(no subject)

[randomness]

My friend Lisa Weber of Better Mass Transit, a public advocacy group here in Boston, has asked me to share her two-question survey about one aspect of the MBTA's new fare collection system.

Here's her post:

"Friends who take the T. They've started switching to their new payment system which eliminates cash payments on board, but will allow you to pay with a smartphone, fare media card, or contactless credit card. You'll still be able to pay cash at fare vending machines to buy the fare media cards before boarding.

"They have announced their plan to charge a $5 mandatory overdraft protection fee for each kind of payment (each new fare card, smartphone app, credit card).

"Would you please take this two-question survey to share your opinion about the required $5 fee. Feel free to share it with anyone who takes the T. I'm happy to answer any questions."

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/VMV3BF6

Comments

[randomness]

No. You've got it wrong in two ways.

First, there will be no more CharlieTickets. Second, new CharlieCards will cost $5.

If you want $5 in cash value on a new CharlieCard, it will cost you $10. I'm not sure where you're getting the $7.50 figure from. After you have the card, additional credit will cost what it costs, so there will be no additional charge.

If you want to pay with a contactless credit card, it will cost $5 to register the card.

(Caveat: transit advocates are pushing back against the proposal.)

[bikergeek]

They're still hitting you over the ear for $5, but if it gets you a card that can be reloaded multiple times over a long lifetime, then that's not so bad. IIRC CharlieCards have a lifespan, but it's something really long like 7 years. (I had one expire on me a couple of years ago.)

I thought they were doing this on a per-transaction basis.

Getting your hands on a CharlieCard used to be somewhat hard, particularly if you couldn't make it to one of a handful of stations like Downtown Crossing or Harvard during business hours.

I wish the T would copy one aspect of many European systems: the fact that there are fare vending machines just about everywhere, and that you can reload a fare card at a whole lot of places like convenience stores and such.

[randomness]

So, part of the new system is that they will be rolling out vending machines in many new places. One of my earlier posts includes a link to the T's suggestion page, which has a GIS map on which one can suggest locations for new ticket vending machines.

That post is here:
https://randomness.dreamwidth.org/644384.html

I encourage everyone to make suggestions for vending machine locations. It can't hurt.

Also they plan to sign up many more third-party vendors like convenience stores.

[bikergeek]

I took a look at the map. The existing suggestions for AFC locations in my neighborhood are pretty good. I clicked "Like" on the ones I'd be likely to use.

I do hope the T looks at some of the machines that are in use elsewhere in the world. The MBTA unfortunately suffers from a bad case of "Not Invented Here", and tends to order up expensive custom solutions for things that are solved problems elsewhere. (Like the fare gates that are in current use on the T, which are a custom design.)

[randomness]

Or the fareboxes on buses, which require coins to be dropped in one at a time.