Birmingham’s Oyster-style travel card can now be used on local train services opening it up to thousands of more commuters.

The Swift card, already used on buses and trams, will now be accepted on London Midland, Chiltern, Virgin, Arriva and Cross Country train services within the West Midlands area.

A total of 12,000 rail commuters who currently use the nTrain payment scheme are being moved onto the new look Swift Card.

And now even more travellers can jumped from buses and trams to trains without having to fiddle around for cash or different cards.

The Swift Card will also activate ticket barriers at key stations including New Street, Snow Hill, Moor Street, University, Five Ways, Coventry and Birmingham International.

Matt Lewis, TFWM, at left and Cllr Roger Lawrence with the new look Swift card

Transport for West Midlands (TfWM) head of Swift card Matt Lewis said: “This is an exciting further chapter in the continued rollout of Swift smart ticketing throughout the West Midlands.

“With further great new tickets and functions being introduced in the coming months we have taken the opportunity to update and refresh the brand design to ensure that, in keeping with the new tickets that we continue to rollout, it remains at the cutting edge.”

Regional transport chief Roger Lawrence added: “Customers no longer have to worry about getting a ticket each month, or getting stuck at a rail gate, and they will also see the cost of their monthly ticket reduced by moving over to Swift.

“Swift offers a range of benefits and passengers can be assured TfWM will continue to work on enhancing smart ticketing to support better connectivity across the wider Midlands region.”

Already 130,000 commuters use Swift Cards on buses and Midlands Metro services.