Community Corner
Metro SmarTrip Cards Won't Allow Negative Balances Anymore
Metro says they're making the move because negative balances have cost them $25 million, but riders aren't happy with the change.
For Metro riders, it happens every now and then: you forget that a ride costs a little bit more because of rush hour, and as a result when you scan the card it shows a small negative balance. No biggy, just refill the next time you're at the station.
Not anymore.
Metro has announced that SmarTrip cards won't permit negative balances effective Jan. 8.
Find out what's happening in Washington DCfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
As you might suspect, it's another cost-saving measure for the struggling agency. Metro said in a statement that unresolved negative balances have cost them about $25 million dollars over the past 17 years.
"In an environment where every dollar counts, we are taking a common sense approach to ensure that Metro is properly collecting the value of the transportation it provides in order to reduce the demand on Metro customers and the region for additional funding," Metro's Chief Financial Officer, Dennis Anosike saidin the statement.
Find out what's happening in Washington DCfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
So the next time you enter a Metrorail station, make sure you have sufficient funds. The faregate won't open if you card doesn't have enough money on it, forcing you to use an Exitfare machine to leave the station.
Not surprisingly, Metro riders aren't very happy with the news. It probably wouldn't be a big deal if Exitfare machines accepted cards, but they don't, leading some customers to wonder what kind of chaos this new policy is going to cause at stations.
The ExitFare terminals should accept cards then. I sometimes get a negative balance of .25 and then immediately put money on my card after exiting. I can’t do that if the exitfare will only take cash, which I never carry.
— Alek (@politicalalek) November 24, 2017
I guess I'm going to have to learn how to hurdle over the gates since I don't carry cash.
— Jackie Barrientes (@JBarrientes_DC) November 24, 2017
This is a foolish change, WMATA, when Exitfare machines don’t accept cards, as other relies have noted. This will lead to more people running the faregates or arguments with Station managers. It’s a decision that’s outdated with how people use funds today.
— RAIL Magazine (@RAILMag) November 24, 2017
Image via WMATA
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
