The Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) is looking at an open payment fare-collection system that would allow commuters to pay for rides with contactless credit or debit cards, as well as NFC mobile phones, according to itbusiness.ca.

The rest of the Greater Toronto Area, however, is considering adopting a prepaid fare card system, called the Presto card.

TTC riders will still have access to Presto cards, should they want to avoid using their personal cards, says itbusiness.ca.

The move has met some criticism, namely from Bob Burbach, senior analyst at Toronto’s IDC Financial Insights, who says that deviating from the GTA’s Presto system would incur unnecessary costs and complications.

Burbach went on to say that it would also negate the advantages of a seamless inter-regional contactless payment system – that is, a rider might be required to use multiple payment devices instead of one simple Presto card.

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