New York’s MTA to accept contactless bank cards for bus and subway fare payments

New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has announced plans to enable passengers to use contactless debit or credit cards to pay for bus and subway fares by 2014.

The move follows several years of contactless bank card testing on the New York subway system and will allow MTA to move away from having to manage its own ticketing system. Instead, it will simply pay a transaction fee when a credit or debit card is used to pay for a fare.

Next: Visit the NFCW Expo to find new suppliers and solutions

4 comments on this article

  1. Better make sure you keep your contactless card in a Secure Sleeve when not paying for your metro fair. If you don't shield the card your credit card number and expiration date can be scanned right through your wallet or purse by identity thieves.

    1. Walt,

      You are giving out bad advice. There is nothing a thief can do with your credit card number and expiration date. He can't make a fake card with it and can't steal your identity with it. Security sleeves are great for consumers who want to feel extra secure when carrying a contactless card but there are nearly 100 million such cards in the world today – and not one case of someone who has had their identity stolen by carrying one. Have you heard of one?

  2. A positive move foward. The mta's original plan was to contract out metrocard sales to chase back in the early 1990's. The union fought this as it meant the end of the token and the token booth clerk. Metrocard was to become a debit card that could be used around town as a debit card with the mta gettting a small fee for each out of system purchase. Contactless cards would have been introduced many moons ago if chase was running the show.

  3. Philadelphia has RFP out now for contactless for public transportation system. contactless for transit will be a standard feature for all public transportation.

Comments are closed.