Railway passengers in South East Wales are now able to use a ‘tap in, tap out’ service on four services across the country, with the Ebbw Vale line now included.

Contactless tap in, tap out ‘Pay As You Go’ rail payment option has now been extended to the Ebbw Vale line, with the system active from Monday, March 18.

Making it faster, easier and cheaper to travel, Transport for Wales launched the pilot scheme in January on journeys between Cardiff Central, Newport and Pontyclun.

Following the success of the pilot, the scheme has now been extended to the Ebbw Vale line – making it a total of 11 stations taking part.

This follows on from the successful completion of reinstating regular services between Ebbw Vale and Newport from February 1 after 60 years.

Funded by a £70 million investment by the Welsh Government, 30 trains will now run every day on the line.

By the end of 2024 TfW aim to expand the scheme to all 95 stations across the South-East Wales Metro, making it the first train operator outside of London to use contactless payments, according to Transport for Wales.

The Pay As You Go’ option is set to be cheaper than other fares, being capped at daily and weekly levels for best value and will provide a new level of convenience for commuters who will now not need to travel with a paper ticket or creditor debit card.

Journeys from Ebbw Vale Town to Newport, Cardiff Central and Pontyclun are all set at £4.10, while routes to these three stations from Ebbw Vale Parkway are just £3.80.

Chief Commercial Officer for Trasport for Wales, Alexia Course said: “We’re continuing to move forward with our ‘Pay As You Go’ payment option and I’m pleased that we’ve extended it to the Ebbw Vale line adding on an additional eight stations.

“We’ll continue to expand throughout this year, making it easier for customers, improving their experience and attracting more people to use public transport.”

You can find out more information by visiting the ‘Pay As You Go’ travel page on the Transport for Wales website.