Monday March 2, 2020 ~ BC
~ West Shore Voice News
Debit transactions will soon be possible at the vehicle and foot passenger ticketing areas of BC Ferries, it was announced today March 2, 2020.
Tap and pay capability for both credit cards and debit cards will also be available with the installation of new PIN pads. These changes are to help speed the ticketing process for customers under the $100 tap limit, said BC Ferries in a news release this morning.
The installation of the new PIN pads at terminals is underway throughout the fleet, aiming for rollout in spring 2020.
The terminals serving routes between Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island are expected to receive the updated technology toward the end of March, as BC Ferries says it will be installing the technology at the minor terminals first.
“This closes the loop” for digital services to customers, says Tessa Humphries, Communications Manager, BC Ferries.
Demand for the use of debit cards on BC Ferries has been happening for a long time. In the past, BC Ferries had indicated challenges with wireless technology (at least to the ships while sailing) as the main reason for not instituting the payment option on board the ferries until last year. Issues of distance to the shore and some areas where the signal was not strong enough were reasons it took a while for debit transaction and tap-and-pay services on board.
“There were two major things that allowed us to install debit on the ships. This was the cellular upgrade to LTE (4G) and then installing dedicated antennas on the ships for LTE modems,” Humphries told West Shore Voice News today.