Metrolinx: Presto Fare Card

[EastYorkTTCFan]

Simply for the reason that all of the 905-agencies and GO Transit obviously seem to be planning on implementing this capability, why would the TTC opt out with the faregates?

No need for it. I don't really know why other transit agencies decided to use them but the TTC has decided not to and probably aren't going to be adding it if they haven't already at this point. Since we have already seen the new scanners put in on some stations already and they didn't add a bar code scanner says to me that there is no interest in using one for the future. If anything they want people to not have to use paper transfers or tickets going forward.

 

[Mind_the_gap]

^ Guess it’s better to pay the people installing the new equipment twice, instead of having some foresight when every agency around you including Ottawa is doing it for Presto.

 

[EastYorkTTCFan]

^ Guess it’s better to pay the people installing the new equipment twice, instead of having some foresight when every agency around you including Ottawa is doing it for Presto.

Why does it matter what Ottawa does? The TTC decided against using bar codes so i don't really see why they would change now because Ottawa did. Different transit agencies decided how they wanted to use single use tickets, the TTC decided to use one that could be tapped on the fare Gates because they didn't plan for barcode readers and they aren't going to add them just because you think they should or other agencies decided to use them.

 

[nfitz]

Simply for the reason that all of the 905-agencies and GO Transit (edit: and OC Transpo) obviously seem to be planning on implementing this capability, why would the TTC opt out with the faregates?

What would they use it for? Some agencies use it for transfers - and even tickets.

Toronto's contractor instead went with tappable fare media.

 

[W. K. Lis]

BMO removes fees for card payments on public transit across Canada​

From link.

Public transit riders across Canada who use a debit card linked to the Bank of Montreal (BMO) to pay their fare won’t have to worry about having this frequent type of transaction counting towards their monthly transaction count limit.

This new ability for unlimited use covers all debit transactions with BMO on public transit, including those made by retail and commercial customers. BMO customers will not have to keep count of their number of transactions on public transit to avoid fees when they go over the limit.

“In this economic environment, we are seeing that significantly fewer Canadians feel they are making real financial progress with particularly steep declines in city centres such as Toronto and Vancouver. This feature will help ease worries about transaction count limit fees and let customers focus on their financial goals and staying on budget,” said Gayle Ramsay, head of everyday banking, segments, and customer growth for BMO, in a statement.

William Keliehor, chief commercial officer of Interac, added: “We welcome BMO’s decision to make transit use easier and more convenient by making all debit transactions free of charge.”

While this capability is nationwide, it will be particularly convenient for public transit riders on the major systems of TransLink in Metro Vancouver — where the Compass system enables debit and credit cards to be tapped on card readers — and on various systems across Greater Toronto. Later this year, the TTC will be the latest system to gain debit and credit card tapping capability on Metrolinx’s Presto devices.

 

[littlewill1166]

That's standard Accenture procedure. They do a lot of our IT outsourcing in India as well. However, I'm not sure it being done in India would be the reason for it to have been done badly. Some Accenture folks are fantastic. A lot are duds.

ETA: The IT consultants often seem pretty good. I'm sure it was the management consultants responsible for making a hash of Presto (with a helping hand of government incompetence and meddling).

It's a recipe for broken telephone because you have three dev teams Metrolinx (Toronto), S&B (Germany), and Accenture (India) working across three different time zones on the project. Hence, a lot of Accenture people got work visas to work here.

 

[Tuscani01]

Anyone else finding the new Presto readers on streetcars incredibly slow? I’m used to tapping and having it beep right away. There’s been several times in the past few weeks where I tap and start walking away only for it not to beep, and me having to backtrack or walk in and tap on another reader. I feel like I’m holding everyone up if I stand and hold my card to the reader until the beep.

 

[yrt+viva=1system]

Anyone else finding the new Presto readers on streetcars incredibly slow? I’m used to tapping and having it beep right away. There’s been several times in the past few weeks where I tap and start walking away only for it not to beep, and me having to backtrack or walk in and tap on another reader. I feel like I’m holding everyone up if I stand and hold my card to the reader until the beep.

No you're not the only one. It's been like that for a long time on YRT as well. Heck some times the reader doesn't even pick up your card and the driver will tell you to tap on his unit.

On another interesting observation, the fare gates at St. Clair stations now have the round Presto Card Reader.

 

[nfitz]

Anyone else finding the new Presto readers on streetcars incredibly slow?

But everyone wanted real time card updates.

There's reasons this wasn't a possibility when this was designed over a decade ago, as it's likely causing issues even today. Remember how much faster the parking meters were with credit cards, before the Toronto Star published that article, noting they don't check to see if the card is valid, and only batch process the information?

 

[trtcttc]

Probably shouldn't have gone with a company that had zero experience with transit cards before Presto and not full of "consultants" that know how to make fancy slides while everything technical is offshored to India. Why they didn't go with an established company like Cubic is beyond me. They couldn't use the excuse "we're just so complicated, no one has done this before" when the system is handling many times more rides in London and New York. But alas, it wouldn't be Metrolinx to not spend more for an inferior product.

 

[nfitz]

Though to be fair the New York system has required a physical card reader for years, and was very primitive - much more similar to the old TTC system for Metropasses, except you could put cash on it as well. Certainly no fare zones.

And Oyster couldn't have handled either the number of fare zones or systems; it still takes as long or longer to load money on it as Presto. Debit/credit is nice, but it still can't handle anyone under the age of 18 or University students.

 

[cplchanb]

how about HK's octopus system and the japan IC cards? those were really fast iirc when i was there.

 

[11th]

how about HK's octopus system and the japan IC cards? those were really fast iirc when i was there.

Do the readers on those systems allow payment by credit card?

I rememeber there were a lot of restrictions with those systems as well - namely very limited ways to top up with credit card, it was all cash.

 

[soundmuseum]

how about HK's octopus system and the japan IC cards? those were really fast iirc when i was there.

In Tokyo, the physical Suica and Pasmo cards are very fast, can be used interchangeably across all the various transit agencies in the city, and also in many other cities across the country that have their own separate IC card systems. If you have enough money on them, you can also use them to purchase food/goods at stores and restaurants that accept the card. They also show you the balance remaining on the card after each tap.

The only downside is that you can only load money onto the IC card using Yen (cash) at the station kiosks. You can't load them using credit cards, unless you have the special combination IC/Transit Pass/Credit/Reward Points cards, which would be for residents, not travelers.

I'm finding so far that the newer Presto readers are very slow to recognize the card, especially if you have it in a wallet or pouch. Before I could just tap it and got the beep, but now I find the newer ones won't sense the card and I have to take it out and tap repeatedly before it beeps. The slow opening gates are another issue that Tokyo doesn't have.

 

[nfitz]

I'm finding so far that the newer Presto readers are very slow to recognize the card, especially if you have it in a wallet or pouch. Before I could just tap it and got the beep, but now I find the newer ones won't sense the card and I have to take it out and tap repeatedly before it beeps.

If you are presenting your wallet, then there's likely card clash going on. People will have to stop doing that, once debit/credit is accepted, as who knows which card it will find first.

On buses/streetcars, I've found it intermittent. Most times it seems fine. But sometimes it seems slow. I'm not sure what the pattern is. Free transfers have been both fast and slow (despite no need for any realtime checks). Though I did notice that the slow tap I got this afternoon on a bus, was likely the first tap in a while, as I tapped in at the back door of a bus, in a fare paid zone; which most people never do. (and doesn't happen on that route at regular stops).

So are the readers on vehicles going to sleep? It could have been hours since anyone had tapped that reader.