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Metrocard Gold 1997-Present

The MetroCard is the current payment method for the New York City Subway (rapid transit) system as well as for buses in the New York City Transit, Long Island Bus, PATH systems, and on Westchester County's Bee-Line Bus System in Fall 2006. It is a thin, plastic card on which the customer electronically loads fares. It was introduced to enhance the technology of the transit system and reduce and eventually eliminate the burden of carrying and collecting tokens. The MTA discontinued the use of tokens on the subway in May 2003 and on buses on December 31, 2003. The MetroCard is handled by a division of the MTA known as MetroCard Operations and manufactured by the Cubic Corporation.

In addition, the Metrocard (note capitalization) is used as a stored ride fare card on several municipal bus operators in Los Angeles County, California, such as Montebello Bus Lines, Foothill Transit, Norwalk Transit, Culver City Bus, and Santa Monica's Big Blue Bus, using some of the same technical principles as the New York MetroCard. * To avoid confusion, and to accommodate a transition to new smart card technology, the LA County Metrocard will be replaced by the TAP Card in 2007.

History

Technology

Each MetroCard stored value card is assigned a unique, permanent ten-digit serial number when it is manufactured. The value of a card is stored magnetically on the card itself, while the card's transaction history is held centrally in the Automated Fare Collection (AFC) Database. When a card is purchased and fares are loaded onto it, the MetroCard Vending Machine or station agent stores the amount of the purchase onto the card and updates the database, identifying the card by its serial number. Whenever the card is swiped at a turnstile, the value of the card is read, the new value is written, and the central database is updated with the new transaction. The AFC Database is necessary to maintain transaction records to track a card if needed. It has actually been used to acquit criminal suspects by placing them away from the scene of a crime. The database also stores a Negative List, a list of MetroCards that have been invalidated for various reasons (such as lost or stolen student or unlimited monthly cards), and shares it with turnstiles in order to deny access to a revoked card.

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.

There are special kinds of MetroCards issued for students, senior citizens, the disabled, and transit employees. These cards offer discounted rides and usually have the picture of the intended patron on the card to minimize fraudulent use. Students receive cards corresponding to their grade level, and the distance they live from the school. Orange and white cards are issued to children in Kindergarten to the 6th grade, and white and green colored cards for teenagers from the 7th grade to the 12th grade, the end of high school. These MetroCards allow them to commute to and from school between 5:30 AM and 8:30 PM. Student MetroCards are either full fare, which can be used up to three times daily for the subway or bus or half fare, which can only be used for buses. A student that lives up to 1/2 mile from the school receives a half fare. A student that lives 1 mile or more from the school receives a full fare MetroCard. A 4-trip card is also given to students who have a 2+ hour commute. There are also two trip cards that are valid at all times (except Sundays), for special school trips. Student MetroCards do not have photo identification.

MetroCards for the disabled have exclusive rights to the special gates used for wheelchair access in some stations. This eliminated the need for the token booth clerk to have to manually open the gate whenever a disabled person required entry.

There is also a combination MetroCard/Metro-North monthly train pass issued to commuters who purchase their pass by mail - one side is the MetroCard, while the other is the Metro-North pass with a photo of the pass owner. The Long Island Rail Road also offers this to their customers, but without a photo on the pass.

Several transfers on the subway system are free with a MetroCard (other than a single-ride card), and are specified in schedules and signs.

Fare information

SingleRide ticket MetroCards

  • $2.00 for one subway or local bus ride, with one free bus/bus transfer
  • SingleRide cards do not offer subway/bus transfers
  • SingleRide cards expire two hours from time of purchase

Pay-per-ride MetroCards

  • $4.00 to $80.00 in any increment
  • Cards equal to or greater than $10.00 receive a 20% bonus (ex. $10.00 buys 6 rides and $20.00 buys 12 rides)
  • $2.00 deducted for each subway or local bus usage, excluding transfers
  • Free subway/bus, bus/subway, and bus/bus transfers within two hours of usage
  • May be used to pay for and transfer up to four people at once
  • Cards can be refilled by as little as 1 cent and as much as $80 and can hold $100
  • Card may be refilled until one month before expiration date but used until expiration date
  • Card balance may be transferred to other card up to a year after expiration.
  • May be used for the payment of the $5 access fee for up to 4 persons on the AirTrain JFK

Accepted at:

Unlimited ride MetroCards

  • 1-Day Fun Pass, $7.00 for unlimited subway and local bus rides until 3 A.M. the day following first usage
  • 7-Day Unlimited Ride Card, $24.00 for unlimited subway and local bus rides until midnight seven days following first usage
  • 30-Day Unlimited Ride Card, $76.00 for unlimited subway and local bus rides until midnight thirty days following first usage
  • 30-Day Unlimited Ride Cards that are purchased using a credit, debit or ATM card from a MetroCard vending machine can be reported lost/stolen to receive a pro-rated credit for the card *
  • 7-Day Express Bus Plus Card, $41.00 for unlimited express bus, local bus, and subway rides until midnight seven days following first usage
  • The Unlimited Ride Card cannot be used at the same subway station or bus route for eighteen minutes after it is first used
  • The Unlimited Ride Card cannot be reused after it expires. Riders will need to buy a new card each time they wish to use unlimited rides
  • 30-Day AirTrain JFK Unlimited Ride Card, $40.00 for unlimited trips on the AirTrain (operated by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey) until midnight, 30 days from first usage. This card can only be purchased at specially marked MetroCard Vending Machines at the Howard Beach () or Sutphin Boulevard/Jamaica (, , ) stations and at MetroCard vendors in JFK Airport. There are no transfer privileges granted on this card

Accepted at:

  • MTA New York City Transit subways and local buses
  • MTA Long Island Bus
  • MTA Bus
  • MTA Staten Island Railway
  • Only 7-Day Express Bus Plus accepted on express buses
  • The AirTrain JFK Unlimited card is accepted only at AirTrain terminals at Howard Beach () or Sutphin Boulevard/Jamaica (, , )

Student MetroCards

  • Given to all NYC school students who commute, as well as all NYC high schools, both public and private.
  • Two types of cards, one orange and one green. Orange is for Kindergarten through 6th Grade, the green is for 7th Grade-12th Grade students. All half fare cards are also green and for Kindergarten-12th Grade students.
  • 1/2 Fare (Card pays $1.00, student pays $1.00 in change) or Full Fare (Card pays Full Fare), depending on the distance (radius) from the students' household to the school they are attending, usually with the students who live closer getting 1/2 Fare cards. There are 3 or 4 rides given to the student every Monday to Friday from 5:30 A.M. to 8:30 P.M. each day. There are also special cards for those who attend school when it is not a normal school day.

Accepted at:

  • MTA New York City Transit subways and local buses (1/2 Fare cards are only accepted on buses)
  • MTA Long Island Bus
  • MTA Bus
  • MTA Staten Island Railway (Full Fare cards are only accepted at the Saint George Ferry Terminal Station)

Disabled/Senior Citizen Metrocards

  • Given to senior citizens and the disabled as a combination photo ID and metrocard.
  • Allows 1/2 or 100% reduced fare within the MTA system
  • Cards are marked as "Photo ID Pass"
  • Accepted at wheelchair doors at selected stations (cardholder swipes for access)

Accepted at:

Transit Employee Metrocards

  • Given to MTA Employees as a combination photo ID and Metrocard pass.
  • All cards give free rides within the MTA System, with the exception of Express Buses.
  • Cards are color coded to match gender of Employee (red is male, blue is female)
  • Letter on the card indicates an employee's status and expiration date
  • Cards have the standard 15-20 minute delay between consequetive swipes at a particular MTA facility.
  • Cards are integrated into MTA's time management system at various locations in the city.

Accepted at:

Purchase options

Subway station booths

These booths are located in most subway stations and are staffed by station agents. Every type of MetroCard (minimum purchase $4) can be purchased at a booth with the exception of the 1-Day Fun Pass and SingleRide ticket. These two types must be purchased at MetroCard vending machines. Only cash is accepted for a transaction, $50 bills are only accepted with a purchase of $30 or more, and $100 bills only with a $70 or greater purchase.

MetroCard vending machines

MetroCard Vending Machines (MVMs) are machines located in all subway stations. They were first introduced in January 1999 and can now be found in two models. Standard MVMs are large vending machines that accept cash, credit cards, and ATM or debit cards in order to purchase a MetroCard for use on a subway or bus. They return up to $6 in coin change for every cash transaction. There are also much smaller versions of these machines that only accept credit and ATM/debit cards. Both machines allow a customer to purchase every type of MetroCard through a touch screen hierarchical menu although the smaller machines do not sell SingleRide tickets. After payment, the MetroCard is dispensed, along with an optional paper transaction receipt. The MVM can also add fares to a used MetroCard. They are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 through use of braille and a headset jack. Audible commands for each menu item are provided once a headset is connected and the proper sequence is keyed through the keypad. All non-visual commands are then entered via the keypad instead of the touch screen. MetroCard Vending Machines run on Microsoft Windows 2000 Server SP4. The look and feel of the software as well as the exterior bezels were designed by Masamichi Udagawa. Masamichi was an employee of the design firm IDEO. He soon left IDEO and started his own company called Antenna Design, an industrial design company based in Manhattan. The rest of the machine's construction and design were performed by Cubic Transportation Systems.

MetroCard bus and van

One MetroCard Van and two MetroCard Buses routinely travel throughout New York City, making stops at scheduled locations. MetroCards can be purchased or refilled directly from these vehicles. Schedules are available on the MTA website.

Neighborhood MetroCard merchants

As well as at subway stations, the MetroCard can be purchased at any participating vendor. This includes hundreds of stores across New York City that sell sealed, pre-paid MetroCards for face value. A comprehensive listing can be found on the MTA website.

Purchase by mail

Metro-North and Long Island Rail Road riders who opt to purchase a monthly rail pass through the mail (a useful option for people who commute daily on a continuous basis) receive a pass that is a MetroCard on the reverse side. The purchaser can opt to load the MetroCard side with any value supported by the system.

Holiday Rates

In 2005, the MTA offered half fare discounts to riders on weekends, the last week of 2005 and New Year's Day, 2006. This meant that straphangers were able to ride the subway for $1 instead of the regular $2 fare, provided that they used the Pay-Per-Ride MetroCard. The discounts did not apply to the Single Ride ticket or the Unlimited-Ride MetroCards.

The future of the MetroCard

In 2006 the MTA and Port Authority announced plans to replace the Metrocard with smart cards. In February the Port Authority unveiled a $73 million smart card system in the newly built World Trade Center PATH station.

The Port Authority Trans-Hudson (PATH) "SmartLink" card contains an antenna attached to a computer chip, which can be read by turnstiles without requiring passengers to swipe cards. This card will eventually replace the magnetic-strip QuickCard accepted at PATH turnstiles.

As of March 31, 2006; Metrocard Vending Machines have replaced PATH QuickCard machines at PATH stations

The New York City subway and bus network will eventually use this same technology. A consortium of New York metropolitan transit agencies, including the Port Authority and New Jersey Transit, will test different versions and introduce a single standard. In the future all New York City area transit systems will use the same "contactless" payment system.

On July 1, 2006, MTA launched a 6-month pilot program to test the new "contactless" smart card fare collection system, which will end on December 31, 2006. This program will be tested at all stations on the IRT Lexington Avenue Line and at four stations in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens. The testing system utilizes Citibank Mastercard's Paypass keytags. Anyone with such a tag can apply to participate. This smart card system is aimed to ease congestion near the fare control area by reducing time spent at paying for fare. It is a new system that MTA and other transportation authorities in the region will eventually implement.Subway 'Smart Cards' Program Begins Smart Cards for the Subways

Fraud and scams

The MetroCard system is susceptible to various types of frauds, perpetrated by clever con artists, who have figured out how to get the turnstile to release without charging a fare *.

A typical con involves deliberately jamming a MetroCard vending machine in a station, and then waiting for somebody to try buying a new card just as a train is approaching. As the innocent customer discovers that the machine is broken, the con artist offers to swipe the mark through the turnstile on their own card in return for $2 (the same as the regular fare). If the mark accepts, the con artist swipes their altered card, and lets the mark go through the turnstile. The mark comes out even (they lost $2 but got a ride out of it), the con artist makes $2, and the MTA is stiffed a fare (plus the cost of fixing the damaged vending machine). This scam is often run by a team of 2 or more people, with one person working the turnstile and the others acting as lookouts.

There are reports of people making $200-$300/day running this scam. A report from New York State Senator Martin J. Golden [http://senatorgolden.com/press_archive_story.asp?id=9707 claims this scam is costing the MTA $260,000/year, and some con artists are making up to $800/day executing it.

To prepare for this scam, Metrocards are often altered by folding the card at a specific point, rendering it inoperable. The turnstile initially rejects the card, but automatically accepts it after three swipes.

External links

  • http://www.mta.info Metropolitan Transportation Authority Homepage
  • http://www.panynj.gov/ Port Authority of NY and NJ Homepage
  • http://www.cubic.com/cts/ Cubic Corporation
  • http://www.antennadesign.com/ Antenna Design

Reference

New York City Subway | Fare collection systems

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "MetroCard".

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