Timing of Transfer Phaseout Debated
Board Members Worry That January Is Too Soon for Switch to Paperless System

By Lena H. Sun
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, October 3, 2008

Metro board members expressed doubt yesterday that riders would have enough time to adjust to the planned elimination of paper transfers in January and suggested a delay.

But they said they would wait until next month -- when Metro officials will report on the costs associated with a delay and provide more details about helping low-income bus riders make the transition -- before making a decision.

On Jan. 4, Metro is planning to end the use of free bus-to-bus transfers and discounted rail-to-bus transfers as part of an overall strategy to reduce costs and fraud and speed bus boarding. Only riders who use electronic SmarTrip cards will receive the discounts.

During a committee meeting yesterday, members questioned whether passengers, particularly bus riders, would have enough advance notice and access to enough outlets to buy, and add value to, the SmarTrip cards.

"Until we can get to wider distribution, we can postpone until we have more outlets," suggested board member William D. Euille, who is also mayor of Alexandria. "I really don't see how we can be successful by the January deadline without creating a lot of chaos."

Board member Jim Graham, who is also a D.C. Council member, said he was concerned that a SmarTrip-only transfer policy would hurt low-income riders paying with cash. Without a paper transfer, they would have to pay the $1.35 cash fare for each bus ride.

In anticipation of the switch, Metro stopped ordering paper transfers in July and has enough transfers to last only through early January. Metro spends about $360,000 a year to print and distribute the transfers. The agency also loses countless dollars from riders who use invalid transfers, share them or sell them.

Yesterday, Metro Transit Police arrested a man in the 2400 block of Martin Luther King Avenue SE for trying to sell paper transfers on the street. He was found with four books of transfers, or 398 individual transfers.

Metro General Manager John B. Catoe Jr. said there is a "huge underground network that sells transfers," with people selling them at all the major bus transit centers. About 25 percent of all Metrobus boardings involve paper transfers, which allow unlimited travel for up to two hours anywhere in the region.

Catoe sought to assure members that the agency will be able to make the transition smoothly. He said he would look into increasing the number of outlets where riders can buy and add value to the electronic cards. Metro has given 50,000 cards to regional social service agencies to distribute to low-income riders, and the agency could provide more cards if the board chooses to do so, he said.

SmarTrip cards are sold online, at Metrorail stations with parking lots, Metrobus garages, Metro sales offices, commuter stores and 28 Giant grocery stores. Riders can add value to the cards at sales offices, a handful of commuter stores, any Metro station and on Metrobus and other regional bus fleets. By the end of November, Metro will add 28 outlets where riders can add value; by next spring, Metro hopes to have 250 additional outlets.

On buses, riders can use only cash to add value to their cards, a process that is likely to significantly slow boarding and on-time service, board members Chris Zimmerman and Peter Benjamin noted.

This month, Metro will roll out an extensive campaign to publicize the elimination of paper transfers. The agency is not getting rid of existing bus and rail passes, which offer discounts. When the switch occurs, however, riders who use rail passes on the subway and then transfer to buses will no longer receive the discounted bus fare of 35 cents. Fewer than 1 percent of Metrobus riders use discounted rail paper transfers.