Nishi-Nippon Railroad (Nishitetsu) will be trialing a special train ticket that applies credit card touch payment, the “Fukuoka (Tenjin) ⇔ Dazaifu 1-Day Free Pass,” for one year from July 1 (Tue), 2025.
Touch payment ticket gates already installed at all stations
The pass allows unlimited use of the Tenjin-Omuta Line and Dazaifu Line between Nishitetsu Fukuoka (Tenjin) Station, Nishitetsu Futsukaichi Station, and Dazaifu Station for one day, and costs 820 yen (for adults only). Until now, this product has only been available on the “my route” app, but from July it will be available on the comprehensive transportation app “Pass Case” provided by Sumitomo Mitsui Card.
“Pass Case,” which began service in March 2025, is an app that allows you to register a credit card that supports touch payment and purchase a ticket, and then use the same card as a substitute for the ticket. While conventional app tickets require presentation to station staff, Nishitetsu has already made all station ticket gates compatible with touch payment, and with the new method, you can get on and off by simply holding your card over a dedicated terminal.
Still not widespread in the metropolitan area
For example, if you ride from Nishitetsu Fukuoka (Tenjin) Station to Nishitetsu Kurume Station, the fare between Nishitetsu Futsukaichi Station and Nishitetsu Kurume Station, which is not included in the special ticket, will be automatically settled when you touch the card. For the time being, only Visa credit, debit, and prepaid cards are supported, and other brands and smartphone payments will be supported in the future. The “Pass Case” currently has a lineup of Enoshima Electric Railway (Enoden) one-day passes, making it the first in western Japan.
In the metropolitan area, Tokyu Corporation has been selling special tickets using the touch function on its own website “Q-SKIP” since August 2023, but has suspended their offering since August 2024 to prevent confusion with other boarding services. Tokyo Metro will also be offering a touch-enabled 24-hour ticket service from March 2025, but some stations have not yet been equipped with compatible ticket gates, so it will likely be some time before the service becomes widespread.
