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The first operator in Scotland launches contactless payments

Posted: 23 June 2017 | Intelligent Transport | No comments yet

First Aberdeen has announced contactless payments for its services, making it the first bus operator in Scotland to deliver the innovation.

The first operator in Scotland launches contactless payments

First Aberdeen has announced the roll-out of contactless payments on its services, making it the first bus operator in Scotland to deliver the innovation.

The first operator in Scotland launches contactless payments

Contactless payments have been introduced after an extensive trial period on new ticket machines, and it will soon be available across all First Bus services, including First Glasgow and First Scotland East/Midland Bluebird. The company sees the contactless bank card as a further means of reducing the use of cash on buses and speeding up boarding times and services.

First Aberdeen is also accepting Apple Pay and Android Pay as part of the contactless roll-out.

“We’re very proud to announce that First Aberdeen is leading the way on bus in Scotland with contactless technology,” said Andrew Jarvis, Managing Director of First Bus in Scotland. “This is another major step forward in improving the experience for our customers and builds on other innovations including our mobile mTickets and new journey planner app.”

The new contactless option on First Bus removes the need to carry cash or purchase tickets in advance, while the fast and easy contactless payments will improve boarding times and lead to quicker bus journeys. The company has demonstrated boarding times are 75% quicker if customers use mTickets or smartcards (based on an experiment ran by First Bus with volunteers which measured how how long it took to load a bus with people paying by cash, and then the using the smartphone app).

“We continue to make bus travel a convenient, simple and attractive experience for our customers”

“The introduction of contactless payments alongside our success with mobile ticketing is pivotal as we continue to make bus travel a convenient, simple and attractive experience for our customers, despite the ever increasing congestion that we face in most of our operations across the UK,” added Giles Fearnley, Managing Director of First Bus.

Customers can pay with contactless for multiple tickets in a single transaction as long as the total amount is £30 or less and the option is available on all daily First Aberdeen services.