Caltrain Paper Tickets Increase Fares July 1

If you currently buy paper Caltrain tickets, the increase in fares on July 1 may make you change to the Clipper card.

One-way tickets will increase 25 cents and day passes will increase 50 cents for those who purchase paper tickets from ticketing machines, according to a Caltrain press release.

The fare increase is part of an initiative to encourage the use of Clipper, a reloadable payment card.

For 1 zone, a $2.75 one-way ticket will be $3 and a $5.50 day pass will be $6. If you use the Clipper card, a one-way fare will remain $2.75.

A 2011 Caltrain Rider Survey stated that 76 percent of one-way tickets and 92 percent of day passes were purchased at ticket machines.

If the public doesn’t respond by purchasing one-way tickets using Clipper, another increase of the same amounts will be implemented July 1, 2013.

While increases in fares lie ahead, discounts are as well. Riders who purchase 8-ride tickets will receive a 7.5 percent discount off the one-way fare. However, the tickets will only be valid for 30 days instead of 60.

Monthly passes and parking permits will have a six-day extension in the sales period, with the 15^th of the month marking the end of the period.

To purchase a Clipper card, you can order one online or visit a retail location. For more information about the Clipper cards, visit the Clipper card website.