Tap payments are finally being tested on STM buses and metros — But access is limited

If you've ever stood at an STM turnstile fumbling for your OPUS card, your life might get a little easier soon — at least if you're one of the chosen few.

First announced by La Presse on Monday, May 26, the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM) confirmed to MTL Blog that it will begin testing mobile tap payments on STM buses and metro stations this summer. Starting in July, a limited group of users will be able to buy transit fares through the Chrono app and validate them with their smartphone at card readers and turnstiles.

But don't rush to update your app just yet. The feature won't be public at first. Only ARTM employees and select members of the Parlons mobilité panel — a group that shares travel data with the agency — will be included in the initial test phase, with access gradually expanding through the fall.

"The alpha testing phase will roll out in waves starting this summer," an ARTM spokesperson said in an email. "It will begin with employees, then small groups of panel members who will test the system and provide feedback."

This isn't a digital OPUS card (at least not yet). Due to current technical limitations, there's no link between your physical OPUS card and what appears in the Chrono app, which introduced an OPUS recharging feature back in 2024.

The ARTM says a broader beta launch could come by late fall, depending on how the early phases go. As for paying with a debit or credit card, an option already available in Laval and on some exo lines, that's not expected until sometime in 2026.

In the meantime, Montrealers will need to wait (and maybe keep some spare change in their pockets).

AI tools may have been used to support the creation or distribution of this content; however, it has been carefully edited and fact-checked by a member of MTL Blog's Editorial team. For more information on our use of AI, please visit our Editorial Standards page.