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The next behavior depends on the reader: |
Read errors that are displayed on the reader screen can include, but are not limited to: |
SANDAG offers the following benefits to all Compass Card users: |
The SEPTA Key card is a smart card that is used for automated fare collection on the SEPTA public transportation network in the Philadelphia metropolitan area. It can be used throughout SEPTA's transit system (bus, trolley, subway, high speed line), and on Regional Rail. |
Before the Key System, SEPTA's fare collection was almost entirely manual. Monthly and Weekly passes were sold by a cashier at a SEPTA sales office. Tokens for bus, trolley and subway fare could be purchased from a vending machine at some stations, however exact change was required. Paper tickets and passes were used on Regional Rail. In 2012, SEPTA announced the Key project. In 2014, SEPTA began deploying the new hardware necessary for the system at each station. |
The initial rollout of the key card on transit services began with an early adoption program starting on June 13, 2016. Sale of Key Cards was opened to the public on February 9, 2017. As of June 1, 2017, weekly and monthly TransPasses (for urban transit, distinct from the TrailPasses for SEPTA Regional Rail) were no longer available in the old format, and users of those passes had to have a Key Card. However, the sale of weekly TransPass at third-party locations continued until July 30th, 2018. The sale of monthly TransPasses at third-party locations also ended in July 2018. |
A card can be loaded with a weekly, monthly or single day pass. Unlike the older paper passes, SEPTA Key imposes a limit on how many trips a rider can take on a pass (56 for a weekly pass, 240 for a monthly pass, 8 for a One Day Convenience Pass, and 10 for a One Day Independence Pass). This is designed to prevent sharing of cards. The system also has a "Travel Wallet" feature in which riders can load money on the card and have the fare for each trip deducted from the balance when the card is presented. The Travel Wallet fare is discounted from the cash fare and costs the same as a token on transit and a ticket purchased in advance on Regional Rail. |
The system was designed to keep most of SEPTA's existing fare collection practices in place. For example, the system can automatically detect if a rider is transferring from another route and charge the transfer fee instead of the full fare. |
SEPTA Key is accepted on all SEPTA rapid transit lines (Broad Street, Market-Frankford, Norristown), buses, trolleys, trackless trolleys, and Regional Rail. SEPTA Key cards were formerly accepted on DART First State buses in northern New Castle County, Delaware. Starting January 1, 2021, SEPTA Key cards were no longer accepted on DART First State buses because the fareboxes cannot read the card to confirm the purchase of a TrailPass and due to widespread fraudulent use. |
In 2007, SEPTA announced a plan to award a contract for an updated fare payment system by the end of the year. At the time, it was estimated the project would take about three years and cost approximately $100 million, based on the implementation of similar fare payment systems in other cities. After the bid deadline for contractors was extended several times, in 2011 the SEPTA Board awarded a $129.5 million contract to ACS Transport Solutions Group, a division of Xerox, with 2013 as a target date for completing the implementation. |
By 2013, the project was said to be a few months behind schedule, with SEPTA's Chief Officer of New Payment Technology John McGee stating "That ball of steam isn't as large as we'd like, but we're still moving along." Roll out was expected first on SEPTA Regional Rail, with transit service to follow. |
By 2019, total cost of the primary contract was $192.5 million, about $70 million more than planned. |
, the total cost was $193.3 million. |
The EASY Card system is a series of linked contactless smartcard systems used by Miami-Dade Transit and South Florida Regional Transportation Authority in the South Florida area. The Easy Card allows for electronic payment on multiple public transport systems including Miami Metrorail, rapid transit rail system; Tri-Rail, commuter rail system; and Metrobus. Other public transportation agencies in the South Florida area which may eventually join the system include Broward County Transit as well as Palm Tran. |
While both the Miami-Dade Transit as well as the SFRTA fare collection systems were installed by Cubic Transportation Systems, combined they are the first multiple agency regional system in the United States that interoperates through the American Public Transportation Association's Contactless Fare Media Standard. |
While the system as a whole is referred to as the "Easy Card" system, there actually is more than one type of contactless smartcard media in use: |
In addition to the above, SFRTA uses their Easy Card ticket machines to print out purely paper tickets that lack any smartcard media for same-day and/or weekend usage. If a paper ticket user wishes to transfer to Metrorail, they must obtain an EASY Card or EASY Ticket at either the Tri-Rail and Metrorail transfer station or the Miami Airport station. |
While Miami-Dade Transit ticket machines provide both EASY Cards as well as EASY Tickets, SFRTA/Tri-Rail ticket machines provide only EASY Cards. Ticket agents at attended Tri-Rail stations are able to provide EASY Tickets. |
EASY Cards as well as related smartcard media can be used on the following systems: |
Miami-Dade County is working on an interoperability agreement with Broward County Transit and PalmTran of Palm Beach County; however these systems do not yet accept Easy Cards for payment |
An EASY card or ticket purchased from any participating agency or at a Ticket Vending Machine at any metrorail station may be used on any participating system, provided it is loaded with the proper fare or has a sufficient balance in it. |
Metrobus users only have to tap their Easy Card or Easy Ticket once on a fare validator when boarding a bus. Metrorail users have to tap their card or ticket when entering the faregates for a Metrorail station, as well as when leaving them. Tri-Rail users have to tap their card or ticket on ticket validators found at every Tri-Rail station platform prior to entering and after exiting a train. |
Systems which require entry and exit taps must see the exit tap of a card in order to issue a transfer. Transfer discounts within Miami-Dade Transit as well as from Tri-Rail to Miami-Dade Transit are only available when an EASY card or ticket is used to pay the fare both on the system/vehicle being transferred to, as well as the one previously used. |
In addition to the Easy Card system, Miami-Dade Transit implemented a system called Easy Pay, which you can download via App Store or Google Play, which allows payment of transit fares, and soon college easy ticket, using a smartphone. Once a fare has been purchased and activated, a QR barcode is generated containing the fare that can be scanned at selected turnstiles or shown to bus drivers. |
Additional features that are in the application include 7-day, 1-day, eventually college easy tickets, and monthly passes, along with the ability to reload and view balance of an Easy Card. |
Implemented in August 2019, riders are able to use their Visa, Mastercard, or AMEX contactless credit/debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay at the fare gates on the Metrorail. As of February 2020, contactless bank cards and digital wallets are also accepted on Metrobuses. |
The MetroCard is a magnetic stripe card used for fare payment on transportation in the New York City area. It is the primary payment method for the New York City Subway; New York City Transit buses, including routes operated by Academy Bus under contract to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and MTA buses; Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE) systems; the PATH train system; the Roosevelt Island Tramway; AirTrain JFK; and Westchester County's Bee-Line Bus System. |
The card was introduced in 1993 to enhance the technology of the transit system and eliminate the burden of carrying and collecting tokens. The MTA discontinued the use of tokens in the subway on May 3, 2003, and on buses on December 31, 2003. The MetroCard is expected to be phased out by 2023. It will be replaced by OMNY, a contactless payment system where riders pay for their fare by waving or tapping credit or debit bank cards, smartphones, or MTA-issued contactless smart cards. |
The MetroCard is managed by a division of the MTA known as Revenue Control, MetroCard Sales, which is part of the Office of the Executive Vice President. The MetroCard Vending Machines are manufactured by Cubic Transportation Systems, Inc. |
As of early 2019, the direct costs of the MetroCard system had totaled $1.5 Billion. |
On October 30, 1992, the installation of Automated Fare Collection turnstiles began. The farecard system was given the name MetroCard by April 1993. At the time, the first subway stations were supposed to receive MetroCard-compatible turnstiles before year's end, and buses were scheduled to be retrofitted with MetroCard collection equipment by late 1995. On June 1, 1993, MTA distributed 3,000 MetroCards in the first major test of the technology for the entire subway and bus systems. Less than a year later, on January 6, 1994, MetroCard-compatible turnstiles opened at Wall Street on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line () and Whitehall Street–South Ferry on the BMT Broadway Line (). All MetroCard turnstiles were installed by May 14, 1997, when the entire bus and subway system accepted MetroCard. |
On September 28, 1995, buses on Staten Island started accepting MetroCard, and by the end of 1995, MetroCard was accepted on all New York City Transit buses. |
The first MetroCard Vending Machines (MVMs) were installed on January 25, 1999 in two stations, and by the end of 1999 347 MVMs were in service at 74 stations. On April 13, 2003, tokens were no longer sold. Starting May 4, 2003, tokens were no longer accepted, except on buses. The following fare increases were implemented: |
On February 27, 2005, another fare hike occurred: |
On March 2, 2008, another set of fare increases was implemented: |
On June 28, 2009, the agency had its second fare hike in as many years: |
On December 30, 2010, the bonus value for Pay-Per-Ride decreased to 7% for every $10, and the 1-Day Fun Pass and the 14-Day Unlimited Ride were discontinued altogether. Additionally: |
In 2012, the MTA allowed advertisements to be printed on the fronts of MetroCards. The backs of MetroCards had already been used for advertisements since 1995. This change meant that advertisers could remove the MTA logo from the fronts of MetroCards. |
As a result of Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, three free transfers were offered on the MetroCard. The first was between the Q22, the Q35, and the at the Flatbush Avenue–Brooklyn College station. The second between the Q22, either the Q52 Limited or the Q53 Limited, and the at the Rockaway Boulevard station. Finally, a three-hour transfer window applied from transfers from any subway station to the Q22 or Q113 routes of MTA Bus, and then to the n31, n32, and n33 routes of NICE. |
On December 19, 2012, the MTA voted for the following fare increases: |
Starting February 20, 2013, people were able to refill cards with both time and value, so that when a MetroCard is filled with both an unlimited card and fare value, the unlimited ride portion is used first where applicable. If not started already, the unlimited ride period would begin when the card is next used, and when the unlimited period expires, the regular fare would be charged. On March 3, 2013, a $1 fee was imposed on new card purchases in-system in order to reduce the number of discarded MetroCards. However, MetroCards purchased through the Extended Sales retail network carry no new card fee. |
On March 22, 2015, the MTA voted for the following fare increases: |
On March 19, 2017, the following fare increases went into place: |
On October 23, 2017, it was announced that the MetroCard would be phased out and replaced by OMNY, a contactless fare payment system also by Cubic, with fare payment being made using Apple Pay, Google Wallet, debit/credit cards with near-field communication enabled, or radio-frequency identification cards. All buses and subway stations would use the OMNY system by 2020. However, support of the MetroCard is slated to remain until 2023. |
On April 21, 2019 the following fare increases went into place: |
During a swipe, the MetroCard is read, re-written to, then check-read to verify correct encoding. |
The older blue MetroCards were not capable of the many kinds of fare options that the gold ones currently offer. The format of the magnetic stripe used by the blue MetroCard offered very little other than the standard pay-per-swipe fare. Also, gold MetroCards allow groups of people (up to four) to ride together using a single pay-per-swipe MetroCard. The gold MetroCard keeps track of the number of swipes at a location in order to allow those same number of people to transfer at a subsequent location, if applicable. The MetroCard system was designed to ensure backward compatibility, which allowed a smooth transition from the blue format to gold. |
Cubic later used the proprietary MetroCard platform to create the Chicago Card and Tren Urbano's fare card, which are physically identical to the MetroCard except for the labeling. |
The SingleRide Ticket (introduced to replace subway tokens and single cash fares) is a piece of paper with a magnetic strip on the front, and with the date and time of purchase stamped on the back. They cost $3.00 for one subway or local bus ride, with one free transfer allowed between buses, issued by the bus operator upon request. SingleRide Tickets do not allow transfers between subways and buses. SingleRide tickets can only be purchased at MetroCard Vending Machines, which are usually located within subway stations, and expire two hours from time of purchase. Because of these limitations, SingleRide Tickets are not frequently used, having been used by only 3% of subway riders in 2009. |
Although the Pay-Per-Ride MetroCard is accepted on PATH, the regular SingleRide ticket is not. However, a PATH SingleRide ticket is available from MVMs in PATH stations for $2.75, valid for 2 hours and only on PATH. PATH also accepts 2-Trip PATH MetroCards, which cost $5.50 and are also valid only on PATH. |
The Pay-Per-Ride MetroCard can be filled with an initial value in any increment between $5.50 and $80, though vending machines only sell values in multiples of 5 cents. Cards can be refilled in 1 cent increments at station booths (formerly called token booths), and in 5 cent increments at vending machines. A MetroCard holder can spend up to $80 in one transaction and up to a total value of $100. Pay-Per-Ride MetroCards can also be filled with unlimited ride time in 7- or 30-day increments. |
The Pay-Per Ride MetroCard is accepted on the New York City Subway; MTA express, local, limited, and Select buses; and the Staten Island Railway. Outside agencies also accept the MetroCard, including the Staten Island express bus routes operated by Academy Bus; the Nassau Inter-County Express; the PATH, operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey; the AirTrain JFK, operated by the Port Authority; the Roosevelt Island Tramway; and the Westchester County Bee-Line Bus System. However, PATH does not accept reduced fare MetroCard. |
Pay-Per-Ride MetroCards deduct different values depending on which service is used. Subway, Staten Island Railway, Roosevelt Island Tramway, or local/limited/Select bus uses, cost $2.75 per trip and usually allow one valid transfer, though two transfers may be allowed depending on which routes are being used (see below). Although the PATH charges $2.75 as well, it does not offer any free transfers. A ride on an MTA or Academy express bus costs $6.50, with transfers allowed to or from the subway, Staten Island Railway, or non-express MTA buses. The BxM4C Bee-Line Bus deducts $7.50 per trip, and no free or discounted transfers are allowed to or from that route. The AirTrain JFK costs $7.75 per trip if the passenger enters or leaves at Jamaica or Howard Beach–JFK Airport stations. |
Transfers are available within two hours of initial entry, with the following structure: |
Card balance may be transferred to a new card at any station booth, up to one year after expiration. Card balances from multiple cards may also be combined at station booths. Expired cards can also be replaced at vending machines, or by mailing the MetroCard to the MTA up to two years after expiration. |
The AirTrain JFK Discount MetroCard offers 10 trips on AirTrain JFK at $25. This card can only be purchased at specially marked MetroCard Vending Machines. It can be refilled, and once done so, becomes a Pay-Per-Ride MetroCard. However, although the AirTrain fare is also payable using a regular Pay-Per-Ride MetroCard, no discount is given for Pay-Per-Ride cards. There is also an unlimited-ride 30-day card that costs $40 and is only valid on AirTrain JFK. |
, four types of Unlimited-ride MetroCards are sold: |
Standard 7- and 30-day unlimited cards are accepted on MTA New York City Subway; non-express buses from either the MTA, NICE, or Bee-Line; the Roosevelt Island Tramway; and the Staten Island Railway. 7-Day Express Bus Plus is accepted on Academy Bus and MTA express buses. The AirTrain JFK only accepts the Unlimited AirTrain JFK card. |
The Student MetroCard is issued to New York City public and private school students who live within the city limits. It allows free access to the NYCT buses and trains, depending on the distance traveled between their school and their home. The card program is managed by the NYCDOE Office of Pupil Transportation. In Nassau County, Student MetroCards are issued by individual schools which have pre-paid for the cards. |
Students who receive a student MetroCard must live: |
In May 2019, the MTA voted to phase out the half-fare student MetroCard and distribute only full-fare cards for students who qualify for a MetroCard. |
This type of card is accepted everywhere the Pay-Per-Ride or time-based MetroCard is, with two exceptions: it is not valid on the PATH, and it is not valid for ticket purchase on New York City-bound LIRR and Metro-North trains in the morning. Reduced-Fare MetroCards (in any variety) are also not accepted at PATH stations. Reduced fare customers who do not have a MetroCard may purchase a full-fare round trip MetroCard from a subway station agent by presenting proof of eligibility. |
This type of card caused complaints because it took up to three months to replace. |
The Fair Fares MetroCard pilot program was implemented in January 2019. These are distributed by Fair Fares NYC, which sends letters to eligible residents that meet the income criteria, including veteran students, New York City Housing Authority residents, City University of New York students, and residents who receive benefits from the Department of Social Services. These residents must then register online to receive the Fair Fare MetroCard. Holders of the Fair Fare MetroCard can purchase Pay-Per-Ride or time-based fares at half the regular price. This type of card is accepted only on local/limited/Select buses, the subway, and the Staten Island Railway. |
An emergency MetroCard is carried by police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel while on duty so they can access the subway system during an emergency. |
The MetroCard Bus Transfer is issued upon request to passengers who pay cash fares on buses accepting MetroCard. The transfer is inserted into the fare box on the second bus, which retains it. Westchester Bee Line bus system and Nassau Inter-County Express and MTA New York City Transit bus is free to transfer from one bus to another bus that is accepted with MetroCard. The bus transfer is paper like the SingleRide Metrocard. This transfer does not grant cash customers subway access. |
For suburban transfers, if the fare paid to get the transfer is less than that required on the second bus, the difference must be paid on boarding. For transfers from NICE to New York City Transit, no step up fee is required. |
The predecessor to the MetroCard bus transfer was the "original" bus transfer. These paper tickets allowed bus to bus transfers. Available in pads of several different colors for use at different times, boroughs or directions, they would be torn at a certain time-marked line to indicate when the transfer would expire. A version of this still exists today as the "General Order Transfer" (aka "block ticket") which is provided to customers as they leave the subway system during service disruptions to re-enter the system at another point (often via a shuttle bus). |
All new MetroCard purchases are charged a $1 fee, except to reduced fare customers and those exchanging damaged/expired cards. This purchase fee does not apply to MetroCard refills. |
Booths staffed by MTA station agents (at specified time periods) are located in all MTA subway stations. Every type of MetroCard can be purchased at a booth, with the exception of the SingleRide ticket (purchased at the MetroCard Vending Machine) and MetroCards specific to other transit systems (AirTrain JFK and PATH). All booth transactions must be in cash. |
MetroCard Vending Machines (MVMs) are located in all subway stations, PATH stations (with the added ability to reload SmartLink cards), Staten Island Ferry terminals, Roosevelt Island Tramway stations, and the Hempstead Transit Center, Eltingville Transit Center, and Central Terminal at LaGuardia Airport. |
A number of MetroCard sales vans and a MetroCard bus (a retired bus converted for sales duty) routinely travel to specific locations in New York City and Westchester County, stopping for a day (or half a day) at the announced locations. MetroCards can be purchased or refilled directly from these vehicles. Reduced-fare MetroCard applications can also be processed on the bus, including taking photographs for these cards. |
The MetroCard van serves all five boroughs and Westchester County, while the MetroCard bus serves Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, and parts of Brooklyn. |
Vendors can apply to sell MTA fare media at their business. Only presealed, prevalued cards are available, and no fee is charged. A comprehensive listing of neighborhood MetroCard merchants can be found on the MTA website. |
Ticket vending machines (TVMs) for the MTA's two commuter railroad systems, Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad, offer the option to purchase combined tickets/passes and MetroCards. A $5.50 MetroCard is available with a round-trip ticket, and a $50 MetroCard is available with a monthly pass. In addition, the machines sell separate $25 MetroCards. TVMs at Jamaica station and Penn Station sell AirTrain JFK monthly passes on the back of LIRR tickets. All cards sold from these machines are of thick paper stock, not the normal plastic. |
Beginning in 2007, with the start of the S89 bus service, a combined Hudson–Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) monthly pass and monthly MetroCard became available at NJ Transit ticket vending machines at HBLR stations. |
In 2006, the MTA and Port Authority announced plans to replace the magnetic strip with smart cards. |
On July 1, 2006, MTA launched a six-month pilot program to test the new contact-less smart card fare collection system, initially ending on December 31, 2006 but extended until May 31, 2007. This program was tested at all stations on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line and at four stations in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens. The testing system utilized Citibank MasterCard's Paypass keytags. This smart card system was intended to ease congestion near the fare control area by reducing time spent paying for fare. MTA and other transportation authorities in the region said they would eventually implement it system-wide. |
In October 2017, MTA signed a $573 million contract with Cubic Transportation Systems for OMNY (short for One Metro New York), a new fare payment system. This will use the contactless payment system, with riders waving or tapping credit or debit bank cards, smartphones, and/or MTA-issued smart cards to pay their fare. This contactless system was originally developed by Transport for London at a cost of £11 million (at the time equivalent to around $14 million), before being licensed to Cubic for worldwide sale. MTA expects to spend at least six years rolling out the system, with new electronic readers and vending machines. The new fare system would be rolled out on a limited basis in May 2019. By 2023, the MetroCard would be phased out entirely. |
The MetroCard system is susceptible to various types of unauthorized resale, colloquially known as "selling swipes". |
At times, this may involve individuals charging to swipe another commuter into the subway system at a discount below the official fare, either by using an "unlimited ride" MetroCard, or by manipulating a spent MetroCard to obtain an extra, unpaid ride. A 2004 press release from New York State Senator Martin J. Golden claims these behaviors cost the MTA $260,000 a year. |
So-called 'swipers' reportedly may secure customers by vandalizing the coin and bill acceptor mechanisms of metrocard vending machines Nearly half of broken vending machines were in Manhattan, and the MTA spent $26.5 million on MVM repairs as of 2017. An 18-minute delay between uses of an "unlimited ride" MetroCard at any given station, and the expense of unlimited ride MetroCards, have historically limited their use for selling swipes. |
Criminal charges leveled against those using this bent-MetroCard technique have included petit larceny and, in a state law introduced specifically to target swipers in the year 2006, with "unauthorized sale of transportation services." As early as 2001, however, police and prosecutors began to charge people bending MetroCards to seek free rides (either to sell, or for personal use) with various forms of forgery. |
A $1 fee on new MetroCards imposed in 2013 significantly curtailed the bent-MetroCard form of selling swipes. The fee incentivized riders to keep and refill their existing MetroCards, undermining the vast supply of discarded spent MetroCards from which swipers previously drew as their stock-in-trade. Nonetheless, people continue to sell swipes of bent MetroCards which have been discarded. Swipers continue to be prosecuted under forgery laws, according to research published in 2019. |
Over the years, the MTA has issued limited-edition MetroCards in honor of certain events, people, or structures. |
For much of the MetroCard's history, images were printed only on the back side of MetroCards. These have included cards with the Statue of Liberty, the New York City bid for the 2012 Summer Olympics, a Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum exhibit, and the Circle Line ferry. Sporting events have also been commemorated, including the Subway Series, the 2014 Super Bowl, and the 2014–15 season of the Brooklyn Nets. |
In 2017, the MTA started issuing Supreme-branded MetroCards at eight subway stations. The Supreme-branded cards proved popular, and there were reports that some were resold for hundreds of dollars. |
The MTA started allowing front side advertising in 2012. One of the earlier front side designs was an I Love New York card first sold in October 2013. Three hundred thousand cards were printed in remembrance of Hurricane Sandy the previous year. |
Starting in December 2018, the MTA started issuing 250,000 "Game of Thrones"-themed MetroCards at Grand Central–42nd Street, in honor of the show's final season. The cards came in four designs. |
Starting in May 2019, coinciding with the opening of the Memorial Glade at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, the MTA issued 250,000 MetroCards with images of first responders at the World Trade Center site after 9/11. The MetroCards were issued at ten subway stations: six in Lower Manhattan and four high-traffic stations in midtown and Brooklyn. |
In June 2019, the MTA celebrated Stonewall 50 - WorldPride NYC 2019 with LGBT pride-themed MetroCards. |
In November 2020, the MTA celebrated Veterans Day with Veterans Day themed MetroCards. The MetroCards were available at six stations: two in Brooklyn, one in Queens, two in Midtown Manhattan, and one in The Bronx. |
OMNY ( , short for One Metro New York) is a contactless fare payment system, currently being implemented for use on public transit in New York City and the surrounding area. When OMNY is completely rolled out, it will replace the MetroCard on the New York City Subway, the Staten Island Railway, PATH trains, MTA buses, Bee-Line buses, and NICE buses. OMNY will also expand beyond the current scope of the MetroCard to the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad. As of December 31, 2020, OMNY is available on all MTA buses and at all subway stations. |
The MetroCard, a magnetic stripe card, was first introduced in 1992 and was used to pay fares on MTA subways and buses, as well as on other networks such as the PATH train. Two limited contactless-payment trials were conducted around the New York City area in 2006 and in 2010. However, formal planning for a full replacement of the MetroCard did not start until 2016. |
The OMNY system is designed by San Diego-based Cubic Transportation Systems, using technology licensed from Transport for London's Oyster card. OMNY began its public rollout in May 2019, with contactless bank cards and mobile payments accepted at select subway stations and on buses in Staten Island. The Staten Island Railway received OMNY readers in December 2019, and rollout on the New York City Subway and on MTA buses was completed on December 31, 2020, after having been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The MTA expects to begin offering OMNY contactless cards in early 2021, along with reduced-fare and time-based fare options. Full deployment to other NYC-area transit systems is expected by 2023, after which MetroCard will be completely phased out. |
Subway tokens had been used as the MTA subway and bus systems' form of fare payment since the 1950s. MetroCards made by Cubic Transportation Systems started to replace the tokens in 1992; the MetroCards used magnetic stripes to encode the fare payment. By 2003, the MetroCard was the exclusive method of fare payment systemwide. |
MasterCard and Citibank funded a trial of contactless payments, branded as PayPass. The trial was conducted at 25 subway stations, mostly on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line, beginning in July 2006. The trial was limited to select Citibank cardholders, but it proved popular enough to be extended past its original end date of December 2006. |
In light of the success of the first contactless payment trial in 2006, another trial was conducted from June to November 2010. The 2010 trial initially only supported MasterCard-branded cards, expanding to Visa PayWave cards in August. The 2010 trial eventually expanded to include multiple Manhattan bus routes, two New Jersey Transit bus routes, and most PATH stations. |
In 2016, the MTA announced that it would begin designing a new contactless fare payment system to replace the MetroCard. The replacement system was initially planned for partial implementation in 2018 and full implementation by 2022. In October 2017, the MTA started installing eTix-compatible electronic ticketing turnstiles in 14 stations in Manhattan. The eTix system, already used on the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad, allows passengers to pay their fares using their phones. The system would originally be for MTA employees only. |
On October 23, 2017, it was announced that the MetroCard would be phased out and replaced by a contactless fare payment system also by Cubic, with fare payment being made using Android Pay, Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, debit/credit cards with near-field communication enabled, or radio-frequency identification cards. The announcement called for a phased rollout, culminating in the discontinuation of the MetroCard by 2023. The replacement fare system was criticized because the new turnstiles could be hacked, thereby leaving credit card and phone information vulnerable to theft. The payment system would use technology licensed from Transport for London's Oyster card. |
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