The San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) and North County Transit District (NCTD) are making transit smarter and easier with a new payment feature that allows passengers to tap and pay directly on a fare validator with a credit card or other mobile payment option.

Contactless Payment is available on MTS buses and Trolleys, and NCTD COASTER, SPRINTER, FLEX, and BREEZE services.

Contactless Payments in San Diego

With contactless payment, riders can pay their fare with the direct tap of a debit or credit card or other contactless payment options, such as a smartphone or smartwatch, on fare validators system wide.

This means riders can bypass ticket vending machines and bus fareboxes and pay directly on the fare validator.

“Contactless payment is great for riders on the go,” said Stephen Whitburn, MTS board chair. “It’s fast and simple. Being able to just tap a credit card makes taking transit easier. Contactless payment is a great example of how we are making the transit system a more convenient option for residents to get around town.”

San Diego attracts millions of visitors annually for events like Comic-Con, vacations, sporting events, and conferences, and the contactless payment option is a great fit for these transit riders. It allows riders to skip ticket vending machines, downloading apps, purchasing a fare card, or preloading fares, according to the agencies.

Increasing Efficiency

According to a recent Mastercard Contactless Consumer poll, more than half (51%) of Americans are now using some form of contactless payment.

As contactless payment options continue to grow in popularity, they offer an easy way to pay for transit fares on MTS buses and Trolleys, and NCTD services, in no time — processing payments within 500 milliseconds so that riders can board quickly.

Additionally, fares paid through contactless payment methods are eligible for free transfers during the two-hour period on most modes after the first boarding time.

Each passenger will be required to pay their fare with a unique payment method, as each method can only be used for one rider at a time. Most debit or credit cards, smartphones, and wearables like Apple Watches, Fitbits, and Samsung Watches are equipped with contactless pay options and can be used on system fare validators to pay.

MTS and NCTD partnered with Germany-based INIT for system technology upgrades, Chase Bank for payment processing, and other technology and system developer partners to make contactless payment a reality for San Diego public transit users.