South Pennine Goes Contactless!

South Pennine Community Transport introduces contactless payments on the 29 April 2019

On both sides of the Pennines, Arriva, Stagecoach, and FirstGroup have introduced contactless payments on their buses. Instead of fumbling for change, they offer casual passengers another way to pay for their bus fares. So far, smaller independent operators have begun to add contactless payments on their buses.

The latest company to add contactless payments is South Pennine Community Transport. South Pennine CT has expanded by reaching parts of the Pennines ignored by the big bus owning groups. Their small white buses have a steady number of regular passengers and friendly drivers.

On all their routes you can pay by cash, show your all-systems travel card within its given boundary, or use your ENCTS permit. From Monday [29 April], you will be able to pay by contactless means. Not only debit cards, but also smartphones. With Apple Pay and Android Pay supported, this would steal a march on several bus operators.

With retail banks closing, contactless cards are fast becoming a necessity. As banks close, this leaves fewer cash machines – many of them likely to be empty or out of service. Or requiring transaction fees. Throughout South Pennine’s operational area, some of the villages and small towns served lack a retail bank or building society. Some are down to their last bank.

As well as single and return fares, South Pennine Community Transport’s own day tickets are priced £5.00 for one person. Two can travel on all of South Pennine CT’s buses for £8.00, whereas four can ride for £12.00. Metro-Day tickets are available within the West Yorkshire boundary at £6.50, or £3.00 for a Holme Valley Day ticket.

The first of South Pennine’s “friendly little buses for everyone” to feature contactless payments will be the 0715 journey of the X49 from Honley Bridge Co-op to Brighouse. The second will be the 0736 journey of the 241 from Houses Hill to Huddersfield.

S.V., 26 April 2019.