A commuter enters the Denentoshi Line at Shibuya Station in Tokyo, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

TOKYO — One rail line in Japan’s capital is installing machines that will permit passengers to pay their fare with credit cards rather than the usual pre-paid passes.

The Tokyu Corp. is placing the tap-to-pay readers at stations along the Denentoshi Line, which runs between Shibuya in central Tokyo and Yamato in Kanagawa prefecture south of the city. The machines should be operable Aug. 30.

The installations are a test to see if the concept will work across the hundreds of miles of rail lines in the world’s largest metropolitan area, according to a company news release Monday.

The experiment comes as sales of new tap-to-pay Suica and Pasmo cards were suspended Aug. 2 due to a worldwide semiconductor shortage. They are the most popular rechargeable cards used by locals, tourists and the U.S. military community to pay train and bus fares and shop at stores.

Credit, debit and prepaid cards with tap-to-pay capabilities issued by Visa, JCB, American Express, Diner’s Club and Discover can be used at ticket gates just like Suica and Pasmo cards, Tokyu Corp. said in the release.

Mastercard can be used to purchase tickets online but cannot be used at the gates.

The company said it hopes to have the machines installed on all its railway lines by spring. Tokyu Corp., one of 30 rail operators in the metro area, maintains nine rail lines in Tokyo and Kanagawa prefecture, according to its website.

Commuters enter the Denentoshi Line at Shibuya Station in Tokyo, Wednesday, Aug. 23, 2023. (Akifumi Ishikawa/Stars and Stripes)

Sales of personalized Suica and Pasmo cards temporarily ended Aug. 2. Sales of non-personalized cards ended in June.

“We are continuing discussions with card manufacturers regarding future card manufacturing plans, but the situation is still unclear at this point,” Pasmo said in a news release. Virtual cards for Apple Pay and other similar electronic payment systems will still be available.

Virtual cards are also available on the Pasmo and Suica apps, which are available only in Japanese. They can't be recharged with non-Japanese credit cards.

Existing physical cards can still be used and recharged, but no new cards will be sold until further notice.

Tourists are still able to purchase Pasmo Passport and Suica Passport cards, which are valid for 28 days, at the Narita and Haneda international airports and some major train stations in the Tokyo metropolitan area, according to the Pasmo release.