Drivers using the M6 Toll Road will be able to pay for their
journey using their contactless credit and debit cards from as
early as February 2012. The M6 Toll has been working with
Barclaycard to install easy-to-use contactless payments at toll
booths, allowing customers to pay for their journey by simply
holding their card over the terminal.
Contactless will initially be trialled on a single lane from
this autumn, with the aim of rolling the technology out across all
card-accepting toll booths in the first quarter of 2012.
Contactless, which has been championed by Barclays and
Barclaycard, allows users to pay for goods and services under
£15 by simply holding their card on a reader without the need
to enter a PIN or sign their name. The technology is 52% faster to
transact than cash and 33% quicker than chip and PIN payments,
helping to reduce queuing time at the toll plazas on a road built
for speed and convenience.
Richard Armstrong, Head of Barclaycard UK Payment Acceptance,
says of the partnership:
"The contactless terminals at card payment lanes at the toll
payment plazas will not only cut queues, but will also help drivers
avoid the potentially dangerous scrabble for change."
Tom Fanning, Chief Executive of the M6 Toll, expects contactless
to prove popular with drivers:
"Over 40,000 drivers benefit from the ease and reliability of
the M6 Toll every day. The introduction of contactless is the
latest step in making card payment as quick and easy as using the
road itself. In helping bring this innovation to drivers,
Barclaycard has been a perfect partner - working with us to
implement the new system. We will soon be able to demonstrate the
value of contactless to our customers, who will, I am certain,
welcome this innovation."
The M6 Toll was opened in December 2003 and pioneered the
acceptance of card payments at toll booths from that date. The new
deal with Barclaycard will see all card transactions managed by the
payments business.
Contactless cards are commonly available among the general
public in the UK with 11.4 million contactless-enabled Barclays
debit and Barclaycard credit cards currently in circulation.
Contactless cardholders are already able to make payments in over
50,000 outlets that have the terminals provided by Barclaycard,
including Little Chef, Prêt a Manger, Wembley Arena and
EAT.
The growing number of contactless cards and payment terminals
has lead to an increase in the number of contactless transactions,
which rose by 150 per cent comparing 2010 with 2009.