Pay as you go

Pay As You Go is money that you load onto a Västtrafik card. You can top up the card at a ticket office. The price of your journey is deducted from the card when you travel. Once the money on the card has run out, you top up the same card again.

Deposit payable when you first buy pay as you go

The first time you buy a card with pay-as-you-go, you pay a deposit of SEK 50. This deposit acts as a safety net for you. If you do not have enough money on your card, it is deducted from the deposit instead. You can have the deposit refunded if you stop travelling using pay-as-you-go.

Fares

The price depends on the route you travel.

Find price

Top up a pay-as-you-go card

You can top up your pay-as-you-go card at our customer centre or at a sales point.

Västtrafik’s sales points

Travelling in one zone: Check in by holding the card against the card reader when you board the vehicle.

Travelling in more than one zone: Press the + button on the card reader, check in when you board and check out by holding the card against the card reader again when you leave the vehicle.

Combine pay-as-you-go card with period ticket: Press the T button on the card reader, check in when you board and check out by holding the card against the card reader again when you leave the vehicle.

Guide - this is how the card reader works

Submit your card for redemption of your pay as you go

If you want to redeem your Västtrafik card, you can send in your card along with the form “Inlösen av kontoladdningskort” and receive the deposit and balance either credited to your bank account or as a value code sent to you.

How to do it: Print and complete the form. If you are unable to print the form, you can contact Västtrafik Customer Service and have it sent to you.

Contact Västtrafik Customer Service

Place the completed form and your old card in an envelope and send it to the address provided. Västtrafik will pay the postage.

Inlösen av kontoladdningskort (in Swedish) (pdf, opens in a new tab)

FAQ pay-as-you-go

Contact our customer service if you believe that too much money has been deducted from your Västtrafikkort.

Västtrafik customer service.

The money cannot freeze if the card gets too old.

You can only pay using pay-as-you-go on Västtrafik trains, buses, trams and ferries. SJ and Öresundståg do not have our card readers on board.

Press the question mark button on the card reader and hold your card against it. The screen will show how much money is left on the card.

If you have registered your card on My Pages, you can log in and view your balance.

Ticket info

Purchase and payment of pay as you go

Pay as you go means that you can purchase and top-up a travel card with money in Västtrafik's customer centre or at Västtrafik's agents. You can then use the card to pay for your travel on-board Västtrafik's vehicles.

Deposit for cards with pay as you go

The first time you buy a Västtrafik card with pay as you go, you pay a deposit of SEK 50. You can use this to pay for travel if the balance on your card is lower than the cost of your journey. If the card is cancelled because it has expired, this deposit is not refunded.

Deposit refund form (PDF in Swedish, opens in a new window)

Activating pay as you go

Pay as you go does not need to be activated. The card is ready to use as soon as it has been topped up.

When you present your Västtrafik card to a card reader, the fare is deducted from the balance on your card. You may need to press the buttons on the card reader and present your card again if you change lines and services when travelling through more than one zone. For more information about travelling using pay as you go, visit Västtrafik’s website.

Exchanging pay as you go

You an use your pay as you go balance as part payment or full payment for another ticket.

Redemption of a card with pay as you go

If you hand back a pay as you go card for redemption, the balance and deposit will be refunded to you in the form of a promotional code which can be used in the To Go app or a voucher which can be used when buying a ticket from a Västtrafik store or agent. If you want the money paid by cash, only the deposit will be refunded. If the balance on the card is negative, the refund will be reduced. See the special application form for redemption on Västtrafik’s website.

Validity of pay as you go

You can travel using pay as you go across one or more zones. If you are travelling within one zone, you can change lines within 90 minutes of your first check-in. If you are travelling between several zones, the change time is 90 minutes from when you checked out in the new zone. If you travel to a further zone, the 90-minute validity period applies there in the same way, but only if it has been less than 180 minutes since your first check-in.

If pay as you go is withdrawn from the ticket range, for example for technical reasons or if the ticketing system changes, you will need to exchange your pay as you go balance for a replacement ticket of your choice. Such exchange must be made during a transitional period of 12 months from the date when Västtrafik announces on its website that pay as you go is to be withdrawn from the ticket range. You cannot choose to have the balance paid to you in cash.

Abuse and blocking of pay as you go

Västtrafik has the right to block your pay as you go account and any funds in it, where it suspects that the Cancel feature has been abused. Once Västtrafik has blocked your pay as you go account, you are not entitled to a refund of your pay as you go credit or your deposit.

You can use pay-as-you-go for travel on our trains, buses, trams and ferries. You can travel as much as you like during your ticket’s validity period. This ticket is not valid only for a specific departure.

Activating your ticket

Pay-as-you-go tickets are activated when you hold the card against the card reader.

How long a pay-as-you-go ticket is valid for

One zone: 90 minutes from when you check in.

Multiple zones: 90 minutes in the first zone, then 90 minutes from when you check out in each new zone, provided you do this within 180 minutes of beginning your journey.

If you lose your ticket, you can get back any value remaining on it. All you need to do is register your ticket with us first.

If you have a ticket on a Västtrafik card

Create an account
Register your card.
If you lose your card, log in and block it. A new card will then be sent to your home address.

If you have a ticket in the Västtrafik To Go app

Create an account in the Västtrafik To Go app.
The season ticket you have bought in the app is registered when you log in to the app.
Log in to the app from your new phone if you lose your old one. Your ticket will move to your new phone and no longer be available on your old phone.