NFC TIMES Exclusive Insight – Rome has become the second major city in Italy–and one of a small but growing number of large cities globally–to enable riders to pay transit fares with EMV contactless credit, debit and prepaid cards and NFC devices.
Riders are now able to tap to pay with Visa-, Mastercard- and American Express-branded cards and card credentials carrying these brands on NFC devices at gates of the three-line Rome Metro and on three commuter rail lines serving the Italian capital. While riders can’t tap directly to pay on buses, trams and trolleybuses in Rome, they can transfer on these transit modes after tapping first at gates on the metro or the commuter rail lines.
Rome transit operator ATAC launched the service Sept. 18. About half of ATAC station gates on the metro and at participating rail stations are reportedly equipped with EMV-compliant readers, with plans calling for the remainder of turnstiles to be enabled by the end of the year.
