Apple Pay is coming to New York City thanks to a partnership with the Metropolitan Transportation Authority or MTA.
The Verge, citing Apple Pay, reported that on May 31st, people can use Apple Pay for public transportation in the sprawling metropolis. According to TheVerge, the rollout of Apple Pay is part of the MTA’s One Metro New York initiative in which it’s testing new payment methods for fares. The tap and pay system that will support Apple Pay will be available on the 4/5/6 Subway lines which transport commuters between Grand Central Station in New York City and Atlantic Avenue-Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The service will also be available on buses in Staten Island, reported The Verge. In order for commuters to take advantage of contactless payments on the subway they have to have the latest version of iOS or watchOS and they then have to add a credit or debit card to use the new feature, dubbed Express Transit. Once it’s set up commuters don't have to open an app or unlock the phone to use for fares. Apple Pay can be used on a per ride basis at the beginning of the trial. The trial doesn’t support unlimited monthly passes yet — but it should be rolled out later, noted the report.
The news out of Apple Pay comes just a few days after Google announced a partnership with the MTA. Last week Google said it added the MTA to its list of transit agencies that will let commuters pay for rides via Google Pay. In a company blog post at the time, Prakash Hariramani, director for product management at Google Pay, said starting at the end of May, the MTA will enable the pay-per-ride feature on mobile devices at select subway stations and Staten Island buses. The executive said the company is working with the MTA to bring additional features with Google Maps and Google Assistant to commuting.
