Press Releases

Muni Metro Expansion Delivers Big Boost for TransLink® Pilot Program

Smart Card Scores with Golden Gate Ferry Riders

Contact:

Russell Driver, MTC
510.817.3252

John Goodwin, MTC
510.817.5862

Maggie Lynch, S.F. Muni
415.554.4128

OAKLAND, Calif., June 10, 2002...The new TransLink® regional fare payment system takes a big step forward today as San Francisco Muni expands the four-month-old pilot program to include the entire Muni Metro system. This marks the first expansion of the TransLink® system since the pilot program was launched Feb. 1 by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and six of the Bay Area’s biggest transit operators: AC Transit, BART, Caltrain, Golden Gate Transit, and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority as well as San Francisco Muni.

Passengers participating in the TransLink® pilot program now can use their distinctive green "smart cards" to ride Muni Metro’s J, K, L, M and N lines (cable cars and the F-line fleet of historic streetcars are not outfitted with TransLink® equipment). Previously, TransLink® could be used only on the N-Judah line. With the expanded availability, customers will be able to use their TransLink® cards to enter the Muni Metro system at major stations such as Church, Castro, Forest Hill and West Portal.

MTC and Muni employees will staff customer service/promotion tables in select Muni Metro stations on June 10, 11 and 12. Transit riders can take this opportunity to sign up for TransLink®, and learn how to use the system during this testing phase. MTC has distributed TransLink® cards to some 5,000 pilot program participants so far.

"We’ve already learned a lot during our test," commented TransLink® project director Russell Driver of MTC. "One thing is clear: the more convenient it is to use the card, the more people are using it. Now that the Muni Metro system is fully equipped, TransLink® will give thousands more customers easy access to travel options throughout San Francisco."

Driver pointed to the Golden Gate Transit ferry system as another example of convenience spurring TransLink® use. "Golden Gate made it easy for riders by installing TransLink® equipment at all of its ferry terminals. Now about 10 percent of the weekday ferry passengers are paying their fares with a TransLink® card. That’s a remarkable achievement just four months into the pilot program."

The TransLink® system uses "smart card" technology. Passengers use a plastic card embedded with a computer chip that they load with a dollar value, stored rides or monthly passes. They need only tag the credit-card-sized card at an electronic reader device located on transit vehicles, in stations or at fare gates, and the correct fare value will be deducted automatically from the card. TransLink® factors in a host of variables when calculating fares, including different fare structures for each operator, transfers, routes, lengths of trips, time of day and discounts for youth, elderly and disabled riders.

Participants in the TransLink® pilot program can load value onto their cards at self-serve Add Value Machines in transit stations and some 40 retail locations throughout the Bay Area (including all CDS Net booths and select Albertson’s, Check Center and News Spot locations), or by calling the TransLink® Customer Service Center. Add Value Machines accept cash, debit cards, and Visa, MasterCard and Discover credit cards. TransLink® users can reload value automatically by subscribing to the TransLink® Autoload Program.

The six transit systems participating in the TransLink® pilot program offer a sampling of the Bay Area’s diverse modal mix, everything from ferries to streetcars to buses to commuter rail. All together, 18 rail stations, 31 bus lines, three ferry terminals, and now six light-rail lines have been outfitted with specialized TransLink® card-reader equipment. The roughly 5,000 volunteers who have received the cards were recruited because they routinely travel on these TransLink®-equipped routes.

Frequent transit riders who are interested in trying TransLink® still can volunteer for the TransLink® pilot program by visiting <www.translink.org>.

After the success of the pilot program is determined, MTC and the participating agencies plan to install TransLink® equipment on all 21 Bay Area transit systems, which together carry in excess of 1.6 million riders a day. Data collection for the TransLink® pilot program ends July 31, with the Phase I evaluation report scheduled for completion September 1. MTC and its transit agency partners are expected to make their decisions regarding the implementation of Phase II by the end of this year. The first operators in Phase II could have their systems fully outfitted by mid- to late-2003.

MTC has contracted with Motorola, Inc. and ERG Limited to implement and operate the TransLink® fare-collection system. MTC is the transportation planning, coordinating and financing agency for the nine-county Bay Area.


Note to editors: One of the most convenient places to see the TransLink® system in use is the Golden Gate Ferry Terminal in San Francisco. For more information about the TransLink® program, visit the TransLink® Web page at <www.translink.org>.

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