Contactless payments added to Metlink services in 2026
Payment by debit or credit card on Metlink trains and buses will be possible in early 2026, with the introduction of contactless payment functionality using Snapper equipment in advance of the National Ticketing Solution (NTS) rollout in the Wellington region.
Snapper cards will continue to operate as normal and Snapper cardholders do not need to make any changes. The Snapper systems and devices onboard buses and at train stations will be upgraded to enable full fare paying, adult customers to tag on and off using their credit card, debit cards or mobile devices (for Visa and Mastercard payments).
The addition of contactless payment is intended to encourage an uptake of credit and debit card usage ahead of the full NTS functionality in 2027 says Metlink senior manager for strategy and investments Tim Shackleton.
“The goal is to make it easier to transition full fare paying, adult customers to a new way to pay, prior to introducing additional functionality such as integrated bus-rail fares and fare capping, which will come with NTS”, says Shackleton.
“The Council has committed $5.3m to the build cost of the new functionality which will provide more options for payment with Snapper in the interim before the NTS rollout.”
Snapper chief executive Miki Szikszai says, “Snapper is pleased to bring contactless payment capability to Wellingtonians in partnership with Metlink.”
“This capability will be supported on existing Snapper equipment with the same tag on/tag off experience for PT users.”
“Snapper ticketing equipment has a scheduled end of life at the end of 2027, which is aligned with the revised contract end date with Metlink. We can assure the Wellington public that the Snapper system is stable, and we are confident that it will continue to operate at a high level of quality until end of 2027.
“We will continue to support Metlink with their transition to the NTS when it is ready,” says Szikszai.
“Snapper has other lines of business and services that it offers to other Transport Organisations including Mosaiq, its Transit Intelligence platform. We see a bright future ahead for the company.”