Queens

No tickets, no MetroCard

How paying works: just tap

1. 1

   Use a contactless card or your phone

   Any tap-to-pay credit or debit card, Apple Pay or Google Pay works on New York's subways and buses. There is nothing to buy first. The old MetroCard is gone.

2. 2

   Tap once, wait for GO

   Hold the card or phone flat on the reader until the screen says GO. The subway and local buses are $3 a ride, with a free transfer to a bus or another subway within two hours.

3. 3

   At JFK, you pay on the way out

   The AirTrain is free between terminals. The $8.75 is charged when you tap through the gates at Jamaica or Howard Beach.

4. 4

   Stick to one card all week

   Pay for 12 subway or bus rides on the same card or phone within any 7 days ($35) and the rest of that week is free. Each traveler needs their own card or phone to count toward it.

• Your phone and the physical card in it count as two different payment methods. Pick one and keep using it.
• The AirTrain has its own cap: once you have paid $43.50 in 30 days on the same card, further AirTrain rides that month are free.
• Travelling as a group on the AirTrain: the first rider pays $8.75 and each additional rider $4.50, up to five people ($26.75), as long as everyone taps through within five minutes.
• *The AirTrain runs around the clock, but on some nights it closes from 10pm to 6am for maintenance and free shuttle buses replace it. Check jfkairport.com alerts before a late arrival.
• The LIRR is separate: buy that ticket in the TrainTime app or at a station machine.