More bus lines refuse cash payment for passenger fares

An increasing number of bus lines are going cashless, in an effort to increase safety on buses by preventing robberies. On Tuesday public transporter Connexxion also launched a trial run with cashless payments on its buses in Middelburg. The transporter aims to have all its buses in the Netherlands cashless by 2018. The reason for the cashless buses is a large number of bus robberies across the country this year. This prompted transporters in Tilburg, Breda and Amsterdam, among others, to immediately start working towards cashless payments on buses. Connexxion in Zeeland is the first to start a test, according to Omroep Zeeland. The idea is that no cash on buses will mean they are much less attractive to robbers. Payment for a bus ticket will still be easy. Like with cash payments, you tell the bus driver where you want to go or what type of ticket you require. Then instead of handing him cash, you hand him a debit or credit card. Using a public transport card will still be the best option, as it will be cheaper than cashless payments, 40 percent cheaper to be exact, Charles Tournoj of Connexxion said to BNR. "That's pretty significant", he admits. "But it is a must for us that cash disappears from the bus." He adds that Connexxion wants to continue to promote the use of a public transport card. "The cashless payment is purely for people who do not have a public transport card with them, so that they can still get a ticket on the bus."