Liverpool City Region plan for £10m tap-and-go public transport system

Local authorities plan to integrate ticketing systems across trains, buses and ferries

About £10m is to be invested to develop a new tap-and-go ticketing system for public transport across the Liverpool City Region.

Contactless payments are to be introduced on Merseyrail trains after local authorities received a government grant to improve public transport.

City leaders said they also planned to extend tap-and-go to the bus network and introduce fare capping.

Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram said the cash injection was "not before time".

Paper tickets and smart cards currently in use across the city region will be replaced under the plans, and a new app to buy and use tickets will be introduced.

Mr Rotheram told the Local Democracy Reporting Service increased demand for public transport had "accelerated" efforts to develop an integrated system in city like in London.

"The reality is that our current ticketing system is no longer equipped to meet the demands of a growing 21st century city region like ours," he said.

"I want to build a similar system in our area that makes ticketing easier, quicker and cheaper and, most importantly, works in favour of passengers, not profit."

A date has not been set for the introduction of the scheme.

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