Apple Pay Express Transit hits London

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Apple-Pay-Express-Transit-London
Paying for your journeys just got a lot faster.
Photo: Apple

Apple Pay Express Transit is now available across all Transport for London services — including the Underground, buses, and trams.

Commuters can use the feature with iPhone or Apple Watch to pay for rides faster than before. It does not require transactions to be authorized with a face or fingerprint, so the whole process takes seconds.

Express Transit made its debut with iOS 12.3 back in May, and soon after, Transport for London (TfL) confirmed it was working closely with Apple to enable the feature “in the coming months.”

It’s now available in the British capital, almost seven months later, just in time for the holidays.

Express Transit arrives in Britain

Apple has published a new webpage to celebrate the feature’s arrival. It confirms Express Transit can be used on the Underground, as well as bus and tram services operated by TfL.

You can get started with Express Transit by picking a preferred card for TfL journeys using the steps below. After that, you simply need to tap your iPhone or Apple Watch on a payment terminal before taking a ride.

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap Wallet & Apple Pay.
  3. Tap Express Travel Card.
  4. Select the card you wish to use for Express Transit payments.

What makes Express Transit really great is that it doesn’t require your device to be powered on. The feature continues working for up to five hours after your battery has died, which is great for those who work long days.

If you do happen to lose your iPhone or Apple Watch, you can disable lock payment card remotely to prevent it from being used to pay for transport.

Apple Pay Express Transit is available on iPhone 6s or later.

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