Tap and go with contactless on bus and tram
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It’s easier to pay for travel with contactless
Contactless tap and go is the easiest way to pay for seamless travel across bus and tram on the Bee Network.
Use your contactless card, phone or smart watch on card readers and we’ll do the maths. Simple.
- Travelling by bus: it's just the one tap when you board. Hop on, tap in, enjoy your journey, then hop off.
- Taking the tram: just tap in on the card reader at your tram stop using your contactless card or device - before boarding, then tap out with the same card or device at your final stop.
- Both bus and tram: keep tapping with the same card or device and we’ll make sure you pay no more than the capped fares. That’s unlimited bus and tram travel for a max of £9.50/day or £41/week.
Here’s how it all works.
How to pay with contactless
Have a Visa, Mastercard or Maestro card with this symbol?
Then you can use contactless right away. Just use your card, phone or even watch to pay as you go.
Take a look at how contactless tap and go works:
Contactless on bus
If you’re travelling by bus, it's just the one tap when you board. Hop on, tap in, enjoy your journey, then hop off.
Make sure you use:
- the same card or device for all your trips to benefit from daily or weekly caps. Don’t switch between your card and device or you won’t be able to benefit from daily or weekly caps,
- a different card for each adult – family tickets that are available on the bus or the Bee Network App offer better value for those travelling with children,
- one card at a time. Take it out of your wallet so you charge the right one.
Contactless on tram
When you start a journey on the tram, tap in using one of our smart readers.
Then when you get where you’re going, tap out. (If you change trams between, there’s no need to tap in or out at that tram stop).
Make sure you use:
- The same card or device for all your trips to benefit from daily or weekly caps. Don’t switch between both or you won’t be able to benefit from daily or weekly caps.
- A different card for each adult – family travelcards from the ticket machines on stops may offer better value for those travelling with children.
- One card at a time. Take it out of your wallet so you charge the right one.
Contactless on both bus and tram
If your journey includes both bus and tram, you can use contactless tap and go to benefit from both bus and tram daily and weekly caps, as well as bus and tram combined daily and weekly caps.
How the fares are worked out
You don’t need to keep track of where you’ve travelled or what zones you’re in. We’ll work it out from where you’ve used contactless and will automatically charge you based on our most up-to-date fares.
Just remember to keep tapping in and tapping out with the same card or same device every time.
Check your contactless journeys and charges
Use the contactless portal to:
- View your charges: see all information relating to your charges and request help from our customer service team.
- Download your statement: get a list of your charges to use for your record keeping and expenses.
- See your travel history: view all journeys associated with your payment card across our contactless travel network.
All you need is the card number that you used to tap in.
Ticket inspections and penalty fares
During ticket checks, present the card or device you used to tap in to the inspector’s ticket reader when asked. If you haven’t tapped in before starting your journey (or you used a different card), we’ll charge:
- £60 to the card you present to the inspector or
- the full £120 penalty fare.
Don't switch between card and device
If you use a device like a smartphone, it’s worth knowing that we see a ‘Device Number’ – not your card number. So when you’re showing your payment method to the inspector (or tapping in or out), don’t switch between card and phone. Use the same thing every time.
It’s all in our terms and conditions, but if you wish to appeal then please fill in this form.
Other ways to pay for journey
There are other ways to pay for your journeys which may be better if you:
- buy weekend, 28-day or annual tickets (you can't get these tickets through contactless),
- qualify for a discount or a concession,
- are under 18 – check out our fares and passes for young people.