Location | Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Minnesota |
---|---|
Launched | 2007 |
Technology | |
Operator | Cubic Transportation Systems |
Currency | United States dollar ($400 maximum load) |
Validity | |
Retailed |
|
Variants |
|
Website | www |
The Go-To card is a contactless smart card used to pay fares for bus, light rail, and commuter rail lines operated by Metro Transit and other transit agencies in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota. The system has significantly sped up boardings on area buses while alleviating wear and tear on existing ticket machines and fare boxes. The old magnetic strip reading machines were weather sensitive and could not be placed out in the elements like at the Hiawatha Line light rail stations. [1]
The Go-To card went into full operation in early 2007.
The Go-To card was originally meant to go into service in September 2003 and become the first such system in the United States, but technical difficulties delayed introduction. [2] Cubic Transportation Systems, Inc. worked under a contract valued at $16.4 million (equivalent to $25.1 million in 2022), but Metro Transit stopped payment at $9.4 million in May 2003 when it became apparent that the rollout would be behind schedule. [1] [3]
Cubic Transportation Systems initially promoted this system as the first contactless smart card installation in the country, but since introduction was delayed, at least one other system in the U.S. went into use ahead of the Go-To card. While traditional smart card systems require the card to be swiped through or inserted into a reader, the Go-To card requires a passenger to tap it against the reading device. This reduces mechanical wear dramatically, and removes the need for readers to be hardened against the sometimes cold and wet climate of Minnesota. Ticket machines on Metro Transit's Blue Line were designed with the Go-To card in mind.
Before this system was sent into full release, some Metro Transit employees and selected area riders were part of a test program, started in the latter half of 2004, using the cards as they go about their daily business. In November 2004 after five months of service, Metro Transit's general manager stated that the devices only achieved 20% reliability.
Cubic said that the issues that were originally delaying introduction were software problems. Frequently, either the reader or the card did not properly detect when it has been used. Software for the central computer system, which handles synchronization and how funds are replenished, was not fully operational [4] until late April 2005. In March 2006 Metro Transit sent Cubic a letter of default demanding a plan to correct issues with the 2+1⁄2-year-delayed system. [5]
The underlying technology is Philips' MIFARE system, implementing the ISO/IEC 14443 (Type A) standard.
In November 2005, Metro Transit allowed 18,000 trial users to begin using the Go-To card system, with hopes of rolling out the cards to all users by the fourth quarter of 2006. [6]
On November 15, 2006, Metro Transit unveiled the Go-To card for 2,500 users to use during a trial period lasting until January 31, 2007. By April 2007, Go-To cards were being sold to the general public at Metro Transit stores. It is also possible to buy and refill cards at other locations that sell transit passes, such as some local grocery stores.
The Metropass is a transit pass for trains and buses sold at a discounted rate to employees purchased by local companies. [7] The pass is purchased monthly and allows unlimited rides during the month. [8]
The Metro Transit U-Pass program was created in 2000 and was a discounted transit pass sold only to University of Minnesota students or employees taking at least one credit of courses. The pass allowed for an unlimited number of rides during the semester it was purchased and had a mandatory $19 (as of Spring 2013) transportation fee not included with the actual cost of the pass. The University of Minnesota switched to the Go-To card in 2007 which allowed for semester renewal up to six years. [9] For the 2021-2022 school year, the cost was $114. Starting with the 2022-2023 school year, the U-Pass was eliminated in favor of a $45 increase in the mandatory transportation fee but the universal availability of unlimited transit rides for all students. [8]
The Campus Zone Pass allowed free travel between the West Bank, East Bank, and Stadium Village Green Line light rail stations. The card was free to registered students, faculty, and staff of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. [10] The Campus Zone Pass was eliminated with the introduction of the Universal Transit Pass program for University of Minnesota students. [8]
The Go-To College Pass is a pass good for unlimited bus and train rides per semester in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area sold at a discounted rate to eligible college and university students. Participating schools include Anoka-Ramsey Community College, Anoka Technical College, Augsburg University, Aveda Institute, Bethel University, Century College, Concordia University, Dunwoody College of Technology, Hamline University, Hennepin Technical College, Inver Hills Community College, Macalester College, Metropolitan State University, Minneapolis Business College, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Minneapolis Community and Technical College, Normandale Community College, North Central University, North Hennepin Community College, Northwestern Health Sciences University, Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, St. Catherine University, Saint Paul College and University of St. Thomas. [11] Ridership at Augsburg and Macalester nearly doubled after all students were given universal transit passes allowing unlimited transit rides. [8]
This Go-To Card was sold/given out ahead of the grand opening of the METRO Green Line that runs between downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul.
Commemorative All-Star Week Go-To Cards with $20 of stored fare value were available for purchase through Metro Transit's online store, at Metro Transit Service Centers and at The Minneapolis Convention Center.
This Go-To Card was sold at Metro Transit Service Centers and was given out at the Twins Cities Pride Festival in 2023.
The MetroCard is a magnetic stripe card used for fare payment on transportation in the New York City area. It is a payment method for the New York City Subway, New York City Transit buses and MTA buses. The MetroCard is also accepted by several partner agencies: Nassau Inter-County Express (NICE), the PATH train system, the Roosevelt Island Tramway, AirTrain JFK, and Westchester County's Bee-Line Bus System.
SmarTrip is a contactless stored-value smart card payment system managed by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA). The Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) uses a compatible payment system called CharmCard. A reciprocity agreement between the MTA and WMATA allows either card to be used for travel on any of the participating transit systems in the Baltimore-Washington metropolitan area. Unlike traditional paper farecards or bus passes, SmarTrip/CharmCard is designed to be permanent and reloadable; the term "SmarTrip" may refer to both payment systems unless otherwise noted.
Fares to use the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) transit system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, can be paid with various media. The price of fares varies according to age, occupation, income level, and health condition of riders.
The CharlieCard is a contactless smart card used for fare payment for transportation in the Boston area. It is the primary payment method for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and several regional public transport systems in the U.S. state of Massachusetts.
Rail operators are government-assisted profit-based corporations, fares and ticketing on Singapore's Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system are aimed to break-even or exceed operating expenses. Rail operators collect fares based on account-based (ABT) and card-based ticketing options, the prices of which are calculated based on the distances travelled between the origin and destination. These prices increase in stages for standard non-concessionary travel, according to the distances travelled. In account-based ticketing, the fare is automatically calculated in the back-end and charged to the passenger post journey. On the other hand, card-based ticketing is proprietary to the transport network and the fare is computed by the system based on the store values recorded in the cards. The public transit system is harmonising towards full ABT.
The Chicago Card and the Chicago Card Plus were contactless smart cards used by riders of the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) and Pace to electronically pay for bus and train fares in the city of Chicago, Illinois, USA and the surrounding suburbs. On June 1, 2014, CTA and Pace stopped accepting these cards as part of a transition to Ventra.
SmartLink is a RFID-enabled credit card-sized smartcard that is the primary fare payment method on the PATH transit system in Newark and Hudson County in New Jersey and Manhattan in New York City. It was designed to replace PATH's paper-based farecard, QuickCard, and there was plans to expand its usage throughout most transit agencies in the tri-state area. The SmartLink card has been available to the public since July 2, 2007. Although the MetroCard used on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA)'s transit system can also be used on the PATH, the reverse is not true for SmartLink, which cannot be used on the MTA's system.
The ORCA card is a contactless, stored-value smart card system for public transit in the Puget Sound region of Washington, United States. The card is valid on most transit systems in the Seattle metropolitan area, including Sound Transit, local bus agencies, Washington State Ferries, the King County Water Taxi, and Kitsap Fast Ferries. It was launched in 2009 and is managed by the Central Puget Sound Regional Fare Coordination Project, a board composed of local transit agencies.
A transit pass or travel card, often referred to as a bus pass or train pass etc., is a ticket that allows a passenger of the service to take either a certain number of pre-purchased trips or unlimited trips within a fixed period of time.
OPUS is a rechargeable, dual interface (contact/contactless) stored-value smart card using the Calypso Standard and is used by major public transit operators in Greater Montreal and Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It complies with the ISO/IEC 14443 standard for smartcards and can be read by smartphones with an NFC antenna.
The Transit Access Pass (TAP) is a contactless smart card used for automated fare collection on most public transport agencies within Los Angeles County, California. The card is also available in electronic form, free of charge, in Apple Wallet, thereby bypassing the need to purchase the plastic USD $2 card. It is administered by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro), and the card and fare collection systems are manufactured by Cubic Transportation Systems.
Cubic Corporation is a global private transportation and defense corporation. It operates two business segments: Cubic Transportation Systems (CTS) and Cubic Mission and Performance Solutions (CMPS).
GO Transit is the inter-regional transportation authority of the Golden Horseshoe, which includes the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. It is Canada's oldest regional transit system, first serving passengers in 1967.
An automated fare collection (AFC) system is the collection of components that automate the ticketing system of a public transportation network – an automated version of manual fare collection. An AFC system is usually the basis for integrated ticketing.
Metro is a transit network in Minnesota serving the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul. It also provides service to some suburban areas. As of 2022, the system consists of two light rail lines and five bus rapid transit (BRT) lines all of which are operated by the local public transit company: Metro Transit. The five lines connect Downtown Minneapolis and St Paul with the Bloomington, Minneapolis-St Paul International Airport, Roseville, Richfield, Burnsville and Brooklyn Center.
A reduced fare program refers to special programs providing particular passengers with a discounted fare option for travel on a public transport system. In the United States, public transportation systems that receive federal funding are required to offer, at minimum, half fares to the elderly and handicapped persons during off peak travel. Some transportation systems also extend reduced fare options to youth, students, military personnel, and low-income passengers.
OMNY is a contactless fare payment system, currently being implemented for use on public transit in the New York metropolitan area. OMNY can currently be used to pay fares at all New York City Subway and Staten Island Railway stations, on all MTA buses, AirTrain JFK, Metro North's Hudson Rail Link, and on the Roosevelt Island Tram; when completely rolled out, it will also replace the MetroCard on Bee-Line buses, and NICE buses. OMNY will also expand beyond the current scope of the MetroCard to include the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad.
Pronto, stylized as PRONTO, is the second-generation contactless payment system for automated fare collection on public transit services in San Diego County, California. The system is managed by the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System, operated by INIT Systems, and is valid on all services operated by the Metropolitan Transit System, and on North County Transit District. It launched on September 1, 2021, replacing the first-generation Compass Card system. Pronto involved the installation of new fare machines at all transit stations. It was the first contactless smart card introduction in California during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Arc card is a contactless smart card and automated fare collection system being introduced to transit services in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region. The initial launch started in the last week of August, 2021, when U-Pass holders began receiving Arc Cards from their respective institutions. A pilot-testing period with 500 adult fare users began on 1 January, 2022, and the system opened to all adult fare-paying passengers on November 21, 2022. As of January 2024, Arc is also available for youth and students, and seniors—with low-income and paratransit riders scheduled to be onboarded later in 2024.
Fare capping is a feature of public transport fare collection systems. Fare capping credits the cost of fares for individual trips towards the cost of an unlimited pass, limiting the cost of fares that passengers pay.