More than nine in ten public transport users worldwide expect to be able to make contactless fare payments when travelling on public transport (94%) and more than four in ten identify the ability to make contactless fare payments as a key factor in encouraging their use of public transportation (41%), according to Visa’s 2023 Future of Urban Mobility survey.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents expect to make a contactless fare payment with their own bank card or a prepaid transit card in the next year (65%) and almost one half would use public transport more often if contactless fare payments were capped (47%).

The survey also identifies the ability to make payments for multimodal journeys via a single platform such as a Mobility-as-a-Service app as a key driver for public transportation uptake, revealing that more than two in five users would be open to trying different ways of travelling and would make journeys using public transport services more often (45%) if they were able to make all fare payments with a single payment method.

To date, fewer than one in five users worldwide is able to do this (19%), the researchers note.

Visa’s 2023 Future of Urban Mobility Survey surveyed 11,500 respondents in May who use public transportation in 12 markets: Singapore, Japan, Egypt, Australia, USA, Indonesia, UK, Pakistan, Germany, Italy, Mexico and Chile.

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