SIA brings contactless payment to Rome’s metro and rail stations

SIA has created the digital platform that enables passengers in Rome to pay for their tickets in Atac’s subway and railway network directly at the turnstiles using contactless credit and debit cards (MasterCard, Visa and American Express), also virtualized on smartphones and wearable devices, in a simple, fast and secure manner.

The innovative Tap&Go service is based on SIA’s technological infrastructure that connects all the POS terminals on which contactless cards can be used to open the turnstiles of the A, B/B1 and C metro lines and of the Rome-Lido, Rome-Viterbo and Termini-Centocelle railway line stations as well as payment circuits and Atac’s fare calculation system.

This is a further significant step towards digital transformation in public transport. The new Atac payment system places Rome among a small group of cities in Italy and around the world that offer similar services, such as Milan, London, Moscow, Chicago, Singapore and Vancouver.

The advanced features of the platform, which support the development of Smart Mobility, allow Atac to manage, authorize, account for and settle payment transactions and calculate the best fare according to the number of journeys made.

For the first time, thanks to SIA’s infrastructure, travelers can also use their credit card as if it were a monthly pass: an innovative feature available to users who, in fact, after purchasing their travel pass on the Atac online portal using a contactless credit card, can use the same card to travel throughout the Atac public transport network.

“We are particularly proud to have contributed to the launch of this new Tap&Go system. From today Rome too can be counted among the most innovative cities in Italy thanks to SIA’s technology already adopted for contactless payments in the Milan subway system and on board ‘vaporetto’ boats in Venice. Our country is gradually accelerating the process of digitalization of the Public Sector and above all in the area of mobility and public transport. Indeed, the hi-tech platforms we have developed can certainly promote the creation of further initiatives aimed at improving the user–experience of citizens by simplifying their daily life through reliable and secure payment services”, commented Eugenio Tornaghi, Marketing & Sales Director of SIA.