The U.K.'s march toward mobile adoption continues apace. U.K. bus and rail operator FirstGroup recently announced a £27 million (US $43 million) investment in a new ticketing technology for its 5,000 buses in England, outside London. 

The company said it wants to be the first bus operator outside London to offer customers "touch in touch out" contactless payments, with an eye toward facilitating mobile payments as they become available.

“Considerable investment in our buses continues. This is a groundbreaking announcement for the bus industry and good news for our customers," Giles Fearnley, managing director of FirstGroup’s UK Bus division, said in the announcement.

Fearnley added, "The public transport industry will increasingly rely on new technology such as contactless bank cards and mobile phones to both retain and attract customers."

The new ticket machines will be introduced to buses from this fall, the company said. Initially the machines will only work with the U.K. inter-carrier ITSO bus passes, but contactless bank cards will be accepted in late 2012. First Group said it is also ensuring its new system is compatible with mobile phone payments.

According to the company, FirstGroup's bus services carry 2.5 million customers a day in more than 40 major towns and cities across the United Kingdom.

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