Apple Pay Express Mode comes to New South Wales

The Opal Network in New South Wales, Australia, now accepts Apple Pay Express Mode, speeding up transactions at the turnstile.

Apple Wallet has a feature called Express Transit which enables users to tap their iPhone or Apple Watch to a transit terminal without a passcode. It works even when the device has lost power, thanks to a power reserve mode.

Members of the Opal Network can now take advantage of Express Mode via Apple Pay in New South Wales, Australia. Users only need to activate their card within the Apple Wallet app for use with Express Mode.

To enable Express Mode on iPhone:

Open the Settings app.
Select "Wallet & Apple Pay."
Select "Express Transit Card."
Choose the card you wish to use with Express Mode

To enable Express Mode on Apple Watch:

Open the Settings app.
Select "Wallet & Apple Pay."
Select "Express Mode."
Choose the card you wish to use with Express Mode

When Express Mode is activated, users can tap a transit terminal without needing to wake the device or enter a passcode. This works when entering or exiting a location.

Power reserve kicks in when a battery is depleted. This means a small reserve of battery remains to ensure Express Mode is still active for up to five hours, even without any charge available to power on the device.

6 Comments

Mac4mac 16 comments · 2 Years

About 1 year ago

If we could just add our Opal card to Apple Wallet, then this would be perfect.

Wow, Transport for NSW have finally done something worthwhile!

timmillea 246 comments · 16 Years

What is a "transit terminal"? The term is not in the Cambridge English dictionary online.

bageljoey 1997 comments · 18 Years

timmillea said:

What is a "transit terminal"? The term is not in the Cambridge English dictionary online.
https://img.masstransitmag.com/files/base/cygnus/mass/image/2022/09/16x9/entering_subway_1126709762.632963e87c577.png?auto=format,compress&w=500&h=281&fit=clip

commentzilla 769 comments · 10 Years

It would be really great if we could see the price we are approving on the iPhone's SCREEN. In a lot of situations, especially when traveling, the price screen is not easy to see on hand held readers and in some cases the cashier has to type in the price and then hold out the reader to the buyer with the screen facing away from them or in a foreign language. Why was it not this way from the beginning?

FileMakerFeller 1561 comments · 6 Years

Mac4mac said:

If we could just add our Opal card to Apple Wallet, then this would be perfect.
Wow, Transport for NSW have finally done something worthwhile!

Yeah, but I can understand why this was a low priority. If you're a regular traveller you just maintain a balance on your Opal card and you can do that from any web browser. If you're an occasional traveller the hassle of getting a one-use card isn't really going to affect your travel habits.

I think it only hit the radar of Transport NSW when the number of people working from home increased during covid; the prior assumption was that if you were commuting by train for work you were doing it five days a week. With more people switching to regular but infrequent travel there was probably an increase in the demand for one-use cards.