The city’s bus and subway riders have told the Metropolitan Transportation Authority they’ve grown to loathe its $700 million MetroCard fare collection system.
The straphangers have said they find the high-tech electronic cards confusing, time-consuming and undependable. They’ve also told the MTA that MetroCards are prone to theft, a hassle to buy and embarrassing to use.
“I wait to be last in line so I can look” to see how to put the card in, said one straphanger. “If you don’t put it in the right way, people start sucking their teeth.
On top of everything, many riders are so fed up with the MTA that they won’t use the MetroCard simply out of spite.
“I didn’t buy out of orneriness, because it wasn’t what I thought it would be,” said another straphanger.
“There’s no reason to buy it. It isn’t any more convenient,” said a third. “I admit at first it was just spite, stubbornness ‘You’re not giving me what I want!
I enjoyed reading this, thank you. Although can't say I remember the same hated / frustration with metro cards beginnings, or really anyone around me at the time. Maybe it's from youth and more
Open to change. As now, with omny, I have the same worry shared in the article about metro cards. Did omny charge me correctly. If anything, I look back and “hate” what metrocard led to. Less and less stations agents, the easier convenience of the mta to raise the fare. But, in the beginning, it was pretty cool.
People were resistant to the MetroCard for a long while. It came out in 1994 and it didn't fully replace the token until 2003. The blue card didn't get much traction at all and only the arrival of the gold card in 1997 started to convert people over with the advent of the then novel free transfer, which was a boon for bus riders. Only that and the introduction of unlimited ride products really convinced people to make the switch to MetroCard.
The other person already responded. But yea, obviously not everyone hated them, and we didn't live in the same world so it wasn't so easy to let everyone know how much you hated it. Plus if you're like me, you were probably young enough to not see the big deal. And of course, many people here have been using them most, if not all of their lives.
As a side note, I do think that after the yellow metrocard came out, things started getting more positive.
I’m still bitter about the switch to the electronic turnstiles that preceded the Metrocard. Some of the older Merrocard equipped (now OMNY equipped) turnstiles still have coin return slots.
Before the Merrocard launch, they had to replace every mechanical turnstile with the new ones.
The old ones would unlock almost instantly, so if you reached ahead as you were walking and dropped the token in at arm’s length, you could walk through without ever slowing down your walking pace.
The electronic ones had a delay that was just long enough before unlocking that if you tried the pace that worked with the old mechanical ones you ended up walking right into the locked bar at full speed. It slowed everything down by quite a bit — and that was before reswiping was even a thing.
The other day NHK World had an interview with the Japanese engineer who designed the MetroCard, and the MetroCard readers. He also had a hand in the design of the newer subway cars being used by the MTA. Really interesting conversation.
I still have a blue metrocard, I will add the gold metrocard to my old subway token, too.
Meanwhile, it took NYC nearly 20 years to adopt a contactless smart card for payment, when Boston had the CharlieCard since 2006 and San Francisco launched their ClipperCard in 2010.
Are people actually serious about this? I keep seeing MetroCard sentimentality and it feels really force. Metrocard sucked ass. It wasn't up to the task from day one. The machines were so delicate, barley worked a third of the time. Tokens should have had atleast 15 more years before they tried to impliment digital technology.
My primary complaints is that I still get tap issues with the OMNY card from time to time, and that I can't see my current balance at turnstiles or at the bus anymore, which makes a mild inconvenience of having to find a machine to verify how much I have (or download yet another app).
When will both the MTA and the PATH stop accepting Metrocards? I'm holding onto some because it's so convenient to have one card that works on both systems, and now we're going to lose that.
Crazy that NYC waited two decades to get the bog simple version of a technology that’s over two decades old by the company that did Metrocard.
You have regular buses and subways, PATH, express buses and that’s it. No crazy fare zones or zone 1 circumnavigations or peak/off peak fares. (London Oyster, 2003)
You don’t have a dozen transit agencies to have to negotiate with and placate (SF Clipper Card, 2010)
being able to pay with a credit card is a lifesaver for folks who don't live by the train station, but rely on the bus. no need to check your balance and worry about upping it. it just works.
Like almost every other change in New York, absolutely hated in the beginning and "beloved" by the end.
Hated? I seem to remember the beginning quite differently. No longer needing tokens/ change. The free transfers.
https://www.nydailynews.com/1996/07/29/riders-rip-mta-card-astrophe-study-sees-many-causes-for-metroflop/
The city’s bus and subway riders have told the Metropolitan Transportation Authority they’ve grown to loathe its $700 million MetroCard fare collection system.
The straphangers have said they find the high-tech electronic cards confusing, time-consuming and undependable. They’ve also told the MTA that MetroCards are prone to theft, a hassle to buy and embarrassing to use.
“I wait to be last in line so I can look” to see how to put the card in, said one straphanger. “If you don’t put it in the right way, people start sucking their teeth.
On top of everything, many riders are so fed up with the MTA that they won’t use the MetroCard simply out of spite.
“I didn’t buy out of orneriness, because it wasn’t what I thought it would be,” said another straphanger.
“There’s no reason to buy it. It isn’t any more convenient,” said a third. “I admit at first it was just spite, stubbornness ‘You’re not giving me what I want!
I enjoyed reading this, thank you. Although can't say I remember the same hated / frustration with metro cards beginnings, or really anyone around me at the time. Maybe it's from youth and more Open to change. As now, with omny, I have the same worry shared in the article about metro cards. Did omny charge me correctly. If anything, I look back and “hate” what metrocard led to. Less and less stations agents, the easier convenience of the mta to raise the fare. But, in the beginning, it was pretty cool.
No social media back then where everyone could give their opinion also helped that. At some point people will come around to the change.
we need to bring conductors off the train and as platform controllers and stations agents
People were resistant to the MetroCard for a long while. It came out in 1994 and it didn't fully replace the token until 2003. The blue card didn't get much traction at all and only the arrival of the gold card in 1997 started to convert people over with the advent of the then novel free transfer, which was a boon for bus riders. Only that and the introduction of unlimited ride products really convinced people to make the switch to MetroCard.
Yeah many outer borough stations didn't get metrocard capable turnstiles until the late 90s
Lol I still remember using tokens as an elementary school kid in southern Brooklyn in the early 2000s, only now do I realize how weird that was
Free transfers were a thing even with tokens—you’d get a paper transfer ticket.
The other person already responded. But yea, obviously not everyone hated them, and we didn't live in the same world so it wasn't so easy to let everyone know how much you hated it. Plus if you're like me, you were probably young enough to not see the big deal. And of course, many people here have been using them most, if not all of their lives.
As a side note, I do think that after the yellow metrocard came out, things started getting more positive.
Yeah because in the beginning they fucking sucked.
I’m still bitter about the switch to the electronic turnstiles that preceded the Metrocard. Some of the older Merrocard equipped (now OMNY equipped) turnstiles still have coin return slots.
Before the Merrocard launch, they had to replace every mechanical turnstile with the new ones.
The old ones would unlock almost instantly, so if you reached ahead as you were walking and dropped the token in at arm’s length, you could walk through without ever slowing down your walking pace.
The electronic ones had a delay that was just long enough before unlocking that if you tried the pace that worked with the old mechanical ones you ended up walking right into the locked bar at full speed. It slowed everything down by quite a bit — and that was before reswiping was even a thing.
SWIPE CARD AGAIN AT THIS TURNSTILEGoodbye, my friend
The other day NHK World had an interview with the Japanese engineer who designed the MetroCard, and the MetroCard readers. He also had a hand in the design of the newer subway cars being used by the MTA. Really interesting conversation.
Beloved by anyone besides late-arriving hipsters? These pieces of shit took 5 swipes on average to work.
Good riddance.
Literally every other metro system that tried did it better.
The refill kiosks fucking ate credit cards and on several occasions, shredded the skin on my fingers. Fuck MetroCard, rest in piss.
I still have a blue metrocard, I will add the gold metrocard to my old subway token, too.
Meanwhile, it took NYC nearly 20 years to adopt a contactless smart card for payment, when Boston had the CharlieCard since 2006 and San Francisco launched their ClipperCard in 2010.
NYC is behind the times.
Not beloved by me
i wonder how much money i lost by buying a metrocard and then either losing it or storing it and it expiring.
Nobody will miss it.
“Just Used”
Are people actually serious about this? I keep seeing MetroCard sentimentality and it feels really force. Metrocard sucked ass. It wasn't up to the task from day one. The machines were so delicate, barley worked a third of the time. Tokens should have had atleast 15 more years before they tried to impliment digital technology.
My primary complaints is that I still get tap issues with the OMNY card from time to time, and that I can't see my current balance at turnstiles or at the bus anymore, which makes a mild inconvenience of having to find a machine to verify how much I have (or download yet another app).
It's petty, but that's what I got.
Can we send in the metrocard with balance to get money back ?? Anyone know?
IIRC station kiosks can transfer metrocard balance to an omny card
Sorry but where is llRC station ?
Sorry I forgot to add the word "the" between IIRC and station.
Looks like it's only stations with customer service centers are able to help, not any station agent like what I thought originally.
https://www.mta.info/contact-us/customer-service-centers
Thank you
Anyone know where they have the machines still? I have a few metrocards that I wanna refill
PATH Stations, hit or miss the Metrocard features work, but at least the machines are still there for now
When will both the MTA and the PATH stop accepting Metrocards? I'm holding onto some because it's so convenient to have one card that works on both systems, and now we're going to lose that.
Spent how many millions just to end up with OMNY cards?
You have to be crazy to tap your phone or debit card
Why? Tap to pay is excellent.
Crazy that NYC waited two decades to get the bog simple version of a technology that’s over two decades old by the company that did Metrocard.
You have regular buses and subways, PATH, express buses and that’s it. No crazy fare zones or zone 1 circumnavigations or peak/off peak fares. (London Oyster, 2003)
You don’t have a dozen transit agencies to have to negotiate with and placate (SF Clipper Card, 2010)
being able to pay with a credit card is a lifesaver for folks who don't live by the train station, but rely on the bus. no need to check your balance and worry about upping it. it just works.
It feels sometimes that the OMNY system was designed more for folks to pay with their debit/credit cards instead of their own card.
NFC was a thing 15+ years ago and it's taken this long for the US to get on board. Kind of shameful, honestly.