The future of the NSW Government’s controversial Opal contactless card fare-payment system is in some doubt, after Transport Minister Andrew Constance yesterday revealed plans to trial a rival system allowing passengers to use their bank credit cards on the State’s public transport network.The trials will begin next year and see passengers

able to make a journey with a simple tap of their credit cards.

However Constance warned that there is still a lot to be done before commuters

can throw away their Opal cards.

This would include” finalising partnerships, working with the finance and

contactless payments sector, developing the software and then in 2017,

undertaking a customer trial,” Constance said, announcing the trial at a

Future Transport Summit in Sydney

Queensland is also looking at taking its own Go Card e-ticketing system down

the same path, and is in the process of re-assessing its electronic

ticketing contract with technology company Cubic ahead of market developments.

Cubic has installed its contact-free card fare systems in NSW, Queensland and

London.