Apple Pay for Transit: Now Accepted in Singapore, NYC Testing Soon, Chicago and Portland to Integrate Fare Cards

[Alan Wynn]

"that means double-pressing the home button or side button, authenticating with Touch ID or Face ID, and holding the iPhone near the card reader."

I have used ApplePay in London with both my iPhone X and my Apple Watch, and your flow is somewhat off. One does not wait until one gets to the turnstile to authenticate, one pre-authenticates (pressing the side button twice and authenticates with one's face for the X), and then one has a fair amount of time to get to the turnstile and present the iPhone or Apple Watch to the reader.

It will be slower for people who are not used to it, just as it is slower for people who are not used to Oyster cards. For people who have done it more than two or three times, it is routine and just as fast.

If there's any kind of delay, like having to satisfy FaceID or wait for TouchID, it's going to slow things down and people will get pissed. Nevermind that TouchID doesn't work with gloves on and NYC has winter, and FaceID doesn't always read correctly.

Tourists cause delays, using the current metro cards and Oyster cards in London. Regular riders are just as fast with iPhones.

If I were a New Yorker I wouldn't bother with using my phone and just get the Contactless MetroCard equivalent they're no doubt going to offer.

All my friends in London switched from their Oyster cards to the phones (Android or iPhones) and/or Apple Watches. No need to worry about reloading the card, no need to cary something extra, nothing else to lose, etc.

All the same benefits that tap to pay offers overall.

 

[Huntb3636]

Express pay (ala Suica, etc.) is not going to be supported from day 1. Metrocard are not going to be in the wallet app or digitized.

The MTA is rolling this out as part of their shift to OMNY (google it). At the start, they will accept contactless cards and Apple Pay; a year or so later they will introduce an OMNY card - this maybe could be added to Apple wallet and hopefully could be used for express pay if they are smart enough to build out the system with this capability. Eventually, they are getting rid of metrocards so the new OMNY card or contactless will be the ways to pay.

 

[MisterSavage]

TIL you can do this. Wow, this is a game changer. This will speed my regular Apple Pay transactions too. Just tried it on campus.

All this time I thought you had to hold it by the reader, then authenticate. I guess I would have learned the other way had I used a FaceID phone more, but I still have my iPhone 7 Plus.

The *only* instance where I though Touch ID was better for my usage was with Apple Pay. You could hold the phone near the reader with your thumb resting on the Touch ID panel and you could pay quickly. If I pay with my phone with Face ID auth I do the method being discussed (double click and get the auth out of the way before I get to the terminal).

I almost always use Apple Pay with my Apple Watch now.

 

[timborama]

I understand your confusion, but the author is correct since the name Apple Pay refers to the use of the NFC chip in the iPhone to make a payment by any relevant standard (whether thats on the Visa/Mastercard networks, AMEX, China UnionPay, Suica, the new Chinese Travel Card standard whose name I forget...). They aren't all interoperable (if I go to HK i have to tell them I want to pay by UnionPay Quickpass rather than apple pay) but they are all Apple Pay.

Sorry that is not correct and NOT the way even Apple positions it. Pre-2016 iphones had Apple Pay but not Suica/FeLiCa support. Even the 2016 iPhone only had the Suica/FeLiCa hardware on Japan iPhones. They ARE NOT interchangeable.

 

[supertomtom]

"that means double-pressing the home button or side button, authenticating with Touch ID or Face ID, and holding the iPhone near the card reader."

This takes too long. I know it seems fast, but I've been in NYC and ridden the subway quite a few times and it's a constant flow of people through the turnstiles, each person swiping their card through as they're walking.

If there's any kind of delay, like having to satisfy FaceID or wait for TouchID, it's going to slow things down and people will get pissed. Nevermind that TouchID doesn't work with gloves on and NYC has winter, and FaceID doesn't always read correctly.

If I were a New Yorker I wouldn't bother with using my phone and just get the Contactless MetroCard equivalent they're no doubt going to offer.

Just like one would get the ticket/card ready and out of their wallet before reaching the terminal, I suspect seasoned riders would have already have the app ready and pre-authenticated (which lasts up to a minute) before reaching the terminal.

 

[Alan Wynn]

I've said it before here just a few days ago, wish the EU would force Apple to open up NFC, that would mean you won't need ApplePay for Public transport for instance, just tap and go with your Public transportation App/card.

A terrible solution. I do not want a million different apps for different systems around the world, nor do I want to fund them by leaving money in a pre-paid account I will never use. I no longer remember the number, but a large percentage of D.C.’s Metro budget comes from unused balances left on metrocards by tourists.

 

[br403]

I've said it before here just a few days ago, wish the EU would force Apple to open up NFC, that would mean you won't need ApplePay for Public transport for instance, just tap and go with your Public transportation App/card.

You don´t need this. Suica in Japan is also integrated into Apple Wallet without opening NFC. It is possible to add transport cards to Wallet.

 

[lartola]

Welcome!

The USA can sometimes seem to be behind when it comes to embracing new tech. National standards are hard to develop and enforce, maybe because the individual states have to go along. On this subject, NYC was very late in introducing card entry. We used tokens until they were finally phased out on '03. I'm still faxing to and from my insurance company and most of my doctor's offices. It is frustrating.

Not to mention that your insurance company and the doctor’s offices are probably still using old magnetic stripe readers to process all credit/debit card payments. Even in Houston, supposedly the world’s best and most modern medical center, most if not all of the doctors still use magstripe for card payments at their offices. I guess the medical center’s modernity is only on the medical end, but not the financial end.
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You don´t need this. Suica in Japan is also integrated into Apple Wallet without opening NFC. It is possible to add transport cards to Wallet.

It is also possible to add passes with nfc capabilities, which don’t require fingerprint authentication. Walgreens in the US did it with their reward card and you can tap it on the nfc reader (same used for payment) to accumulate or redeem points at their stores. Maybe the same can be done with the transit passes.

 

[steve knight]

Portland has a great system. No cards. Just use your credit card and it stops charging you once you reach the threshold for a full day pass.

but the hop card is better as it will act as a month pass after 20 days of commuting. if you use your card it will cost 150.00 a month verses 100. you can use a android for it for about 1/2 a year or so

 

[lartola]

I've said it before here just a few days ago, wish the EU would force Apple to open up NFC, that would mean you won't need ApplePay for Public transport for instance, just tap and go with your Public transportation App/card.

That’s not necessary. Maybe you don’t know this, but the wallet app supports passes with nfc capabilities too, that you can use by tapping. A good example of this is walgreens’ balance rewards card in the US. You store it in wallet and then you can accumulate or redeem points by simply tapping your device on the same nfc reader where you would tap it to pay using apple pay. And it doesn’t require authentication, which means nfc capable passes can be set up not to require passcode or fingerprint authentication. So maybe the public transportation entities could set up their cards to be stored as nfc passes rather than as debit cards and the problem is solved.

 

[macduke]

I'm a Kansas City boy and even I think this might not be a good idea. When we visit NYC we stay with a local and you're supposed to walk through and swipe your pass quickly all in one fluid movement while moving forward. During peak times if people are having to stop to get out their phone/picking up dropped phones/unlocking the phone and tapping it to the thing and waiting for it to authenticate then having to take off their face scarf in the winter to scan their face or fumble with a passcode then that is going to take a long time. It shouldn't need FaceID to authenticate it's just a freaking subway pass. It needs to be faster or it's going to get backed up and even more people will be jumping the gates. Any locals agree with this or am I way off base? I'm not a local but logically it makes sense given my limited experience there and basic critical thinking skills. But then again sometimes the cards don't swipe properly.

 

[br403]

That´s what the Suica card is, and this will come to HOP and eventually for the Metro card in NYC. You can define them as a "Express Transit Card", so you don´t need to authenticate, just tap the phone or watch on the reader.

But you will be able to just use your credit card or your ApplePay credit card also. This is especially interesting for tourists.

 

[Jamers99]

People still pay to use the subway? I thought everyone just jumped the pay gate.

 

[ignatius345]

"that means double-pressing the home button or side button, authenticating with Touch ID or Face ID, and holding the iPhone near the card reader."

This takes too long. I know it seems fast, but I've been in NYC and ridden the subway quite a few times and it's a constant flow of people through the turnstiles, each person swiping their card through as they're walking.

If there's any kind of delay, like having to satisfy FaceID or wait for TouchID, it's going to slow things down and people will get pissed. Nevermind that TouchID doesn't work with gloves on and NYC has winter, and FaceID doesn't always read correctly.

If I were a New Yorker I wouldn't bother with using my phone and just get the Contactless MetroCard equivalent they're no doubt going to offer.

I'm a Kansas City boy and even I think this might not be a good idea. When we visit NYC we stay with a local and you're supposed to walk through and swipe your pass quickly all in one fluid movement while moving forward. During peak times if people are having to stop to get out their phone/picking up dropped phones/unlocking the phone and tapping it to the thing and waiting for it to authenticate then having to take off their face scarf in the winter to scan their face or fumble with a passcode then that is going to take a long time. It shouldn't need FaceID to authenticate it's just a freaking subway pass. It needs to be faster or it's going to get backed up and even more people will be jumping the gates. Any locals agree with this or am I way off base? I'm not a local but logically it makes sense given my limited experience there and basic critical thinking skills. But then again sometimes the cards don't swipe properly.

Yep, agree wholeheartedly. I've lived in NYC for 20 years and as you point out, metrocard swipes are very very fast 99% of the time. There's the occasional tourist or novice who gets stuck swiping over and over too slow or too fast, but regular subway riders get the hang of it and don't even have to break their stride to swipe in.

From what I've seen with Apple Pay, as quick as it is at a register, it's not that fast. I'm sure this will to slow turnstiles down very badly. Even a couple second delay is enough to make traffic start to back up.

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You have a minute leeway from activating Apple Pay until it times out; so, by rights, no one should be fumbling around at the point of touching in/out to ride transit.

Key word: "should". Guarantee there will be plenty of people futzing with their phones while blocking the turnstiles, as @macduke above described.

Contactless cards -- where there's no unlocking a phone, etc -- could work great if they're fast enough. Tap and go, just like the ones you use to enter a building or whatever. But I can't see this going well once there's a cumberson phone in the mix.

 

[Alan Wynn]

Ive been a long time lerker here at Macrumors but never joined in. Signed up to ask this question;

Everytime there is a news article about Apple Pay expanding in the USA i dont understand whats happening. Here in the UK, everywhere accepts it and it seemed to happen overnight. I can literately use Apple Pay for any purchase at any store. The only thing that took a while was the abolishing of the £30 limit Why is the USA slow? Am I missing something?

This is a common situation when one adopts a technology earlier, one tends to take longer to upgrade to the newer better one. Mobile phone adoption was slower here in the U.S. because landlines were cheap and ubiquitous, where in many places, not having as many landlines meant that mobile rolled out faster.

In France, MiniTel was great, but meant that real internet took longer to roll out.

In the U.S. every merchant accepted credit and charge cards (and most Americans had a credit card) long before they did in the UK and Europe. That meant that when stores in the UK and Europe began to roll out card acceptance, they were doing it with newer technology.

 

[br403]

This is how it looks like with a Japanese Suica card which is Express Card enabled:

You don´t have to enable FaceID.

 

[emilonrails]

Meanwhile..in the San Francisco Bay Area (home of Silicon Valley)...BART's fare reload machines inside the gates only take CASH. If you're in the system and don't have enough fare on your transit cart and you don't have cash...you're screwed.

 

[827538]

Works really well on London's transport network, glad to see more places are adopting it.

 

[Crowbot]

People still pay to use the subway? I thought everyone just jumped the pay gate.

Some do. But New Yorkers are honest, as a rule. Are Floridians? The other day some guy tapped me on the shoulder and gave me back $2 I had dropped. But this is off topic.

 

[LeonardXW]

"that means double-pressing the home button or side button, authenticating with Touch ID or Face ID, and holding the iPhone near the card reader."

This takes too long. I know it seems fast, but I've been in NYC and ridden the subway quite a few times and it's a constant flow of people through the turnstiles, each person swiping their card through as they're walking.

If there's any kind of delay, like having to satisfy FaceID or wait for TouchID, it's going to slow things down and people will get pissed. Nevermind that TouchID doesn't work with gloves on and NYC has winter, and FaceID doesn't always read correctly.

If I were a New Yorker I wouldn't bother with using my phone and just get the Contactless MetroCard equivalent they're no doubt going to offer.

That’s when Apple Watch comes in handy. Going to get one Apple Watch for this transist payment.

 

[Abazigal]

Just used my Apple Watch to pay for a train ride. Main issue is that the payment gantry is situated on my right, while I wear my watch on my left wrist. Which makes it a little awkward when it comes to positioning.

Probably going to face a similar issue with my phone.

Nice idea, kinda let down by awkward positioning when you try to force new technology onto existing tech.

Will try it out for a few more days and see if this gets any easier.

 

[AdonisSMU]

I've said it before here just a few days ago, wish the EU would force Apple to open up NFC, that would mean you won't need ApplePay for Public transport for instance, just tap and go with your Public transportation App/card.

And it be insecure because it wasn't thoroughly tested before general availability? No thanks!

 

[dontwalkhand]

People still pay to use the subway? I thought everyone just jumped the pay gate.

Try walking past the driver without tapping on an MTA bus...you won’t get far. Not just the subway.

 

[funandblindness]

"that means double-pressing the home button or side button, authenticating with Touch ID or Face ID, and holding the iPhone near the card reader."

This takes too long. I know it seems fast, but I've been in NYC and ridden the subway quite a few times and it's a constant flow of people through the turnstiles, each person swiping their card through as they're walking.

If there's any kind of delay, like having to satisfy FaceID or wait for TouchID, it's going to slow things down and people will get pissed. Nevermind that TouchID doesn't work with gloves on and NYC has winter, and FaceID doesn't always read correctly.

If I were a New Yorker I wouldn't bother with using my phone and just get the Contactless MetroCard equivalent they're no doubt going to offer.

MetroCard is being eliminated as an option. If done correctly with Express Transit it will be much faster actually.

 

[nicho]

Sorry that is not correct and NOT the way even Apple positions it. Pre-2016 iphones had Apple Pay but not Suica/FeLiCa support. Even the 2016 iPhone only had the Suica/FeLiCa hardware on Japan iPhones. They ARE NOT interchangeable.

I don’t understand why you capitalised the words “ARE NOT” that in disagreement of me when I said they are not interchangeable.

As practice for getting better at reading comments, I’d suggest you go research and find evidence from apple that they don’t call Suica “Apple Pay” in Japan. Otherwise read this and apologise:

https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT207155

It is exactly how apple positions it. Suica is an option to use within Apple Pay.


Out of interest, what do you hold Apple Pay to be?