New Metro ticket app cannot be used on iPhones

Only weekly tickets can currently be bought on the app

A ticket app which it is claimed will "revolutionise" the Tyne and Wear Metro has been released but is unavailable to iPhone users, the operator has said.

Passengers with Android devices can use the virtual card to tap in and out of stations, although only weekly tickets can currently be bought.

It is understood Apple has questions over data access and third-party firms, so will not link it to Apple Pay.

Nexus said talks were "ongoing". Apple declined to comment.

Android devices use rival system Google Pay.

Other types of tickets, such as pay-as-you-go, are due to be rolled out in next year, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The app, which has taken more than two years to develop, means ticket machine queues can be avoided and people do not need to buy a separate paper ticket or plastic Pop card.

Nexus had teamed up with a number of businesses to develop the app and the technology, including the Newcastle-based tech firm Nebula Labs.

'Touch surfaces'

A spokesperson for Nexus said there were "ongoing talks" to allow the app to be available for Apple phones.

"We are hopeful that is something we can introduce next year and that work will continue," they said.

"We would welcome the chance to work with Apple to get Metro mobile smart ticketing app available from the Apple App Store so that people could get it on iOS as well as on Android."

Unlike the London Underground, passengers are also unable to use debit or credit cards on the system.

Nexus said it plans to upgrade its ticket and gating system if it secures £4m government funding via a Transport for the North bid which aims to deliver contactless pay-as-you-go on local rail services.

Huw Lewis, customer services director at Nexus, said: "The Pop card app will revolutionise how people can pay for their travel and then access the Metro network by simply touching their phone on to a gate or validator.

"It's convenient, easy to use, speeds up journey times, and, in this Covid-19 era, it will further minimise the need for customers to use cash and come into contact with touch surfaces on our ticket machines."