Photo by Mr. T in DCWMATA officials took another step towards an all-encompassing SmarTrip card yesterday by putting to sleep the use of weekly paper passes on Metrobuses. Starting today, the Seven-Day Bus Pass, a popular choice among daily commuters, has been fully transitioned to the sturdier SmartTrip card, as well as adding a few useful features.
Unlike some other proposals to lure riders towards using plastic, Metro has kept the cost of the pass the same: $15 for a regular pass, $7.50 for a discounted one. But for those familiar with the weekly pain of procuring a paper pass every Sunday, the new pass runs for any seven consecutive days. In addition, two passes can be loaded on a card at any given time — when the first runs out, the second kicks in automatically. Like magic! [insert applause here]
The transition, which has been in the works since last October still begs the question, why isn’t there a weekly or monthly Metrorail pass yet? Or more interest-piquing, why enact these changes when the search for a SmartTrip replacement has already started? With so many plans introduced and subsequently scrapped, Metro’s unstoppable march towards progress could use a bit of headway.
