MetroCards are going to go the way of the subway token within a few years.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has been toying with the idea of a so-called “smart card” for a number of years.
Now the New York Daily News says the agency plans to replace MetroCards with a new pass called the “MTA Card” in three or four years.
Commuters would tap the MTA Card, or a credit or debit card, on a sensor to pay for their rides.
They would also be able to pay as they go, with fares being deducted from a linked bank account, or they could buy trips in advance.
An MTA spokesman said in a statement. “It’s time for MetroCard to be replaced, which provides an opportunity for a rare triple play: a new system that’s easier for all customers to use, faster for boarding the transit system, and will save millions.”
(Source: NY1)
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3 Responses
love it..many other cities already have this
Additional hidden agenda: Now watch them charge more for longer rides, and for peak use (even though technically they could have already done that with this system); you will have to tap the card on the way in and on the way out. They’ll sugar-coat it by giving a big discount to all those people riding between 4:00 and 5:00 AM. “… and will save millions,” refers not so much to the improvement, but to the additional fare increases justified under the guise of the change. All in all, though, it’s still a bargain, compared to the commuter railroads, but let’s not give it a kina hura.
Just another way for the City to painlessly (for the City, that is) remove money fronour bank accounts…