Contactless travel a step closer as trial to start on Melbourne public transport

Victorians are getting closer to being able to tap on and off public transport with their phones or bank cards instead of myki cards, as a trial for the upgraded payment method is to begin early next month.

Following the installation of nearly 3000 new ticket readers at almost 280 myki-enabled stations, the Allan government will begin a “small number of controlled, closed-group trials” for the updated payment system in early February.

Public transport users will soon be able to pay using their credit and debit cards, or smartphones.

Department of Transport and Planning staff will be the first to test the new tap-on, tap-off payments with different bank cards and smart devices over a three-day period at Showgrounds and Flemington stations.

Public trials will then begin following the initial testing period, which will allow passengers at selected stations to take part and provide feedback. The full switch to contactless payment methods will come into effect at all myki-enabled train stations soon after.

Public Transport Minister Gabrielle Williams said testing in real-world conditions was a critical next step in rolling out tap-and-go payments.

“It’s different types of phones, different types of watches, different ages of phones and watches, different types of credit cards,” Williams said.

“All of that brings a lot of complexity into project, and that’s why it’s so important that we test and test robustly to build confidence in our ability to then go live.”

Once the payment upgrades are fully rolled out, travellers will be able to choose their preferred payment form, from physical credit and debit cards, as well as electronic cards on smartphones and smartwatches, and physical myki cards.

Transport Minister Gabrielle Williams says the trials are a critical step towards tap-and-go payments.

Until the changes are rolled out, myki is the only payment method available.

Williams would not say when the public trial would commence other than it being “early this year”, and also declined to say when contactless payments would become available across the whole network.

However, she confirmed the new system would go live at train stations first, followed by the tram and bus network, where the rollout of new ticket validators is more than half way completed.

“We will be talking to the Victorian community ... and guiding them as to where they’ll need a myki and where they’ll be able to use their contactless payment,” she said.

Victoria signed a $1.7 billion contract with American provider Conduent in 2023 to overhaul the state’s ticketing system and run it for 15 years.

Budget papers suggest the statewide rollout could take until 2027.

Contactless payments will only be available for non-concessional flat-fare passengers at first, before account-based fares are enabled for concession and weekly or monthly passes.

After introducing free travel for under-18s and free weekend travel for seniors and disability pensioners, Williams hinted on Friday that the new ticket system would open the door to more flexible fares for all passengers.

“A new ticketing system, I think, is a great new asset to our toolkit to enable us, in the future, more flexibility around fairs as well,” she said.

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