History
Planning and Installation
In 2018, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System launched Elevate San Diego, a public participation plan that will address the needs for the growing population, and eventually invoke Assembly Bill 805, and increase the half-cent sales tax within MTS jurisdiction via ballot proposition. It has been postponed indefinitely due to the pandemic. [2]
In January 2019, MTS awarded INIT Systems the contract to install and operate the new system. [3]
Installation began in February 2021 on MTS vehicles. The first machine was installed at the San Diego Convention Center on February 8, with further machines and validators being installed at NCTD and MTS transit stations in the following months. [4]
Transition
On April 16, 2021, the SANDAG Transportation Committee voted to approve the system. On June 17, the MTS Board adopted a transition plan, and announced the system will launch on September 1, when proposed fare hikes take effect. [5]
The transition began in August 2021, when cards became available for purchase. [6] On August 15, registration began, and the app was released to smartphones. The system came online at midnight on September 1. Cards issued during the transition period were pre-loaded with a monthly pass, which activated upon launch of the system.
As the primary agency of the system, MTS assumed user support responsibilities, including the chat and call centers, which are called the Pronto Support Team.
Technology
The system is account-based, rather than the previous card-based Compass Card. Once purchasing a smart card or creating an account on the app, an account will be tied to it. [7] All cards have the same design, with the exclusion of Pronto ID cards; however, cardholders entitled to discounted fares have the opportunity to change the type of account their card is tied to by contacting support. [7]
The technology uses a "Best Fare" principle. The card is tapped only at the beginning of all non-Coaster trips to deduct a one-way fare. Non-transfer one-way fares will be deducted each time the card is used until reaching the daily or monthly cap, which equals the same price as it would take to purchase a day or month unlimited ridership pass. Therefore, riders pay as they go until reaching the price of such a pass. The Pronto card restored the ability to pay for just a single one-way fare if transferring to other services within two hours of tapping the card initially. The ability to purchase unlimited ride passes is retained. [8]
As different rules apply, route-specific eTickets will be available for NCTD's Coaster route. The new system also features smartphone app capability for devices with 4G and 5G technology. A person may register multiple cards under one account for groups and families.
The cards feature the MIFARE DESFire semiconductor, while the app is written in INIT's MOBILEVario platform.
Suica is a prepaid rechargeable contactless smart card, electronic money used as a fare card on train lines in Japan, launched on November 18, 2001. The card can be used interchangeably with JR West's ICOCA in the Kansai region and San'yō region in Okayama, Hiroshima, and Yamaguchi prefectures, and also with JR Central's TOICA, JR Kyushu's SUGOCA, Nishitetsu's Nimoca, and Fukuoka City Subway's Hayakaken area in Fukuoka City and its suburb areas. The card is also increasingly being accepted as a form of electronic money for purchases at stores and kiosks, especially within train stations. As of 2018, JR East reports 69.4 million Suica UID's have been issued, usable at 476,300 point of sale locations, with 6.6 million daily transactions.
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.
Coaster is a commuter rail service in the central and northern coastal regions of San Diego County, California, United States, operated by the North County Transit District (NCTD). The 41-mile (66 km) commuter rail line features eight stops, with a travel time of about an hour and five minutes end-to-end. The service operates primarily during weekday peak periods, with limited midday, weekend and holiday service. The Coaster first entered service on February 27, 1995, and has since grown in ridership and capacity. In 2022, the line had a ridership of 735,100, or about 2,700 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2023.
The San Diego Trolley is a light rail system operating in the metropolitan area of San Diego. The Trolley's operator, San Diego Trolley, Inc., is a subsidiary of the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System (MTS). The trolley operates as a critical component of the MTS, with connections to and integrated travel tickets with the local bus systems. There is one downtown station which is a universal transfer point on the system, and 13 other stations that provide transfers to a second line.
The Clipper card is a reloadable contactless smart card used for automated fare collection in the San Francisco Bay Area. First introduced as TransLink in 2002 by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) as a pilot program, it was rebranded in its current form on June 16, 2010. Like other transit smart cards such as the Oyster card, the Clipper card is a credit card-sized stored-value card capable of holding both cash value and transit passes for the participating transit agencies. In addition to the traditional plastic card, Clipper is available as a virtual card in Google Wallet and Apple Wallet. Clipper is accepted by nearly all public transit services in the Bay Area, including but not limited to Muni, BART, Caltrain, AC Transit, SamTrans, Golden Gate Transit, Golden Gate Ferry, San Francisco Bay Ferry, and VTA.
The San Diego Association of Governments is an association of local San Diego County governments. It is the metropolitan planning organization for the County, with policy makers consisting of mayors, councilmembers, and County Supervisors, and also has capital planning and fare setting powers for the county's transit systems, the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System and North County Transit District, some of which was assumed by the Metropolitan Transit Development Board.
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.
The Compass Card was the first-generation smart card used for automated fare collection on public transport services within San Diego County, California. Administered by the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), it was valid on a number of different travel systems in San Diego County including MTS buses, the San Diego Trolley, North County Buses, the Coaster and the Sprinter. The system was operated by Cubic Transportation Systems. Phased out over the third quarter of 2021, It was discontinued on August 31, and its successor, Pronto, launched the following day.
Because the rail operators are government-assisted profit-based corporations, fares and ticketing on Singapore's Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system are currently aimed at least in breaking even to at least compensate for their costs of running the system. The rail operators collect fares by selling electronic tickets capable of storing data, the price of which is calculated based on the distance between the start and destination stations. These prices increase in fixed stages for standard non-concessionary travel. From the information that was earlier written in these tickets, it is possible to increase the fare according to increments based on approximate distances between stations.
Sprinter is a hybrid rail service operating in the North County area of San Diego County between the cities of Escondido and Oceanside, California, United States. The service uses the 22-mile (35 km) Escondido Subdivision of the San Diego Northern Railroad. Station platforms were constructed for the line's fifteen stations serving the cities of Oceanside, Vista, San Marcos, and Escondido. The line provides service to California State University, San Marcos and Palomar College. Sprinter service operates every 30 minutes and is targeted towards students and commuters.
The North County Transit District is the agency responsible for public transportation in Northern San Diego County, California. The agency manages the Coaster commuter rail service between Oceanside and San Diego, the SPRINTER hybrid rail service between Escondido and Oceanside, the BREEZE transit bus service, LIFT paratransit service, and FLEX on-demand and point-deviation service.
The following is a list of transportation options in San Diego County, California.
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.
Vix Technology (Vix) is an Australian company that designs, supplies and operates automated fare collection (AFC) systems, intelligent transportation systems (ITS), access, payment and passenger information display systems (PIDS) for the public transit industry.
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.
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).
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.
The Compass card is a contactless smart card automated fare collection system used primarily for public transit in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Compass card readers were first implemented as a beta in September 2013. Due to delays, full implementation to the general public began in August 2015. The system is operated by Cubic Transportation Systems and is managed by TransLink, the transportation authority for the region.
Hop Fastpass is a contactless smart card for public transit fare payment on most transit modes in the Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area including MAX Light Rail, WES commuter rail, Portland Streetcar, The Vine, and all TriMet and C-TRAN buses. An initial release to the general public began on July 5, 2017, with the official launch on July 17. The program is managed by TriMet.
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. Discounted fare users and special groups will be onboarded to the Arc system at some point in 2023 during phase three, with the specific timeframe depending on the results of the previous phases.
A PRONTO Smart Card Machine
A PRONTO Smart Card On-Board Validator
A San Diego Trolley unit advertising PRONTO
An MTS bus wrapped in a PRONTO advertisement
Pronto fare stand
Pronto ticket machine
Pronto and Compass Ticket Machines
