Easy like tip tap: Tuscany's revolution in transit ticketing

Transit ticketing across the beautiful region of Tuscany got easier this summer with the launch of open payments across 3,000 Autolinee Toscane (AT) buses in 273 cities and towns.

In 13 major cities, including tourist hotspots Florence, Pisa and Siena, residents and visitors have been taking advantage of simpler bus travel to get where they want to be. One million journeys started with a tap in the first two months of the system being live.

All riders need to travel is their bank card, smartphone or smart watch. They can tap a validator to get on board and travel freely. They don’t need to understand the local ticketing system, or queue up to buy a ticket – they can board faster and enjoy their destination.

Tip tap, the biggest open-loop deployment seen in Europe, is revolutionizing transit ticketing, reducing waste and opening-up new possibilities to explore Tuscany without a car.

Kuba provides the technology behind the system. While the user experience couldn’t be easier, underneath is a complex account-based ticketing back office. It’s integrated with fare validators on board buses, and with Littlepay’s contactless payment processing platform.

We take care of the complexity, so that our customer AT can focus on its passengers – and on making journeys so simple it’s a no brainer to take the bus.

We couldn’t resist the opportunity to share just how amazing the user experience is – check out our video that captures the ease of travelling with tip tap.

We filmed on location in Florence, taking in the stunning sights that can be seen from the windows of Autolinee Toscane buses throughout the city. We thank AT for access to their buses and the opportunity to see our system in action!