First expands contactless Tap & Cap and Express Mode for Apple Pay to West of England

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First West of England has become the latest of its operating areas to benefit from its Tap & Cap technology. From Sunday 11 October, customers using First Bus and metrobus services in Bristol will be able to use Tap & Cap, along with the introduction of Express Mode for Apple Pay. Piloted in Aberdeen, the service is now also available on First buses in Doncaster and Southampton.

James Freeman, Managing Director at First Bus West of England said: “Delivering contactless, price-capped, daily and weekly tickets by 2022, ensuring passengers know that no matter how much they travel they won’t be charged more than a fixed amount, is one of the aims of the Bus Deal we entered into with WECA and Bristol City Council, so I am delighted we are delivering on this for Bristol ahead of schedule. WECA’s support has been invaluable in this, ensuring that metrobus customers can also benefit from Tap & Cap.

“It also marks another important milestone in our journey to make bus travel simpler for our customers using innovative technology and partnerships. Tap & Cap has already been launched in Aberdeen, Doncaster and Southampton where it has proven extremely popular with customers. It gives customers the confidence to know they will always get the best value fare when they buy on board and makes our buses more accessible than ever, at a time when customers need access to increasingly flexible options to meet their changing travel requirements. Combined with the recent updates to our app, our new Space Checker tool and our pilot of pre-bookable services in the West of England, First Bus continues to be at the forefront of making public transport safe and simple.”