Fares, cards, transfers (subway, bus, and MetroNorth)

On Apr 7, 5:37 pm, "Peter T. Daniels" <gramma...@************> wrote:
> ? MetroCards are plastic (thin and flexible plastic). Only bus
> transfers are card (white with blue printing).

I'll take another look. The thing I got out of the kiosk in the
subway is yellow, and the thickness and finish of a Hollerith card.
It has an external magstripe. In contrast, the Charlie proximity Card
feels like a heavy credit card (about as thick as the basic card plus
the embossed letters.)

How long have they been lasting? How long are they supposed to
last? I think the proximity cards are supposed to last a lot longer.
(That's not necessarily a good thing, since it is more bulk to carry;
for now the MBTA is giving them away, but they are probably
considerably more expensive than thinner, or more disposable, cards.)
--
- David Chesler <chesler@post.harvard.edu>
Free Cory Maye

On Apr 7, 10:37 pm, David Chesler <ches...@post.harvard.edu> wrote:
> On Apr 7, 5:37 pm, "Peter T. Daniels" <gramma...@************> wrote:
>
> > ? MetroCards are plastic (thin and flexible plastic). Only bus
> > transfers are card (white with blue printing).
>
>  I'll take another look.  The thing I got out of the kiosk in the
> subway is yellow, and the thickness and finish of a Hollerith card.

You talk funny! That was a "punch card."

John Mara says there are cardboard MetroCards that come only from
MetroNorth ticket machines.

> It has an external magstripe.  In contrast, the Charlie proximity Card

I don't know who Charlie may have been, but that must be a "Smart
Card," the newfangled thingy that you hold up to or click against the
sensor in the turnstile. A totally different product.

> feels like a heavy credit card (about as thick as the basic card plus
> the embossed letters.)
>
>  How long have they been lasting?  How long are they supposed to
> last?  I think the proximity cards are supposed to last a lot longer.
> (That's not necessarily a good thing, since it is more bulk to carry;
> for now the MBTA is giving them away, but they are probably
> considerably more expensive than thinner, or more disposable, cards.)

Their expiration date is about two years after the sale date, and
there haven't been complaints about them wearing out.

Someone recently asked why monthly cards have a distant expiration
date -- you don't need to use it as soon as you've bought it; you have
nearly two years to store it away.

Peter T. Daniels wrote:
> John Mara says there are cardboard MetroCards that come only from
> MetroNorth ticket machines.

I believe the monthly TransitCheck is paper too. It looks sort of like
the single ride.

On Mon, 07 Apr 2008 23:51:01 -0400, Bolwerk <bolwerk@**********> wrote:

>Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>> John Mara says there are cardboard MetroCards that come only from
>> MetroNorth ticket machines.
>
>I believe the monthly TransitCheck is paper too. It looks sort of like
>the single ride.

Not unless they've changed it recently; they're in fact the reverse of
what you describe -- a conventional metrocard with a different,
paper-based backing that contains the monthly-ticket information.

Cyrus Afzali wrote:
> On Mon, 07 Apr 2008 23:51:01 -0400, Bolwerk <bolwerk@**********> wrote:
>
>> Peter T. Daniels wrote:
>>> John Mara says there are cardboard MetroCards that come only from
>>> MetroNorth ticket machines.
>> I believe the monthly TransitCheck is paper too. It looks sort of like
>> the single ride.
>
> Not unless they've changed it recently; they're in fact the reverse of
> what you describe -- a conventional metrocard with a different,
> paper-based backing that contains the monthly-ticket information.

*shrug*

I could be wrong. I mostly see them as litter.

Peter T. Daniels wrote:

> I don't know who Charlie may have been, but that must be a "Smart
> Card," the newfangled thingy that you hold up to or click against the
> sensor in the turnstile. A totally different product.

Charlie is the protagonist in an old protest song about a transit fare
increase in Boston. That song, MTA, was popularized by The Kingston
Trio. It's a great song and is worth a listen.

MBTA's smart card was named the Charlie card after Charlie.

Michael Finfer
Bridgewater, NJ

On Apr 8, 10:41 am, nath...@mit.edu (Nathan J. Williams) wrote:
> David Chesler <ches...@post.harvard.edu> writes:
> >  How long have they been lasting?  How long are they supposed to
> > last?  I think the proximity cards are supposed to last a lot longer.
> > (That's not necessarily a good thing, since it is more bulk to carry;
> > for now the MBTA is giving them away, but they are probably
> > considerably more expensive than thinner, or more disposable, cards.)
>
> The T has been paying their supplier about $1 each for the
> CharlieCards, just so that data point is out there.

My PATH SmartCard came in the mail the other day (only five weeks
after requesting it on Centennial Day, and today I used it for the
first time. It works without taking it out of my wallet. Next time
I'll try not opening the wallet.

On Apr 8, 11:33 pm, "Peter T. Daniels" <gramma...@************> wrote:

> My PATH SmartCard came in the mail the other day (only five weeks
> after requesting it on Centennial Day, and today I used it for the
> first time. It works without taking it out of my wallet. Next time
> I'll try not opening the wallet.

How often do you go to Joisey?

On Apr 13, 8:59 pm, JohnAnon <JohnA...@nyc.*******> wrote:
> On Apr 8, 11:33 pm, "Peter T. Daniels" <gramma...@************> wrote:
>
> > My PATH SmartCard came in the mail the other day (only five weeks
> > after requesting it on Centennial Day, and today I used it for the
> > first time. It works without taking it out of my wallet. Next time
> > I'll try not opening the wallet.
>
> How often do you go to Joisey?

I figure about three times a month. (Coming back from an errand or
event in the city.)

And you?

On Apr 14, 12:47 am, "Peter T. Daniels" <gramma...@************> wrote:
> On Apr 13, 8:59 pm, JohnAnon <JohnA...@nyc.*******> wrote:
>
> > On Apr 8, 11:33 pm, "Peter T. Daniels" <gramma...@************> wrote:
>
> > > My PATH SmartCard came in the mail the other day (only five weeks
> > > after requesting it on Centennial Day, and today I used it for the
> > > first time. It works without taking it out of my wallet. Next time
> > > I'll try not opening the wallet.
>
> > How often do you go to Joisey?
>
> I figure about three times a month. (Coming back from an errand or
> event in the city.)
>
> And you?

It might be four years since I traveled there.

Is that gawd awful statue of a Polish soldier getting impaled by a
rifle blade still there?