Google makes it easy to pay for transit and parking in Maps and Pay

Google is integrating ways to pay for parking and transit fares right into its Maps app.

On Wednesday, the company launched these new tools in Google Maps, in collaboration with Google Pay. For parking, Google integrated with parking solutions providers Passport and ParkMobile. In practice, when in driving navigation in Maps, you'll be able to tap the "Pay for Parking" button as you approach your destination. Then, once parked, enter your meter number and the amount of parking time you require and tap on Pay. You can also extend your parking session later if need be.

As for public transport, Google says you'll now be able to pay for fares in Google Maps at over 80 transit agencies around the world. This means you'll be able to plan your trip, buy the fare, and show the ticket, all from within Google Maps.

In the San Francisco Bay Area, Google also added the ability to buy a digital Clipper card directly from Google Maps (you can now also do it in Google Pay). You can then simply tap your phone on the card reader, or show the digital ticket when required to (see image below).

The ability to pay for parking and (especially) transit fares directly from Maps is great. For many travelers and commuters, Maps will be the logical choice of app to have open while driving or riding on public transit, and being able to perform these actions directly from the app will certainly save time.

I've spoken to Josh Woodward, product manager for Google Pay, who told me that the company plans many other additions to the app in the near future. Most of the new features in Pay are U.S.-only, though; Woodward says Google is slowly rolling out new features in different markets depending on the market's demands and other factors.

More precisely, pay for parking in Maps will start rolling out today on Android, in more than 400 cities in the U.S., and the same feature should arrive on iOS "soon." Paying for transit from Google Maps will roll out in more cities globally, on Android, "in the coming weeks," Google said.

UPDATE: Feb. 17, 2021, 9:55 p.m. CET The article was amended to clarify that users will now be able to pay for transit fares via Google Maps in 80 transit agencies in the world. Using Google Pay, you can currently pay for fare at more than 300 transit agencies globally.