You may have heard about the new iPhone 6 and its new Apple Pay system which will include near field communication (NFC) during Apple’s big reveal press conference Tuesday. NFC, which is already available in other new smartphones, allows customers to pay for things simply by placing their phone close to an NFC-enabled payment terminal.
Soon you may be able to use this technology to pay for Metro.
The Bethesda Metro station will be one of 10 stations Metro uses to test new fare technology that will allow riders to pay with NFC-equipped smartphones, watches, Federal ID cards and contactless credit and debit cards.
The pilot program is scheduled to begin in January, while installation of new fare gates will start in October, according to the transit operator.
Other Metro stations slated for the pilot include Shady Grove, Eisenhower Avenue, Pentagon City, Pentagon, Ballston, Gallery Place, Farragut West, Navy Yard and Suitland as well as the parking facilities at Shady Grove and Suitland. The 37 (Wisconsin Ave Limited) and J4 (College Park-Bethesda) bus routes are also two of the six bus routes included in the pilot.
In a press release, Metro said the shift could allow visitors and regular riders to quickly pay for Metro without having to use payment terminals or buy a SmarTrip card.
Metro plans to begin recruiting customers to participate in the pilot in a matter of weeks. If it finds the pilot is successful it would then replace the decades-old fare gates and payment machines at stations as well as on buses and parking facilities beginning in 2017, according to the transit operator.
Don’t toss that SmarTrip card away though, Metro says the cards will continue to be accepted “for the foreseeable future.”