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Metrolinx: Presto Fare Card

nfitz said:
But in a relatively short period of time, and a relatively infrequent event. Only 30 flights? So if 99% up, you've probably not encountered problem.
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I haven't encounted a problem or seen other passengers encounter a problem. My point was it's at least as reliable as paper (torn, lost, soiled, ...) or the airlines who do experience millions of trips per year wouldn't be encouraging passengers to switch to a phone oriented system.


First generation will be tricky but after a couple of generations we might start demanding higher reliability and longer batery life in our devices.
 
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Maybe give the option in the Presto app to sign in using your physical Presto card number (the one you use to sign into their online services right now). If you're a frequent customer, that way the phone tap can charge your Presto account instead of your iTunes or CC. That way if you do have a failure with your phone you can simply take your card out of your wallet and use that.

For casual users or tourists who don't want to bother with a Presto card, the direct billing from within the app will let them still pay their fare using their phone, but they're signed in to have it billed to iTunes or Visa or Mastercard.

Another option of course would be to have 'prepaid' terminals set up at key locations, where you can pay with cash, debit, or credit, and then tap your phone onto an NFC reader, and it will load a balance onto your phone.

I just know that for me personally, tapping my phone would be a lot easier, because I always have it on me, and it's easily accessible to me in my pocket. And I really think that the world in general is moving away from physical cards as methods of payment, and it's going to be increasingly tied into your phone (hence why things like Passbook for iOS are going to become essential in the coming years).
 
Something strange from Presto: last Sunday I tried to load in money into my card twice online, both times failing due to a timeout from Moneris. Was sitting at $60 less dollars in my credit card limit for a bit over a week before that was reversed just today. In that time period I also noticed that all Presto transactions from the 30th onwards didn't show up until the 5th. Might have been some database holdup on their end.
 
The transactions reverse if you don't tap on at least once within 24 hours of filling your card
 
nfitz said:
Auditor General says Presto smart card cost has ballooned to $700 million

Oh, my!
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And I believe that cost leaves GO with Gen 1 systems. (Ottawa's cards don't seem to work on GO, and GO cards don't work in Ottawa).

Getting GO and other existing Presto agencies onto Gen 2 is likely another $100M for new readers. Lots of people will be unhappy if GO and TTC run 2 different and incompatible Presto cards.

My estimate (made on this forum a couple of years ago) was that Presto would be a $1B cost before it was implemented on all agencies currently targetted for (included Ottawa). Starting to get pretty close.
 
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rbt said:
And I believe that cost leaves GO with Gen 1 systems. (Ottawa's cards don't seem to work on GO, and GO cards don't work in Ottawa).

Getting GO and other existing Presto agencies onto Gen 2 is likely another $100M for new readers. Lots of people will be unhappy if GO and TTC run 2 different and incompatible Presto cards.

My estimate (made on this forum a couple of years ago) was that Presto would be a $1B cost before it was implemented on all agencies currently targetted for (included Ottawa). Starting to get pretty close.
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I can confirm that no, the GO Presto cards to not work in Ottawa. I have tried several times unsuccessfully.

Does anyone know when GO will be updating to Gen 2? Will it be once it's deployed in Ottawa, or are they doing a coordinated deployment with the TTC in like half a decade?

I really don't see why they couldn't have made the cards work on more than one system. It's really a pain in the ass.
 
Gen 2 is supposed to be in place by 2014 when TTC starts to come online.

I have stated from day one this was the wrong way to go considering there are better systems out there and they are cheaper. The big issue is the backroom, as it not setup nor able to do what a real smart card system for the GTAH should be able to do now.

Each system is getting stuck for a high maintenance fee to the point a number of systems were not prepared to come on board.

If I am not mistaken, Ottawa has given Metrolinx a deadline to have the system working 100% in 2013 and if not, they are pulling the plug on it. They are going to get someone else to do it if Metrolinx can't not comply by the date since they have already backtrack from the current one.

Metrolinx continue to show the lack of knowledge, vision and the ability to operate a Regional system. Some can be blame on the Government, but the buck stop at the people who run Metrolinx on a daily base.
 
drum118 said:
Gen 2 is supposed to be in place by 2014 when TTC starts to come online.

I have stated from day one this was the wrong way to go considering there are better systems out there and they are cheaper. The big issue is the backroom, as it not setup nor able to do what a real smart card system for the GTAH should be able to do now.

Each system is getting stuck for a high maintenance fee to the point a number of systems were not prepared to come on board.

If I am not mistaken, Ottawa has given Metrolinx a deadline to have the system working 100% in 2013 and if not, they are pulling the plug on it. They are going to get someone else to do it if Metrolinx can't not comply by the date since they have already backtrack from the current one.

Metrolinx continue to show the lack of knowledge, vision and the ability to operate a Regional system. Some can be blame on the Government, but the buck stop at the people who run Metrolinx on a daily base.
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here here!
 
drum118 said:
Metrolinx continue to show the lack of knowledge, vision and the ability to operate a Regional system. Some can be blame on the Government, but the buck stop at the people who run Metrolinx on a daily base.
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Thank you! I've been saying this for a while now, talking to people who have the crazy idea Metrolinx should take over the local agencies. Metrolinx has no clue how to operate a regional system, let alone local agencies.
 
JayBeeGooner said:
Thank you! I've been saying this for a while now, talking to people who have the crazy idea Metrolinx should take over the local agencies. Metrolinx has no clue how to operate a regional system, let alone local agencies.
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Metrolinx is an abominable big government agency created by evil scientists (bureaucrats) to trample upon local controls.
 
I love my Presto card. However, after hearing the amount of extra money spent on it, I'm little less loving.

I think my problem with going to straight to open payment is not every member of society (read: students, low-income individuals, etc) has a debit or a credit card. I still think there would need to be a card option in an open payment system, and a program for accommodating transfers, etc.
 
DKsan said:
I love my Presto card. However, after hearing the amount of extra money spent on it, I'm little less loving.

I think my problem with going to straight to open payment is not every member of society (read: students, low-income individuals, etc) has a debit or a credit card. I still think there would need to be a card option in an open payment system, and a program for accommodating transfers, etc.
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Presto Ottawa is Open Payment, Compass in Vancouver is open payment, Oyster in London is (very soon) open payment. Tim Cards, Starbucks cards, etc. also tend to be OpenPayment.

There is a good chance you've already got 3 or more cards in your wallet which understand OpenPayment.

It's a standardized communication mechanism between card and terminal, vendors, and a standardized account numbering system. It is NOT a card or a restriction on who issues cards. You don't need to be a bank and most of the organizations issuing open payment based cards are not banks.

It's everything we learned by implementing Oyster and Octopus cards, and everything banks learned with systems like Interac all rolled into one convenient to implement package that everybody can use; except Metrolinx who decided to go off and create their own thing instead.
 
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