First Aberdeen is piloting Express Mode for Apple Pay ahead of the fare payment method’s rollout across First Bus. It is part of the group’s ongoing efforts to reduce cash handling during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic.
Express Mode for Apple Pay is the first time that customers with Apple Pay can pay for travel on a First bus using their iPhone or Apple Watch. There is no need to wake or unlock the device, to open an app or to use Face ID or Touch ID. That simplicity is expected to speed boarding times, says First.
First Aberdeen says over 80% of passengers are currently using cashless payment. Of First Bus’s subsidiaries, it was the fastest to adopt other popular payment methods, hence its choice to pilot Express Mode for Apple Pay.
Once the technology has become fully operational in Aberdeen, it will be rolled out across First Bus’s other networks over the remainder of the year.
The pilot of Express Mode for Apple Pay closeley follows First Bus’s adoption of technology that allows customers to see how many seats are available on their bus ahead of it arriving via the First Bus app.
