MyCiTi to trial digital payments from July 2026

The City of Cape Town is preparing to roll out a new account-based ticketing (ABT) system for its MyCiTi buses, as the Mother City readies itself for a smarter, greener, and more inclusive transport system.

Soon, MyCiTi commuters can expect to tap, ride and go as MyCiTi operations go digital.

Councillor Rob Quintas, the city’s mayoral committee member for urban mobility, said they aim to pilot the upgraded digital system from July 2026.

The city isn't completely abolishing physical MyCiTi cards for those who aren't able to access their upgraded digital systems.

"There is going to still be a need for commuters who don't have smartphones or, in terms of safety, people who don't like having their bank cards with them for the day, they leave them at home in case of being mugged," says Quintas. "We are cognizant of the fact that there is a need, a significantly reduced need to what we do with our cards now, but for those commuters, the hard cards will still be required.

"MyCiTi is, after rail, one of the affordable monthly long-distance travel options for commuters, so the monthly card people get the maximum benefit from will still be considered. That may take the form of a virtual card or an app interface for MyCiTi for those that are digitally enabled, but those who require a hard card will still be able to access those through our kiosks."

Other upgrades to MyCiTi bus services are also expected for July 2027, which involve more buses for new routes, confirms Quintas.

"We're going to connect about 35 neighbourhoods or so. Roughly 1.1 million residents of our city who live in the South-East corridor will have access to the MyCiTi service, which will have dedicated bus lanes, mixed traffic and dedicated infrastructure for overhead passes.

"That will largely be connecting Mitchells Plain, Khayelitsha, Philippi, Gugulethu, Hanover Park, Athlone, Wynberg, Claremont, and Plumstead."

To listen to Quintas in conversation with John Maytham on CapeTalk's Afternoon Drive show, use the audio player below: