Bay Area transit riders can now go contactless

Bay Area Rapid Transit (Bart) has become the first transportation system in the US west coast Bay Area to go contactless.

Contactless credit or debit cards or mobile payment methods, such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, can now be used at fare gates.

Riders will no longer need to use a Clipper card - which require registration and fare top-up - to ride, but Bart says they can continue to do so if they wish.

Bart operates in five counties: San Francisco, San Mateo, Alameda, Contra Costa and Santa Clara.

In a LinkedIn post, Cubic Transportation Systems says: "Contactless payments will soon be coming to the nearly two dozen other regional transit agencies that accept Clipper for fare payment."

“Tap and ride follows the installation of next-generation fare gates, running only Fleet of the Future trains, boosting cleaning, and increasing our visible safety presence as efforts that are transforming the Bart experience,” said Bart general manager Bob Powers. 

“This is an especially important innovation for out-of-town visitors and infrequent riders who may not have a physical or digital Clipper card and want a simple way to use our service.”

San Francisco mayor Daniel Lurie adds: “Tap and ride will make it faster and easier than ever to take Bart into and around San Francisco, and it will help drive our city's recovery.”

Riders will be charged full adult fares. "Allowing discount card holders to join Tap and Ride is on the roadmap, but it is not yet available," Bart says in a statement.

This means people with eligibility-based discounts - such as Clipper Start or youth or senior discounts - must continue using a physical or digital Clipper card. 

Transfer discounts will not be available until contactless is rolled out to the region’s other transit agencies.