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Mobile handsets equipped with a Near Field Communication (NFC) button are to be used for a trial of contactless ticketing in Germany.
The trial will test the Touch&Travel technology which has been developed jointly by German railway operator Deutsche Bahn and UK-based mobile operator Vodafone. The two firms hope the Touch&Travel technology will replace paper tickets for bus and train travel within the next few years.
German smart card vendor Giesecke & Devrient will provide the NFC-enabled SIM cards for the mobile phones used in the trial. The phones are being supplied by Motorola.
The first technical trial of Touch&Travel will take place this year on the train running between Berlin and Hanover. The technology will also be tested on a section of the Berlin metropolitan railway and throughout Potsdam's transit network.
Volunteers taking part in the pilot will be asked to use Touch&Travel in addition to their conventional tickets. The trial's partners plan a wider passenger pilot for next year.
At the start of their journey, travelers will pass by touchpoints on railway platforms and press a button on their mobile phone to log onto the system. At the end of their journey they will repeat the procedure to log off. They will then receive a bill for their monthly travel.
