004n063 Posted November 14, 2023 Share Posted November 14, 2023 Saw this on the bus this morning. A welcome update. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EastwoodEnvoy Posted November 14, 2023 Share Posted November 14, 2023 Awesome news. I recently visited a city with phone wallet tap to pay integration and it was sooo nice to not have to worry about carrying cash, downloading an app, or loading a card to catch a ride. Hopefully Metro markets this as I really think it helps tear down some of those subconscious barriers that prevent people from utilizing the bus system. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
004n063 Posted November 15, 2023 Author Share Posted November 15, 2023 7 hours ago, EastwoodEnvoy said: Awesome news. I recently visited a city with phone wallet tap to pay integration and it was sooo nice to not have to worry about carrying cash, downloading an app, or loading a card to catch a ride. Hopefully Metro markets this as I really think it helps tear down some of those subconscious barriers that prevent people from utilizing the bus system. I think it's pretty huge for first-time or infrequent transit users. It was the lowest-hanging fruit for METRO, but it was an important one to grab. Hope it applies to the reimagined bikeshare as well. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
editor Posted November 15, 2023 Share Posted November 15, 2023 13 hours ago, 004n063 said: I think it's pretty huge for first-time or infrequent transit users. It was the lowest-hanging fruit for METRO, but it was an important one to grab. Hope it applies to the reimagined bikeshare as well. You are correct. Every time there's a big event, I see tourists clustered around the awful Q-Card machines trying to figure out what to do. The process is absurd. The key is for Metro to let people other than current Metro users know about the tap-to-pay phone integration. On iPhone, you have to go into Settings to activate it. I don't think infrequent transit users know that. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted November 15, 2023 Share Posted November 15, 2023 Hopefully, it will work as well as Chicago's Ventra system. Preload money on your electronic "card" and you can pay super-easily via Apple Watch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corbs315 Posted November 15, 2023 Share Posted November 15, 2023 cool - I hope they make it known where all this is available. ^Chicago is awesome and I usually don't take busses, but their system made it so easy (just swipe your credit card) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
004n063 Posted November 15, 2023 Author Share Posted November 15, 2023 7 hours ago, Houston19514 said: Hopefully, it will work as well as Chicago's Ventra system. Preload money on your electronic "card" and you can pay super-easily via Apple Watch. That's the current system. The new system will be that plus debit/credit/Google Pay/Apple Pay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rechlin Posted November 18, 2023 Share Posted November 18, 2023 This will be frustrating for me. When I tap my Q-card to board the train or bus, I just tap my wallet. My Q-card is the only card it recognizes so it works. But since I have several tap-to-pay credit cards in my wallet, too, with the new system it would probably be random which it charges. That's not necessarily a problem for the first ride, but when I do the connection I would need it to recognize the same card or I'd get charged again. So this means that with the new system, I will have to pull my card out of my wallet and tap it separately, which is a major decrease in convenience. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
004n063 Posted November 18, 2023 Author Share Posted November 18, 2023 3 hours ago, rechlin said: This will be frustrating for me. When I tap my Q-card to board the train or bus, I just tap my wallet. My Q-card is the only card it recognizes so it works. But since I have several tap-to-pay credit cards in my wallet, too, with the new system it would probably be random which it charges. That's not necessarily a problem for the first ride, but when I do the connection I would need it to recognize the same card or I'd get charged again. So this means that with the new system, I will have to pull my card out of my wallet and tap it separately, which is a major decrease in convenience. I don't think they're getting rid of the Q tap machines (well, the "ONE card" machines), just adding standard tap pay. So you could still tap your wallet on the system machine. Could be wrong, though, in which case you would need to pull your card out at some point on your first ride in order to tap it on the second. If you're a regular user of Houston transit and this feels like a "major" invonvenience, then I'm not sure what to tell you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rechlin Posted November 19, 2023 Share Posted November 19, 2023 20 hours ago, 004n063 said: I don't think they're getting rid of the Q tap machines (well, the "ONE card" machines), just adding standard tap pay. So you could still tap your wallet on the system machine. Could be wrong, though, in which case you would need to pull your card out at some point on your first ride in order to tap it on the second. If you're a regular user of Houston transit and this feels like a "major" invonvenience, then I'm not sure what to tell you. I'd be surprised if they keep two systems. The new machines haven't been active on any of my buses yet, but I'm pretty sure they'll just get rid of the old machine and slide the new one over. And I'd have to pull the card out for both rides to ensure the same card is used on both, so what you are suggesting doesn't make sense. Thankfully nobody said it was a major inconvenience. I just said it was a major decrease in convenience. I've ridden Metro thousands of times over the years. Yes, there are greater inconveniences, but that's no reason to accept just one more inconvenience. Every little thing adds up. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
004n063 Posted November 19, 2023 Author Share Posted November 19, 2023 (edited) 2 hours ago, rechlin said: I'd be surprised if they keep two systems. The new machines haven't been active on any of my buses yet, but I'm pretty sure they'll just get rid of the old machine and slide the new one over. And I'd have to pull the card out for both rides to ensure the same card is used on both, so what you are suggesting doesn't make sense. Thankfully nobody said it was a major inconvenience. I just said it was a major decrease in convenience. I've ridden Metro thousands of times over the years. Yes, there are greater inconveniences, but that's no reason to accept just one more inconvenience. Every little thing adds up. I just think this is something where the number of people who will find it more convenient is significantly higher than the number of people who will find it less convenient. Edited November 19, 2023 by 004n063 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
august948 Posted November 19, 2023 Share Posted November 19, 2023 On 11/15/2023 at 8:00 AM, editor said: You are correct. Every time there's a big event, I see tourists clustered around the awful Q-Card machines trying to figure out what to do. The process is absurd. The key is for Metro to let people other than current Metro users know about the tap-to-pay phone integration. On iPhone, you have to go into Settings to activate it. I don't think infrequent transit users know that. Metro must recognize this as the picture below is the first thing that shows up on their Fares page... 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rechlin Posted November 20, 2023 Share Posted November 20, 2023 Or one could just use the current Metro app to pay for fares, which doesn't even require tapping. A minority of passengers use that, but I'm sure it's at least 10% of the people I see on my bus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cspwal Posted November 20, 2023 Share Posted November 20, 2023 I couldnt get my q card replaced easily, so I temporarily started using the app and it’s been good enough I never got a q card Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erik Asuncion Posted November 20, 2023 Share Posted November 20, 2023 On 11/15/2023 at 9:43 AM, Houston19514 said: Hopefully, it will work as well as Chicago's Ventra system. Preload money on your electronic "card" and you can pay super-easily via Apple Watch. The Ventra System is great. I was in Chicago a month ago and noticed that the fare machines now accept tap-to pay using a credit card with contactless payment or digital wallet on a smartphone. A rider can still choose to use a digital Ventra card from the smartphone app and continue to reload or purchase a pass. The downside I saw to using contactless payment or digital wallet on Chicago's fare card readers was that a $5 hold was place on my credit card every time I tapped the card reader: when I boarded the bus and when I passed through the turnstile at the "L" train station. The maximum fare a rider will pay in a day is capped at $5, the price for a 24 hour pass. The holds were reversed within 48 hours and the correct $2.50 fare was charged. For anyone who boards multiple times in a day, they would see the $5 hold every time. This means a rider who boards four times a day would have a $20 hold on their card. This may not be a problem for a person who has a high credit card limit or who can afford to have funds on hold in their checking account. It could be a problem for those who can't afford to have funds on hold. For them, a physical or digital reloadable fare card would be the better option. On 11/19/2023 at 10:37 AM, rechlin said: I'd be surprised if they keep two systems. The new machines haven't been active on any of my buses yet, but I'm pretty sure they'll just get rid of the old machine and slide the new one over. And I'd have to pull the card out for both rides to ensure the same card is used on both, so what you are suggesting doesn't make sense. Thankfully nobody said it was a major inconvenience. I just said it was a major decrease in convenience. I've ridden Metro thousands of times over the years. Yes, there are greater inconveniences, but that's no reason to accept just one more inconvenience. Every little thing adds up. I noticed the new machines started to be installed about two months ago and have been left inactive. I saw that the Q Fare Card reader were tethered to it. In the brochure shared by the OP, it appears the ONE Card will replace the Q Fare Card. I speculate that there will be a transition period where those who hold a Q Fare Card will still be able to use them with the old card reader, but will need to purchase a new ONE Card before a specified deadline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted November 21, 2023 Share Posted November 21, 2023 On 11/15/2023 at 5:35 PM, 004n063 said: That's the current system. The new system will be that plus debit/credit/Google Pay/Apple Pay You can pay on Metro with your Apple Watch? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
004n063 Posted November 21, 2023 Author Share Posted November 21, 2023 1 hour ago, Houston19514 said: You can pay on Metro with your Apple Watch? Starting some time in 2024, looks like. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Houston19514 Posted November 21, 2023 Share Posted November 21, 2023 6 hours ago, 004n063 said: Starting some time in 2024, looks like. So when you said "That's the current system". . . ?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
004n063 Posted November 22, 2023 Author Share Posted November 22, 2023 3 hours ago, Houston19514 said: So when you said "That's the current system". . . ?? Oh, I get what you are asking. Had forgotten the context of my comment. Yes, you can pay via an apple watch, just as you can pay via your phone. You just need to show the QR to the driver. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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