A Day (and Beyond) Without a Transfer
Sundays are normally quieter days on the city's public transit system, but yesterday saw one of the biggest changes to the way customers board Metrobuses since the introduction of SmarTrip cards in 2001.
WMATA announced in October that it would be putting an end to paper transfers this week, and yesterday, the change went into effect. From now on, only bus riders using SmarTrip cards will be able to take advantage of free bus-to-bus transfers and discounted rail-to-bus transfers. Bus drivers no longer give out paper transfers, and machines that dispense paper rail-to-bus transfers inside Metro stations are being removed.
By now, we all know the arguments in favor of getting rid of the paper transfers. Just removing the cost of producing and distributing them saves Metro $300,000, and the expected reduction in fraud associated with their demise should bring in additional revenue. As more and more bus riders adopt SmarTrip, passenger load times should also be reduced, increasing Metrobus reliability and on-time service.
Current SmarTrip users should also be happy about two new realities: The free-transfer period associated with SmarTrip cards has been extended from 2 hours to 3 hours, and transfer discounts now apply both to rail-to-bus AND bus-to-rail trips. The amount of the rail-to-bus transfer has been decreased to make it level with the new bus-to-rail discount, amounting to customers receiving a 50 cent discount on any trip involving a transfer between the two systems. Bus-to-bus transfers continue to be free, and will now be good for a full three hours.
Photo by lorigoldberg
All that said, we're bracing for some rough going as bus riders grow used to the new rules. One of the reasons WMATA has cited for the end of paper transfers was the hope that it would reduce the number of disputes between passengers and drivers over whether a paper transfer was still valid. Hopefully once things settle down, that'll be the case, but it's not difficult to imagine that the city's poor will find plenty to be angry about in the new system. The $5 cost of a SmarTrip will be prohibitive to some, and the tedious method of adding small amounts of cash to a card when you don't have a credit or debit card will be an obstacle to many others, especially recent immigrants.
Over the last month, I've spoken with bus riders who expressed deep suspicion over Metro's motives for the change. One woman believed that she would no longer be able to afford to ride the bus starting this week. Another told me to expect poor residents like herself who are angry about the change to harass bus drivers even more than they do now, arguing that they can't afford to buy the permanent cards and shouldn't be penalized a free transfer. A recent Street Sense cover story noted that many homeless people are worried that even if they manage to get a free card from a social services agency, eventually someone would steal their cards.
Be sure to share your stories of how you see the end of paper transfers unfolding on your daily commute. Also check out the City Paper's cover story from last month about how the end of the transfer is also the end of a D.C. institution: the free ride.