By David McCabe
The M.T.A. began a pilot program last month that’s designed to make paying bus and subway fares faster and easier, so much so that the annoying “Please Swipe Again” message would become a thing of the past. The agency also hopes the new process would unify the payment systems across the M.T.A., PATH and New Jersey Transit systems.
The pilot system uses the radio-frequency identification (RFID), or smart card, technology in credit cards to communicate with a pad on the turnstile, allowing customers to credit the fare to their bank accounts, instead of having to refill a MetroCard when it runs out of cash.
The system is currently installed on the Lexington Ave. subway line as well as a number of crosstown bus lines, including the M14 and M23 routes, on 14th and 23rd Sts.
For now, the trial program only accepts MasterCard — whose smart cards are branded as PayPass. But, according to Aaron Donovan, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Visa will be brought into the pilot by August.
Because the pilot program is a joint effort between the M.T.A., NJ Transit and the Port Authority, riders can use the same credit card to board M.T.A. trains and buses, as well as PATH and NJ Transit trains. It is already possible, though, to pay for PATH trains with a standard MetroCard.
It is not always a seamless process, however. When Elliot Davis, a dentist who works on 14th St., placed his PayPass tab, held in a plastic container, at the Union Square station, he had to take it out of the plastic and swipe it a few more times across the reader in order to get into the station.
He said the PayPass system is “a little more of a pain” to use, compared to the classic MetroCard, because sometimes you have to push the PayPass device onto the RFID pad before it works.
A number of riders interviewed by The Villager said they knew about the pilot program, but thought it would take longer than their current method of payment. Bill Morrisey, a PATH rider, said the card he used just for the PATH was simpler than the PayPass system.
Some riders weren’t even aware of the details of the trial, although many mentioned that they had noticed the advertising placed on the turnstiles included in the pilot program. One man in the Union Square subway station said he didn’t really understand how the new system worked, but that he might consider using it if he did.
“They haven’t explained how to use it,” he said.
Donovan said the M.T.A. has employed various advertising strategies to make customers aware of the pilot. He said ads have been placed in the subway and bus lines included in the pilot, as well as on the turnstiles. The M.T.A. has also set up a Web site with MasterCard, www.ridenynj.com, where customers can learn about the program and enroll in it.
One woman in Union Square said she doesn’t use the subway enough to make joining the pilot program worth her time, but that her boyfriend had joined.
The program is designed to mimic the benefits of the MetroCard system. While it’s possible to pay $2.25 every time you swipe the card, riders can also prepay and receive the same discounts they get when they fill up their MetroCards. When riders go from a subway line in the pilot to a bus line, they receive a free transfer, just as with a MetroCard.
Unlike MetroCard users, however, customers in the trial can manage their card from home, through a Web site, and monitor their payments and refill their cards. Donovan said this is an advantage to both the rider and the M.T.A, because it means that the transportation authority would need to buy and operate fewer MetroCard machines, saving money.
While the M.T.A. was unable to provide The Villager with statistics on how many people have enrolled in the pilot, very few riders at the two stations visited by this reporter used the RFID system to pay for their transportation.
While the system is currently only for credit card users, Donovan said the M.T.A. is concerned about people who don’t have credit or debit cards.
“We are very concerned that the population that is so-called ‘unbanked’ or does not have credit or debit cards or prefers to use cash as a matter of choice will be able to access the exact same fare and also receive close to the same level of convenience as folks using credit or debit cards. We would set up machines at subway stations where customers would insert cash for a smart card,” he said.
But it remains to be seen just how interested riders are in the new technology. At the Union Square station, the majority of riders who went through the special blue-and-white-clad turnstile were still using the yellow-and-blue MetroCards — and some even had to swipe twice.
