Contactless payments on Express buses

Its pilot application begins contactless payment system with a bank card and digital wallet through activated devices (smartphones, smartwatches) at buses of the Athens International Airport (IAA) Express lines. By the end of the year, the contactless transaction system will be available for passengers, in all Public transport competence OASA (Buses, Trolley, Metro, Tram).

The alternative possibility of using a bank card (debit, credit, or prepaid) to board an MMM, marks the entry of of Athens Communications in a new digital era for the transport services provided to the passenger public.

Passengers, except ATH.ENA Ticket or ATH.ENA Cardthey can from today, to
use a bank card, or the cards on their activated devices (smartphone or smartwatch) to board buses of AIA Express lines (X93, X95, X96, X97). Payment cards issued by authorized institutions are also included.

OASA, within the framework of a contract with Hellas Smart Ticket SA, a subsidiary of TERNA ENERGY, in collaboration with LG CNS and with the support of Visa and NBG Pay, developed the application pilot system of contactless transactions on the specific bus lines, with a horizon of extending the project to all of the capital’s urban transport, until the end of 2024.

Passengers moving to and from Athens International Airportthey can now alternatively pay their ticket contactless by swiping their bank card over the bus validation machines with the relevant indication of contactless transactions.

The equipment installed on the selected buses “reads” the card or digital wallet and charges the value of the trip to the passenger’s account.

With this new service, Athens joins the list of European cities, such as Madrid, Milan, and London, which enable passengers to move in a simple, safe and comfortable way, contributing to the increase in the use of public transport.

Public urban transport will play a critical role in the development of smart cities and in facilitating the movement of users, with contactless payments (tap & pay) offering a safe and seamless experience for passengers and transport system managers looking for easy, immediate and secure access to these services.

The benefits for the passenger

With the implementation of the use of bank cards for boarding MMMs, the
passengers will not need:

To obtain a ticket through the issuing offices or issuing machines (AMEK).
To know the available moving products in order to choose the appropriate one. The system in its full development will charge the passenger the most economical fare product, based on their movements. An extremely useful feature for passengers who are not familiar with the Athens transportation system, such as visitors from other cities and tourists.

To look for points of sale, or wait in queues to buy a ticket, in order to travel by MMM.

The Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Mr. Christos Staikouras, said regarding the implementation of the contactless transaction system in urban transport: “The support of contactless payments in Mass Transport is one of the ten priorities we set when reading the Government’s programmatic statements .

The new service was presented, today, in a special event at Zappeio Megaro by the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Mr. Christos Staikouras, the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, responsible for Transport, Mrs. Christina Alexopoulou, the General Secretary of Transport, Mr. Yiannis Xifaras, the CEO of of Superfund Mr. Grigoris Dimitriadis, the CEO of OASA Mr. Giorgos Spiliopoulos, the Deputy CEO of TERNA ENERGY Ms. Giorgos Agrafiotis and the General Manager of Greece, Israel, Malta and Cyprus for Visa Ms. Sevi Vassileva and the General Manager of NBG Pay Mr. Christoforos Hatzopoulos.