How many metros/bus networks allow contactless payments?

[deltic]

Which metro/bus networks outside the UK can you use a credit/debit card to pay for your fare rather than a smartcard.

 

[rg177]

The Bucharest Metro has a rather simplistic method of simply deducting a flat fare at the gate when you tap a card or device. No caps, and you can walk straight through exit gates.

 

[kingston_toon]

Recently, I've been pleased to find contactless payment possible on local transport in several cities in Czechia (including Pilsen, Pardubice and Ostrava), on the TIB buses in Mallorca, in Lublin (Poland) and in Tallinn. No more rushing round to find a cigarette kiosk open after 21:00 to purchase a handful of single use tickets to be stamped on entering as was common in many places a decade or more ago

 

[DanielB]

Checking in and out using a credit/debit card is currently being rolled out in the Netherlands. Some regions have already converted, others should follow later this year. In the converted regions, you'll then pay the same fare by credit/debitcard as you'll pay by smartcard.

However, buses, trams and metros are already cashless for many years. So you'll be able to buy a ticket from the driver (or ticket machine in tram/metro) by credit or debit card anywhere in the country. Though those fares are usually higher.

 

[rg177]

I've also been reminded that the private rail operator that serves Bucharest Airport (TFC?) has a contactless reader on its trains which deducts a fare.

The only issue is, the conductor has no way of checking whether or not you've done this and just has to take your word for it.

Some cities I've found now have a sort of quasi-contactless payment system, whereby you have a contactless card reader that'll spit out a pre-validated single ticket after you tap it. These exist in Arad, though half the machines had clearly had all their equipment stolen so the trams were running around with empty plastic boxes instead.

 

[duncanp]

The De Lijn network in the Flemish speaking part of Belgium has gone cashless, and you can use a contactless bank card, smartphone, text message or smartcard to pay your fare.

 

[dutchflyer]

From own fairly recent experience:
Brussel/BE-the local metrotrambus=MIVB/STIB, quite some time already
Tampere/FI: the urban network since the new tramline opened
ES/RENFE-cercanias: local line Malaga-airport-Fuengirola
ES; all island of Mallorca, train, metro, bus (but foreigners not living/registered there pay higher prices as locals)
As above; here in NL the OV-pay working with that is slowly rolled out, a few buscompanies now offer it, and NS has just announced/asked for volunteers to check the introduction-they have just adapdet all readers for it. Complete roll-out already delayed till 2023 end of year.
Plus I think the odd system here or there in FRance-urban, but I cannot recall which ones that were. Probably also TransDev operated-as they also do many of above.
What one fairly often sees is that systems which have switched to a then new system (like chipcards) will not switch over soon as they first have to get the investment in that system more or less in the tills-it is more often a jump from an outmoded system to brandnew-like often in East-Europe
As an aside: in SE=Sweden they mostly seem to turn to use of mobile fones instead, with sometimes even all the usual passenger info (dep. timings, maps, general info) only to be seen via a QR-code on the stops-this of course saves much more money as no expensive labour has to be used to change all that stuff after any timetable change-in a sparsely populated country with long distances.

 

[jamesontheroad]

As an aside: in SE=Sweden they mostly seem to turn to use of mobile fones instead, with sometimes even all the usual passenger info (dep. timings, maps, general info) only to be seen via a QR-code on the stops-this of course saves much more money as no expensive labour has to be used to change all that stuff after any timetable change-in a sparsely populated country with long distances.

Correct. In most Swedish cities you can use a contactless debit or credit card to pay for a single ticket at the ticket barrier or from the driver. However the trend for a long time has been towards mobile apps. In the case of my local city, on board bus tickets are about 1/3 more expensive, incentivising pre-purchase from an app.

Cash is accepted almost nowhere, and certainly not on trains and buses.

Train tickets are likewise digital. Neither SJ, MTRX, Flixtrain, Snälltåget, TågAB nor VY have any staffed ticket offices. Buy on the web or in an app, and show a QR code. If you don't have a smartphone or internet access, you can buy SJ train tickets from newsagents for a 100kr (€10) fee.

SJ don't sell or inspect tickets on intercity trains with mandatory seat reservations: the conductor passes through the train checking that the actual seat occupancy matches the reservations and only intervenes if there is someone sitting in a supposedly empty seat.

 

[cyclebike]

Tallinn, Estonia, allows contactless payment on city transport. You just have to use the front door on trams and buses, as only that reader takes payment cards. The other readers only take the city's smartcard. Capping is implemented. And, I believe, city transport is free for Tallinn residents!

 

[riceuten]

Wroclaw in Poland has a pay with a EC/Visa/MC card system. The inspector gets on and he/she can check with their own smartphones whether you've tapped in or not.

 

[duesselmartin]

How are tickets checked on a credit card based system? My plan is to take a metro in Bruxelles changing into a tram. Do I need to tap in and out twice?

 

[johncrossley]

How are tickets checked on a credit card based system? My plan is to take a metro in Bruxelles changing into a tram. Do I need to tap in and out twice?

In London, they record your card number and if you didn't tap in, you get a maximum fare in the morning. If you get too many maximum fares, your card is blocked. The inspector doesn't know if you've tapped in, so can't give you a penalty fare straight away. Except on buses, where the inspector has the card numbers, so you can get a penalty fare on the bus. I presume other systems are similar. You do the same as what you would do if you had a Mobib card, so touch in on each vehicle, but you don't touch out, because Brussels has flat fare. Unless it is for a metro exit barrier and you need to touch out to exit the station.

 

[Austriantrain]

I am currently in Lyon and they are heavily promoting contactless travel with payment by bank (credit) card. It seems to be newly introduced.

 

[dutchflyer]

How are tickets checked on a credit card based system? My plan is to take a metro in Bruxelles changing into a tram. Do I need to tap in and out twice?

Ich werde es noch nachsehen/I will check it later on, but I think yes-IF you do ride 2 in the allotted time (60 mins) after first, you will only be charged 1 fare=2,10, lower as a traditional ticket. It works like LONdon;only in the night after all the charges are totalled and if done more trips, the daily cap=MAX fare, same as normal dayticket, will be charged. If you plan very carefully on car-free sunday in sept-it will be all free. (and NMBS will offer very cheap excursion fares). Note that in bustram there are 2 types of validators-the other is for the classic MoBiB chipcard.
To/from airport much higher fares are charged.

 

[Austriantrain]

How is the situation in Germany?

In Austria, since the vast majority of passengers have season tickets and we don’t „touch in/out“, I doubt anyone will ever want to invest money in card readers. It will be app-based purchases and probably at some point a GPS-based system.

 

[SLTRegular]

Sydney has been contactless for a while albeit buses only during covid. think melboune might be also. brisbane is just a few lines at the moment contactless

 

[duesselmartin]

How is the situation in Germany?

In Austria, since the vast majority of passengers have season tickets and we don’t „tab“, I doubt anyone will ever want to invest money in card readers. It will be app-based purchases and probably at some point a GPS-based system.

Similar as in Austria. Season ticket checked by a conductor. Either plastic or app based.
Single journey either paper or app based.

 

[Route115?]

Sydney, when I was there before covid.

 

[duncanp]

You can use contactless cards to pay for your fare on the buses and subways in Chicago and New York.

 

[nlogax]

You can use contactless cards to pay for your fare on the buses and subways in Chicago and New York.

NY is still a bit patchy. OMNY good for subway but not yet on LIRR or Metro North. Rumours that it may not come to PATH at all as that falls under Port Authority and not MTA.

 

[johnnychips]

The De Lijn network in the Flemish speaking part of Belgium has gone cashless, and you can use a contactless bank card, smartphone, text message or smartcard to pay your fare.

Hi, do you need to tap in and tap out on De Lijn?

 

[johncrossley]

Hi, do you need to tap in and tap out on De Lijn?

They have the same flat fare across the Flemish region (except for a few special routes) so there is no need for touching out.

 

[johnnychips]

They have the same flat fare across the Flemish region (except for a few special routes) so there is no need for touching out.

Thanks for your rapid reply.

 

[AnyFile]

Milano (Italy) has started to accept contactless payments but it is still in a non complete stage. You can only pay contactless if you start your first leg of journey with a metro or one of the 4 lines of buses that has the machine to make the payments. You can not start from any other bus lines, or from a tram or a train.

Once you have pay contactless you can travel on the underground also going beyond the city limit provide you do the part of the journey outside the city only by underground. You can change a bus or a tram after you have pay but only if you remain inside the city limit and only if the bus or tram is operated by the main operator (Atm).

Some Credit cards are not accepted even if the have the symbol of the contactless (including a quite popular one issued by the Italian post office)

The system, rules and the description if the service is utterly complicated. At the following links you can find them:
(in Italian) Biglietto contactless
(in English first part) Travel on the metro by paying with your contactless car
(In English second part) FAQ - Travel on the metro by paying with your contactless card

I do not know if the English version has been updated to the last Italian one.

 

[duncanp]

Thanks for your rapid reply.

A single ride on De Lijn costs €2.50, and there is a contactless daily cap of €7.50.

If you transfer to another bus or tram within an hour, you must still tap in, but you won't be charged an additional fare.

You can also buy tickets via text:-

• If you text DL to 4884, you will get a single ride ticket
• If you text DLD to 4884, you will get a day ticket

 

[johncrossley]

You can also buy tickets via text:-

• If you text DL to 4884, you will get a single ride ticket
• If you text DLD to 4884, you will get a day ticket

Do you need a Belgian SIM card for those?

 

[duncanp]

Do you need a Belgian SIM card for those?

Yes you do need a Belgian SIM card.

https://help.delijn.be/hc/en-us/articles/360039675111-Can-I-purchase-an-ticket-or-day-ticket-via-sms-through-a-foreign-mobile-phone-operator-

If you have a foreign SIM card, you can’t purchase tickets from De Lijn, even if your foreign operator uses one of the Belgian networks (Proximus, BASE, Orange, Telenet) via roaming. This is because De Lijn has no agreement with foreign mobile operators.

You would have to either use a contactless card, or buy a ticket from a Lijnwinkel (Kiosk) or ticket machine.

There is usually a Lijnwinkel or ticket machine near most arrival points in Flanders, such as the railway stations at Gent, Bruges, Ieper (Ypres), Antwerp and Ostend.

 

[newmilton]

Contactless payments can be used on the Rome Metro (and I presume on the buses too), and I have successfully used my UK card there without any problems.

 

[185]

Titsa bus, Tenerife now have contactless payments following an upgrade of their Indra ticket machines.

That said, the prepay card, Tenmas is still the most popular.

 

[zuriblue]

Bangkok Metro (blue and purple lines) take contactless, you get billed overnight. The Skytrain and the SRT commuter lines don’t accept them (Skytrain TVMs don’t even take cards, you have to go to the window and practice your Thai)