Contactlesstravel

Commuters in Perth and Kinross will now be able to use contactless payments on buses.

Perth-based Stagecoach has introduced contactless payments on its East of Scotland lines, with new ‘tap and go’ technology installed on all vehicles.

The scheme means passengers can purchase tickets up to the value of £30 using contactless payments.

It is hoped this will speed up boarding times and make it more convenient to pay for tickets.

Staff members from Stagecoach will also be in St John’s Shopping Centre in Perth on Sunday, December 16, from 10am until 5pm, to promote their new contactless payments and give away freebies.

Jon Oakley, acting managing director for Stagecoach East Scotland, said: “We have the largest contactless payment scheme outside of London, with hundreds of thousands of payments being made using contactless technology on our buses across the country, so I’m delighted to offer this payment opportunity for our passengers in East Scotland.

“Along with traditional cash payments, our StagecoachSmart card and mobile ticketing through our Stagecoach Bus smartphone app, we are giving customers choice about how they want to buy their travel and making it even easier and more convenient to travel by bus.” The owner of a popular village shop that controversially closed at the weekend has vowed to continue to fight the decision.

The award-winning Aberuthven Village Shop was forced to close on Saturday, December 8, despite overwhelming support by over a thousand people.

The dispute in Aberuthven centres around the use of the village hall, which is run by the Village Hall Trust.

The shop relied on the hall for storage, but a dispute over an electricity bill has resulted in the shop’s closure.