Thousands of Christchurch bus users swap cash for contactless payments
Saturday, 6 December 2025
The number of bus and ferry users in Greater Christchurch paying with cash has dropped by 40% since the new contactless system kicked in three weeks ago.
Some 20,000 individual bus and ferry users have made use of the national ticketing solution Motu Move, which came into play on November 10, with more than 62,000 trips paid by phone or credit card.
Giles Southwell, Environment Canterbury’s head of corporate and public transport services, said in the third week of Motu Move nearly 25% of all adults paying non-concession fares were using the new system.
“We’ve had fantastic feedback,” Southwell said, adding the 40% drop in adult cash fares showed many people were taking advantage of the new system.
Metrocards and cash are expected to be phased out by late next year, after the full system had rolled out and incorporated things like concessions, Southwell said.
“We’re already working closely with our community agencies to make sure the transition is clear and accessible for everyone, with support in place for those who need it,” Southwell said.
An ECan spokesperson said it was too early to tell whether the new system had an effect on patronage.
“We’ll be monitoring our patronage data over the coming months and will have a sense after the summer holiday period has passed if Motu Move has made a discernible impact on patronage.”
Motu Move, the $1.3 billion national ticketing system led by NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi to encourage more people to take public transport by improving convenience, arrived after several delays.
It was first piloted on the Christchurch Airport to city bus in late 2024, and was meant to roll-out first in Timaru in early 2025, but there were challenges with the technology and how to work the regional nuances into a single Motu Move-branded card.
Come September, Greater Christchurch was announced as the first part of the country to get the new system, and there was no new card.
Instead, riders can use their personal debit or credit cards - or use Apple Pay from their phones - to tap on. So long as the same payment method was used, the system would recognise the rider and ensure the two free transfers and same daily/weekly fare caps kicked in, as it did with existing Metrocards.
Future phases of the programme will include a new motu move card for prepaid travel, and a tag-on and tag-off system.
It will be over a year - early 2027 - before it expands to Greater Wellington. It is due to arrive in Auckland by late 2027.