Tap-to-pay system for Edmonton-area transit is here

Transit users from Edmonton and its surrounding areas can now pay with a tap.

The new payment feature allows riders to pay for their bus or LRT fare by tapping their debit card, credit card or phone wallet on an Arc validator. Riders are then required to tap again — using the same payment method — when exiting.

Those new fare options are available in all locations using Arc.

Arc cards and tickets, and cash fares on buses, will continue to be accepted.

Edmonton Transit Service (ETS) will no longer accept paper tickets in 2026.

Those with fare concessions or discounted fares can also pay by tapping, but they will need to apply the concession to their payment card online.

Period pass holders, like U-Pass or school board pases, must continue to use an Arc card for the length of their school term.

CityNews spoke to students at the Davies Transit Centre on Monday, who were glad to see the change.

“If my card doesn’t work, I can just use my credit card or my phone to pay without risk of fare evasion,” said Jihoon Og, a transit rider since 2018.

One student knows the feeling of losing an Arc Card all too well.

“Ah, it’s pretty bad, you know, because you’re scared you’re not going to get on the bus to school. So, if you’ve got your debit card, you can pay for that too,” said Charlie Fouokes, a high school student.

Riders are encouraged to use the same payment method each time to get the best daily or monthly fare rate.

“Physical and digital versions of the same card are considered to be two different cards, and will have separate fare caps. So riders should pick one fare payment method and use it consistently,” the City of Edmonton says.

A spokesperson says the rollout in Edmonton took longer than other major hubs, because this new tap payment system also works along transit lines in and around Edmonton, although prices may be different.

“We each have our own approaches to faring, so there was a more complex kind of fare structure to navigate in this implementation. We’re also proudly one of the first in Canada to recognize fare caps at a regional level,” said Carrie Hotton-MacDonald, a branch manager of Edmonton Transit Service.

But one student hopes there’s another step in the evolution of the Arc Card.

“It’s a bit unfortunate in the fact that I would still have to bring out my Arc Card to pay to get on transit instead of linking it onto my phone,” said Og.

Transit agencies in Edmonton, Beaumont, Fort Saskatchewan, Spruce Grove, St. Albert, and Strathcona County currently use Arc.

-With files from Elliott Knopp