payment system for transportation is now live! This is the first major step in our ambitious project to enable London’s entire transportation network to accept payment via contactless credit and debit cards.
The cooperation between Transport for London (TfL) and Cubic – TfL’s partner for ticketing, gating and revenue management – means that passengers who travel by bus in London now have the ability to pay for their fare with their contactless credit or debit card by simply presenting it to the card reader on one of London’s 8,500 buses that are now equipped with the contactless-enabled reader. Our card reader, which was developed in conjunction with the TfL, is compatible with all contactless bank cards as well as London’s Oyster card.
Earlier today, Shashi Verma, director of customer experience at TfL, shared his excitement about this groundbreaking milestone for contactless EMV in an e-letter to Consult Hyperion, consultant to TfL.
The new scheme requires no pre-registration and provides a useful and alternative means of payment for individual bus trips while still providing the same low fare previously only available with the Oyster card. This means Oyster card holders who find themselves temporarily with an insufficient balance on their Oyster card can now opt for using their contactless credit or debit card to pay for their fare.
Because of their flat fare policy, the London buses are the ideal candidate for the first stage of contactless deployment. Plans include rollout to other modes of transportation on the TfL network with more complex fare structures including the Tube, tram, Docklands Light Railway, and London Overground.
Contactless bank cards are increasing in popularity and prevalence as a convenient way to pay for everyday items quickly and securely. As more people are issued contactless debit and credit cards, the number of people who want to use them to pay for their transit payments will continue to rise.
More information on the launch is available on the Transport for London website.