Transit riders in Toronto will be able to use their credit or debit card, including cards on smartphones or smartwatches, to pay for fares starting on Tuesday.
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow says the new payment options will make using the transit system more convenient.
Chow said she and other riders will no longer have to worry about waiting in line to load funds on their Presto cards, the provincial transit card.
Ontario's associate minister of transportation Stan Cho says people have been able to pay fares using credit or debit cards for about a year on other transit systems in the Greater Toronto Hamilton Area.
Cho says Toronto riders have voiced frustration that the city lacked the full range of payment options, but that is set to change next week.
He says a hardware refresh for about 8,700 payment devices was required to provide the credit or debit card payment option on the TTC.
The Toronto Transit Commission estimates that currently about 93 per cent of its riders pay for fares with Presto cards.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published August 10, 2023
The Canadian Press
