STIF activates the recharging of the Navigo Pass directly on the iPhone a little in advance. The feature, which relies on the NFC capabilities of the smartphone, has been available on Android since May 2020.
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It was expected that the Navigo Pass recharge will arrive on iPhone in February 2021. The functionality is however available from today. Concretely it becomes possible to load purchases and subscriptions on your Navigo Pass via the NFC capabilities of the smartphone, without going through a machine from the RATP, SNCF or STIF.
Everything happens in theÎle-de-France Mobilities applications (formerly Vianavigo) edited by STIF. Just go to the tab Purchases and touch On my Navigo pass. The user must then touch Read my pass and present the Navigo Pass on the back of the smartphone.
STIF authorizes the recharging of Navigo Passes on iPhone
Once the pass has been read, you can choose the subscription or the purchase to load. The app release notes tell us that the feature is compatible with all iPhones from iPhone 7 running iOS 13 and later. However, the publisher mentions some surprising exceptions.
We learn that the iPhone XR, XS and XS Max are incompatible with recharging the Navigo Pass on a smartphone. Even though they are premium smartphones and have an NFC chip. Charging the Navigo Pass has also been available on Android since 2019.
Here again, everything happens in the Vianavigo – Transports en Île-de-France application. The Android application even has an advantage over its iOS equivalent: some Android smartphones can be used directly as a dematerialized transport ticket if necessary.
Navigo pass on smartphone: a very Parisian choice
Ultimately, the iPhone application should also be able to do this, but it will probably take longer to arrive than on Android. Android smartphone charging is available on all smartphones with an NFC chip and Android 6.0 or later.
Use of the smartphone as a transport ticket / Navigo Pass is only available on Android on Samsung Galaxy smartphones. Paris has chosen to develop a very specific solution to dematerialize transport tickets.
Elsewhere, other cities like London and its transport authority TFL have instead opted for adapt their infrastructure to contactless payment. To use London transport, you no longer need to buy a ticket or download an app.
Read also: The SNCF application on Android is enriched by the purchase and validation of RATP tickets
Apple Pay, Google Pay, contactless payment from your card or even Samsung Pay work directly at the turnstiles at the entrance to stations. A choice that deserves its simplicity, especially for tourists from all over the world …
