Home › Forums › Open Discussion › Metro Orca Card…….
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November 16, 2009 at 10:20 pm #593031
luckymom30ParticipantSo is this taking the place of bus passes and ticketbooks? Paper Transfers? I am trying to unerstand how these cards work. Do children need a Orca card to ride the bus? I hear these cards are reloadable so do you just put whatever amount on the card or for s specific amount (ex: bus pass amount). We wouldn’t be riding the bus much just cutting back on using the cars alittle, except for grocery shopping.
November 16, 2009 at 10:25 pm #682320
KimberleyParticipantI’ve still seen paper transfers given out, however I’m not someone who uses them, so perhaps someone else can better answer that.
You can order the ORCA card and register it directly from the website (as well as add funds): http://www.orcacard.com/ERG-Seattle/p1_001.do The FAQs are really helpful, but essentially, you can add any amount of money you’d like (perhaps $20 if you’re an infrequent user) and literally tap when you get on the bus, and tap when you get off – just keep an eye on the amount on your card.
November 16, 2009 at 10:30 pm #682321
gunnerddogMemberThe ORCA card is taking the place of passes. They will eventually be phased out and the ORCA will take its place. You don’t NEED a card. You can still pay cash if you want. You can either get an ORCA card that acts as a monthly pass or as a reloadable card that carries a certain balance that is reduced each time you use it.
November 16, 2009 at 10:32 pm #682322
KeithMemberI have an ORCA card and love it. Yes, they are reloadable, and when the value starts getting low the card reader on the bus/train will alert you. Alternately, you can have your card automatically reload itself whenever it runs out, so you never have to worry about it.
You don’t use a paper transfer with an Orca card – just tap your card on the reader on your way in/out.
November 16, 2009 at 10:53 pm #682323
JiggersMemberOrca cards to me are very good only if you know how many times a week you need to ride the bus. Mostly full time employees have the best advantage because they calculate the amount they need to put money in it prepaid. If you don’t work full time, and maybe a student, or disabled, it might not be as useful. I have a disability and don’t work full time, so, I show only my “Reduced regional fare pass” and get on for only .50 cents. It’s all up to how much you ride and can determine the amount you prepay on it.
I don’t think paper tickets will go because they use those a lot for disabled and homeless to get around with.
November 16, 2009 at 11:30 pm #682324
AlParticipantFrom the ORCA site: Cash is still an acceptable form of payment. However, cash transfers between agencies will not be offered to cash riders beginning this fall. Some agencies may still offer transfers to cash customers transferring within their system.
So if you switch between Metro and Sound Transit, you will have to have an ORCA card.
Here’s more good information, it’s a bit old, but still good. Cash will likely someday be phased out: http://seattletransitblog.com/2009/01/07/orca-good-thing/
November 17, 2009 at 12:26 am #682325
sunshineParticipantIn order to receive the employer subsidy for my Orca pass, I have to consent to my employer receiving detailed monthly reports of where and when I used it. Of course they can’t imagine when and how they would ever use that information, but they’ll get it and keep it. And if it was ever subpoena’d, they’d have to turn it over.
This kind of passive information gathering really irks me.
November 17, 2009 at 12:34 am #682326
JulieMembersunshine, there’s a way around that: get a second Orca card with an epurse, and use your own card when you’re not going back and forth to work (or any trips you don’t want showing up on your employer’s records).
November 17, 2009 at 2:06 am #682327
SueParticipantYou can also have both a pass and an ePurse on the Orca card simultaneously. I get a monthly pass loaded onto my Orca card through work, but I also have a $5 ePurse for when I need a more expensive trip than my pass value. Last week when I was headed to the airport on the 560, it registered as my $2 pass, plus $0.50 from the ePurse.
November 17, 2009 at 2:34 am #682328
JayDeeParticipantI still have the old flex pass, though I would really wonder if my employer gave a flip if I used it on the weekends (which I do–why not? I pay $30/4 weeks as part of my contribution). But like Sunshine, I don’t like gathering information for information sakes.
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Pretty soon the little bus cameras will be synced with the cards, and a FB-like tag will follow us around the bus. “But it is for safety’s sake…think of the children…” Give up your privacy and pay for it at the same time.
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But then again, this is Metro I am talking about, and they couldn’t tell me where my bus was last winter, where it was running, or if the bus was even likely to come.
November 17, 2009 at 7:32 am #682329
luckymom30ParticipantThank you everyone for all your help! We don’t ride the bus really often but again now we are cutting back on driving when we can walk or take the bus, at least for alittle while. I see from the Metro website that the Orca card is free of charge if you purchase it before the end of January so that is good news.
November 17, 2009 at 9:51 am #682330
JanSParticipantluckymom…I have one, have had it a few months. It’s easy to load…you just transfer from your bank online, use debit card (or credit, I suppose)…and then there’s no worries if you can’t find the change…it’s easy to use.
November 17, 2009 at 4:38 pm #682331
AlParticipantIn fact, this has reminded me to order one stat. Much better in emergency situations than cash.
November 17, 2009 at 8:33 pm #682332
ALSParticipantI love the Orca card. We actually have two – one is loaded with my monthly bus pass that I use daily for work, and the other is loaded with about $20 for when my husband takes the bus to the occasional Sounders, Mariners or Seahawks game on the weekends. Even though my husband doesn’t ride the bus much, it’s nice to have that card for when he does. Sure beats trying to find change/small bills for the bus.
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