Cybersource is bringing contactless payments to riders worldwide

COVID-19 brought about significant, long lasting changes to people and businesses in every corner of the world. One expected to stick around for the foreseeable future is the increased interest and importance of more seamless, safe, contactless ways to pay, no matter where you are.

Transit systems are no exception. Even with decreased ridership during the pandemic, essential workers, and those who are now starting to head back into the office and safely visit new cities, want and need more efficient options to pay. Visa’s Future of Urban Mobility Study found that 88% of people now expect contactless payment and ticketing options on public transit. The same study also found that over a third of people now desire to reduce contact with common surfaces as much as possible. Indeed, contactless payments have become as elemental to public safety as hand sanitizer and face masks.

Enter Cybersource -- a global payments management platform owned by Visa. Today, Cybersource is helping create more inclusive, sustainable, and efficient transportation systems around the world by helping them adopt an open-loop, contactless payment model. Cybersource’s extensive ecosystem gives transit operators the flexibility of choice, in addition to offering a stable, future-proof platform on which they can build solutions that help control their operating costs, mitigate their exposure, and allow them to provide a range of convenient, compelling and frictionless payment and ticketing experiences for riders. 

Implementing contactless payments comes with a myriad of benefits, including sustainability. Tap-to-pay eliminates the need for paper tickets and increases efficiencies which can encourage more riders, leading to fewer passenger cars and lower carbon emissions.

Contactless also offers flexibility and savings for both riders and transit companies. Riders are able to pay as they need, and avoid funds trapped in closed-loop systems. Going digital with contactless helps transit operators save, too, by decreasing operational costs and allowing transit employees to focus on the safety and satisfaction of riders.

Cybersource also supports e-commerce for all types of ticketing -- not just tap-to-ride. It offers the full spectrum of payments solutions, including closed-loop top-ups, smart ticketing apps, and QR code-based payments, all within the same platform. 

On a mission to simplify and improve the transit experience across California, Cybersource helped the Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT) become the first agency in the state to offer contactless fare solutions on light rail trains. It also helped Monterey-Salinas Transit (MST) become the first transit system in the nation located outside of a large urban area to implement Tap-to-Pay across its fleet of buses -- demonstrating the desirability and effectiveness of adding contactless solutions to the transit experience, no matter the size of the city or population.

Meanwhile in Portugal, Cybersource helped Metro de Porto transform its intermodal ticketing system, Andante. Instead of needing to load their cards in the closed-loop system, both locals and visitors can now tap their contactless cards and pay for rides with cards already in their wallets. 

“The last year and a half has transformed almost every industry, and transit is no exception. Passengers want more seamless, secure and touchless ways to ride, and to meet these needs, Cybersource is helping public transit operators from California to Portugal to Japan reduce complexity and quickly adapt contactless payment solutions, creating more inclusive, sustainable and efficient transportation systems around the world,” said Fernando Souza, Vice President, Cybersource.