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Apple Pay Comes to New York City's MTA Transit This Friday
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I suspect this is a use case for having a watch.
Or really any form factor that can house the NFC hardware. I'd like an L train amulet, myself.
Pulling this off without major issues would add some credibility on their part, however, which would make it easier to convince people to allow other fixes and enhancements. Or well, to pay for them anyway.
1: So it's not paper, but it's the most ****** and unreliable plastic flimsy card possible. It's not of the quality as I mentioned of hard plastic cards in other countries that last for years and use IC, no need to swipe an electronic strip that degrades quickly.
2: I'm fully aware of EasyPay, however this is tethered through the same ****** plastic card with electronic strip that degrades easily over time. It's not a smart card you can use for many uses, nor does NYC have electronic payment in the way I was referring to in European countries where it's fully digital, you only show your digital purchase in app when inspection happens – not linked to anything physical. So it's neither what I was referring to – you should look it up before posting.
The whole point is how much more convenient it is either to 1) just tap a card against the scanner as you enter, which is more reliable and degrades less with use or 2) completely digital on your phone only.
Could also mean (once they set up monthly and weekly passes) that people won't have to use those bloody MetroCard machines, which have some of the worse interfaces on earth.
Nothing to register. Just have ApplePay set up and tap away. It's still limited use here because it's the testing phase but oh man this is a game changer for us. But you can register and it's easy to do so. The same company that runs the Oyster cards will manage the OMNY program as well.
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Calm down. If your MetroCards are regularly crapping out that fast, you might want to take a look at how you're treating them? I've got one I've been using for going on a year. In an out of my pocket, multiple swipes a day. It still works great. I've had cards get glitchy over the past two decades here, but rarely -- and it's not a huge deal to have a token booth attendent swap one out for a new one. If you're looking to gripe about something, how about the state of the signalling system, or all the goddamned video ads they've put up everywhere, as if THAT's a priority. Or the showtime dancers? There's plenty to get riled up about.
And yeah, we get that NFC is more convenient, etc, which I suppose is why they're testing it out now to see if it scales up well in NYC.
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But do you have to authenticate the way you do with ApplePay generally, or is this faster?
(I could go over to Union Square and test this out right now, but it's humid out and I'm very lazy
Good perspective. You forgot to mention the rats masquerading as horses, though.
If you don't authenticate anybody that finds your phone can use it to enter the subway. So I'm guessing you pre-authenticate at least with face id while on the line or approaching the turnstile and then bam!But do you have to authenticate the way you do with ApplePay generally, or is this faster?
(I could go over to Union Square and test this out right now, but it's humid out and I'm very lazy
You're guessing wrong. That's how regular apple pay works. Apple Pay Express Transit means no authentication the way you do with apple pay...
I pre-authenticate with apple pay with face id and then hold the phone to the reader. Just holding a locked phone to the turnstile would result in an unauthorized transaction for anybody that finds the phone with apple pay enabled. So that doesn't make any sense that you hold the phone without authenticating (at least with face id)
edit: it seems you need to unlock your phone, so question answered and not quite as convenient as apple pay as I don't have to unlock my phone, only click the power button twice. (Next time I ride those lines I'll definitely try it out)
You pre-authenticate with apple pay with face id and then hold the phone to the reader. Because that's how regular apple pay works.
Wherever you read that you need to unlock the phone to use express transit, you read it wrong. You literally hold the phone to the turnstile with no further interaction needed. No unlocking phone. No button pressing. If you have an XS/XS Max it works even after the battery is dead for roughly 5 hours. It's way more convenient than regular apple pay.
Yes, that means a locked phone can potentially be used to make an unauthorised transaction but only for transportation - Apple works closely with transport systems on this and isn't going to enable it to work willy nilly and drain peoples' bank accounts. Regular card readers in shops/restaurants don't interface with express transit. Express transit also disables when the phone prompts for a password (eg if the thief looks at the phone a couple of times).
Being able to make an unauthorized transaction for even 1 cent is an issue, in my opinion. Have you actually used your phone to ride subway (specifically the MTA in NYC) and enter through the turnstiles by holding a locked phone to the reader? And if you have what's to stop 10 or 20 people from using the same phone?
https://omny.info/about-contactless-payments#what-are-digital-wallets
Edit: the link states you may have to unlock your phone to use your smart device and I'm betting this is a regular apple pay transaction, which means with face id you preauthenticate and then tap. You can pay for yourself and up to 3 other people.
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I feel bad saying this so bluntly but you’re wrong. The next sentence says to see the user manual for your device - well here you go
https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT209495
It is, however, optional and you can use regular Apple Pay transactions if paranoid.
I’m right because the mta does not use Apple Pay transit express. The MTA uses a credit card with a chip or Apple Pay.
No you’re wrong because https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT207958
That’s linked from the previous page btw. And what this entire article/discussion is about.
No you’re incorrect, you have to read the link I posted. The MTA does not use a specific transit card or app and without that you can’t use express pay mode. A credit card does not qualify for express transit.
Do you live in NYC?
Yes, a generic web page that says to go to specific device makers for more information, is going to be way more accurate than said information from Apple. Apple Pay is a type of contactless payment, but contactless is way more than just Apple Pay. And Express Transit is even more specific, so it'd be helpful for you to read up on that instead of not accepting that you've got it wrong.
Sorry but you seem to be living under a rock and/or so inept at reading that typing this out is quite pointless. The only reason that I'm continuing to reply is to ensure you don't misinform others. What you wrote is just not true. It literally says so on the link that I posted to you - "New York City: Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) accepts payment cards in Wallet at select stations." Not transit cards - payment cards. I don't live in NYC, but that's not particularly relevant.
Yes and a payment card such as visa is not eligible for express transit pay. Can you highlight the relevant section in the support document where it says a payment card such as visa is eligible for express transit pay?
Back to the first article for clarity.
Before you start, set up a card in Wallet to use for Express Transit mode with Apple Pay. You can set up a new credit, debit, or prepaid card or a new transit card.
https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT209495
There you go. A payment card such as visa is absolutely eligible for express transit pay, that's the point of the MTA's new system. It's also rumoured to be coming to TfL - https://www.macrumors.com/2019/05/30/apple-pay-express-transit-coming-to-london/ - and if there was any doubt in your mind about not needing to authenticate in the case of express transit, right now without express transit they need to authenticate and it'd be borderline farcical to introduce a new system that worked exactly the same way as the old one.
You are still not correct, see the screenshot below. Note the “eligible for express transit”. That’s the caveat. But you were real quick to throw an insult.
I am correct, so let's continue. You note a caveat but you don't seem to understand exactly what that caveat means. Here's a Visa Credit card being used as an express transit card.
edit see also:
You can use Apple Pay with public transit in several cities around the world, but the first U.S. city to get support was Portland, Oregon, on May 21, 2019. Apple Pay Express Transit Mode is a special mode that lets you just tap your iPhone or Apple Watch on the contactless terminal with no need to wake or unlock the device — that means no need to use Face ID or Touch ID. You can use Apple Pay without this mode to access transit, and this is available in a broader range of cities (including Chicago in the U.S.).
You’ll need to be on the latest software (iOS 12.3+ and watchOS 5.2.1+) to use Apple Pay Express Transit on both the iPhone and Apple Watch. It works with iPhone SE, iPhone 6S, 6S Plus and newer iPhone models, as well as the Apple Watch Series 1 and newer models.
from: https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/mta-omny-brings-contactless-pay-for-transit-to-nyc/
or this one, more succinct:
People who want to use Apple Pay to ride the MTA will need to download the latest version of iOS (12.3) and watchOS (5.2.1), and then authenticate a credit or debit card to use with a new feature called Express Transit. After that, you won’t need to open an app or unlock your phone to use it with the MTA.
from: https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/29/18643550/apple-pay-nyc-mta-transit-omny-contactless
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Right, and what that screen shot tells me is the Suica card is express transit (whatever Suica is) and the Wells Fargo cars based on the screenshot is eligible for express transit.I am correct, so let's continue. You note a caveat but you don't seem to understand exactly what that caveat means. Here's a Visa Credit card being used as an express transit card.
But that is not what the MTA faq implies that they use express transit. So in different systems it seems to be “different.”
Some who has used the new tap to in the MTA can comment.
Apple explicitly states that they use express transit on their support page. Also: see quotes added to previous reply.
Edit: and this rather lengthy description of the process from Mashable to put it beyond any doubt.
https://mashable.com/article/apple-pay-express-transit-new-york-city-subway-hands-on/
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Finally answered my own question by trying this out on the subway. Learned three things:
1) before you can use this, you have to go into your iOS Wallet settings and designate one of your cards to be the one you use for transit
2) The card you pick can't be an Apple Cash card (at least with the MTA's trial here). I tried that initially and it did not work until I switched to a different credit card.
3) While you do NOT have to unlock your phone to make this work, there's still a slight delay while the thing recognizes your payment. It's just nowhere near as fast and easy a flow as the way a Metrocard swipe works. The MTA has also put the sensor absurdly low on the turnstile, which doesn't help things. If the sensor was up top where it belongs, it would be less irritating to use.
For now, I'll probably just keep using my Metrocard because it's faster and easier -- but the tech here is quite promising and I hope they find a way to make it work with 7-day and 30-day unlimited cards.
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