The Department of Transportation (DOTr), in collaboration with various government agencies and private sector partners, on Friday rolled out new cashless payment methods for the Metro Rail Transit Line 3 (MRT3) to provide faster and more convenient travel for commuters.
The introduction of the new MRT3 payment methods follows President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to enhance commuter services through digitalization, aiming to provide passengers with a more comfortable and hassle-free journey.
DOTr Secretary Vince Dizon said that with the cashless payment option, passengers can now board the train by simply tapping the GCash Commuter QR Code, Android cellphone with Near Field Communication (NFC)-enabled and debit or credit card on the turnstiles.
“There is no additional fare here. The system, what is deducted from your GCash, your credit card, your debit card, is the same as if you bought a single journey ticket,” Dizon said.
“There is also no need to queue at the ticket counter to buy single journey tickets (SJT) because you can now go straight to the turnstiles to pay using the cashless option,” he said.
The integrated payment setup is the first of its kind in the world, and there is no additional cost to passengers or the government.
Compared to the typical cashless payment system that only uses EMV and transport cards, the integrated payment setup launched in the MRT-3 is unique because of its multiple fare media setup that can also accept NFC and QR codes, all in one payment terminal.
“This is the first of its kind in the whole world. Almost all payment modes can be used in one device. This is what the President is pushing us to make the travel experience convenient,” Dizon said.
“The help of partners like the BSP [Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas] , DICT [Department of Information and Communications Technology) , DTI [Department of Trade and Industyr] , Landbank, G-Cash, VISA, and KentKart is very important to make this happen,” he said.
Mastercard credit, debit and prepaid card users can now conveniently tap their cards at designated contactless turnstiles to pay for MRT3 fares.
Meanwhile, these cashless payment options will also be implemented on LRT-1, LRT-2 in the coming months, in partnership with Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. (RCBC).
