Banca Transilvania and PTP Online are launching in Cluj-Napoca mobile phone payments, via the 24pay app, for buying tickets and passes online for bus, trolleybus, tram and minibus services operated by the Cluj-Napoca Public Transport Company. Cluj residents, students and tourists now have a modern, fast and secure way to purchase them, at no extra cost.

BT and PTP Online — the company that developed the 24pay app and part of the Ecco Group Development group — aim to contribute together to the development of online services in public transport, an area still relatively underserved in Romania. The service has already been rolled out in six other cities in Romania — Arad, Brasov, Iasi, Ramnicu Valcea, Timisoara and Sibiu — and, as of today, Cluj-Napoca has joined them.

The 24pay app can be downloaded free of charge from Google Play or App Store, after which a Visa or Mastercard must be enrolled.

3 ways to buy tickets and passes, on board public transport or at stations in Cluj-Napoca: 

• Through the 24pay app, in the Public transport section;
• By holding the phone near the NFC symbol on 24pay posters on public transport;
• By entering the 4-digit code from the 24pay posters on buses. This payment option is a first compared with the other 6 cities where the 24pay app has been launched so far.

"With this launch, Banca Transilvania, as part of the Cluj community, is helping to turn Cluj into a Smart City. For BT, investments, partnerships and digital transformation projects are a priority, bringing convenience and mobility to customers and communities," says Marius Flore, Integrated Digital Services Director, Banca Transilvania.

"We are pleased to have extended pay-by-phone digital services for public transport to Cluj-Napoca, an important city in PTP Online’s nationwide expansion strategy. The 24pay system is offered free of charge to transport operators, with no fees charged for developing and implementing the application. In practice, with a single app, anyone living in or travelling to these 7 cities in the country can pay simply and quickly, at no additional cost, for public transport using their phone, via the 24pay app in which their bank card is enrolled, without having to look for a ticket office or use cash.", says Dan Cernea, General Manager, PTP Online.

24pay: over 70,000 users in 9 months

In 9 months, 24pay reached over 70,000 users. On average, more than 2,500 transactions are made every day through the app to buy public transport tickets online. Payments for ticket purchases are processed via the card payment solution provided by Banca Transilvania.