Scotland’s first contactless and fare capped public transport payment system has been unveiled in Edinburgh in a partnership between Lothian and Flowbird Transport Intelligence.

The scheme, launched in time for the Edinburgh Festivals, makes it easier for local people and visitors to access Lothian services in the city by using bank cards and mobile devices as travel tokens. Passengers simply board the bus and tap their card on a validator – there’s no need to queue at a sales point or search for cash.

What’s currently unique in Scotland about the contactless scheme developed by Flowbird for Lothian, is its ability to cap the cost of multiple journeys made on the same day – after three or more taps the system will automatically charge the user the best day ticket price.

Nigel Serafini, Lothian’s Commercial Director said: “We are delighted to be launching city-wide contactless payment for our customers. With more and more of our transactions becoming ‘cashless’, it was important to recognise the demand for this capability across our fleet.

“This has been at the top of customers’ wish lists for some time and we’re pleased to be able to deliver an easy and convenient method of payment, which removes the need to carry cash, or know at the start of the day how many journeys you plan to make. The capping system means that our customers will always get the cheapest daily fare possible, no matter how their travel plans might change throughout the day.”

Owen Griffith, Managing Director of Flowbird Transport Intelligence, said: “This new contactless and fare capped system will make bus travel in the city easier than ever before, while simultaneously applying maximum daily fares rules for multiple journeys. We have delivered this innovation in partnership with Lothian and it marks another successful milestone in our long-standing relationship.”

Flowbird’s contactless and capped solution for Lothian is fully Payment Card Industry (PCI) P2PE certified, securely encrypting card data at the point of tap through to the Payment Service Provider.