New Zealand Transport Agency/Waka Kotahi (NZTA) has announced, after significant consultation and consideration, the brand name ‘Motu Move’ as the public facing brand of the National Ticketing Solution (NTS). The NTS is a partnership between the Agency and 13 regional Public Transport Authorities.
The brand will be used in customer communications alongside the local Public Transport brands, and it is not expected to replace those brands (Metro, Metlink, AT and smaller regional brands). The detail of how the Motu Move brand and services are introduced and used in each region may vary.
Motu Move is about payments and ticketing, with those regional brands continuing to provide the public transport services once the NTS is rolled out. In addition to local public transport services and channels, customers have access to an NTS provided Motu Move website and app, a Motu Move contact centre, and a new Motu Move prepaid card.
An interim customer website will be set up in the next few months to answer common questions, with the full website and app being available later in the year.
Implementation of Motu Move will start in Canterbury in late 2024. As it’s rolled out region by region, it will deliver new, consistent ways to pay for public transport across Aotearoa New Zealand. Customers will be able to pay for public transport using contactless payments including debit or credit cards, mobile phones and smart watches, as well as the new prepaid card and tickets.
The new payment options will remove barriers to public transport use for those who don’t currently carry a prepaid card or who travel in different regions. Providing easier payment options will encourage people to use public transport more, which will help reduce road congestion.
A national system means we can provide better technology at a lower cost than would be possible with the current regional systems. The technology used will help us to better understand patterns of public transport use so we can continue to improve the services offered and enable easier transport choices for New Zealanders.
Motu Move will pilot its new contactless payment technology on the Route 29 bus from Christchurch Airport to the city from 8 December 2024. This will allow passengers to pay for adult non-concession fares with debit or credit cards, alongside existing Metrocard and cash payment options, making it easier for visitors to Christchurch to use public transport over summer.
The pilot will allow this key component of the new system to be tested in a live environment before Motu Move is rolled out in the Canterbury region and will being:
- early 2025: Timaru and Temuka
- mid 2025: greater Christchurch
- by end of 2026: nationwide implementation
For other information relating to 'Motu Move' national payment system:
