Telia and Skånetrafiken bring express payment to Scandinavia
Bus passengers, in the region of Skåne in southern Sweden, can now pay for their trip without using a physical ticket, cash or card.
Together with Telia and the technology company Ridango, Skånetrafiken launches Express Mode for Apple Pay.
“We are proud to be part of Skånetrafiken’s ongoing efforts of innovating to make public transport easier, safer and more attractive to passengers. If we can encourage people to take the bus instead of the car, by making public transport easier, both carbon dioxide emissions and congestion in our cities will be reduced, says Björn Hansen, Head of IoT at Telia Divison X.
Express Mode for Apple Pay means Skånetrafiken’s customers can now use the “tap-and-go” payment method by simply holding their iPhone or Apple Watch to the ticket reader on the bus. The solution is a further development of “Blippa” – the first contactless payment service in the Nordic region. Customers with Apple Pay can access buses and pay without having to start or unlock the device, open an app or use Face ID or Touch ID. You don’t even need to validate with Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode. Travellers simply need to enable a payment card in Wallet that’s eligible for Express Mode.
The solution is another step forward in making it easier for people to choose public transport. Express payment enables faster boarding and less crowding, reduces hassle with money, cards or tickets and increases safety and security as passengers no longer need to open their bag or wallet to travel by public transport. Remarkably, customers can trust this payment method even when their device has run out of battery thanks to the “power reserve”*.
The idea is that if cities are to become easier to live and move around in and communities more sustainable, the alternative of public transport should be an easy choice.
“We are very happy to be the first in Scandinavia to launch Apple Pay’s Express Mode on our city buses. Together with our partners, we have worked intensively to make this possible and it is very fun to now see the result,” says Björn Pettersson, associate product owner at Skånetrafiken.
Kadri Haufe, Chief Commercial Officer at Ridango, says that the launch is a monumental step towards a seamless customer experience.
“This was the first Apple Pay’s Express Mode Apple Pay’s Express Mode implementation for Ridango, and we’re proud to have such an impact through technology. This is what the future of public transport is all about – providing new technology which makes it safe and effortless for the passengers to travel,” she says.
Source: Read the original article on Teliacompany.com.
*On a compatible iPhone with the latest version of iOS, power reserve is available for up to five hours when your iPhone needs to be charged. You can use Express Mode cards with power reserve with iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone XR or later.