Pay for his bus with a credit card

Photo courtesy Société de transport de Laval
The Société de transport de Laval is currently using this terminal in the buses, in the framework of a pilot project for the payment of the passage made by credit card.

Cédérick Caron

Wednesday, 17 January, 2018 00:00

UPDATE
Wednesday, 17 January, 2018 00:00

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Pay its subway entrance, bus or train directly with his credit card, it is the possibility that the transport companies in the Greater Montreal, Quebec city, and Lévis are studying.

The Société de transport de Montréal (STM) is seeking a turnkey solution to enable a customer to use his credit or debit card to pay for her right of passage.

His project lies in a request for interest published on the System for electronic bidding of the government of Quebec (SEAO), and which was to expire today.

“It is not a call for tenders leading to the award of a contract, but rather a first step to study the market in detail,” said the adviser, corporate public affairs of the STM, Philippe Déry.

“The result of this market study, he said, the partners OPUS will be able to clarify their guidelines on the evolution of the system OPUS. “

Mobile payment

It will be necessary that the technology could be paired with equipment of current validation attached to the system Opus, include matching rules to avoid paying two times during a same trip and consider the best price for the client.

Also, it should offer the possibility to pay with a card cloud, for example, using an application for mobile phone.

It is the regional Authority of metropolitan transport (ARTM), which was mandated by the STM to investigate this possibility since it already has a team dedicated to the payment system OPUS.

ARTM oversees public transportation in Montreal, Laval, Longueuil as well as on the crown. The réseau de transport de la Capital (Québec) and Société de transport de Lévis are also in the folder.

As to Laval ?

The system chosen could be similar to the pilot project used in the buses of the Société de transport de Laval, which allows to pay with his credit card on some lines, a first in the country.

“However it is too early for us to make a decision about it. Anyway, it is clear that this type of pilot project and the experience lived by the STL are very positive and will help us to propose solutions “, said by e-mail to the spokesperson of the ARTM, Fanie St-Pierre.

In 2015, the STM launched Opus online, a system to recharge their Opus card by internet, through the purchase of a terminal that looks like an external floppy drive.