Port Authority begins smartcard system at Pitt

Pitt students have been the first to test out the Port Authority’s new smartcard system this… Pitt students have been the first to test out the Port Authority’s new smartcard system this week, which the University and authority say has launched without hitting many speed bumps.

The new system requires Pitt ID holders to tap their IDs on a fare box next to the driver when they walk on the bus, and the scanner reads a microchip embedded in the card.

By the end of 2012, everyone in Pittsburgh will be a part of this new smartcard system that is already in place in many other cities across the US, such as New York City and Washington, D.C., Port Authority spokesman Jim Ritchie said.

Ritchie said that after the first day of the new system, Port Authority only received a handful of complaints, which he said is basically nothing.

“Our indication is that overall it went very well,” Ritchie said.

The program launch comes after a year-long delay and a group of 230 participants from Pitt — 210 faculty and staff and 20 students — took part in a one month pilot program this summer, testing out the new ID tap system, University spokesman John Fedele said.

As officials iron out kinks in the system though, Pitt students don’t have to worry: if a card does not work, they can still ride the bus until the end of September.

Ritchie said that most of the complaints from the first day had to do with Pitt students whose IDs did not work with the new system. However, students whose IDs do not work can still ride the bus during a grace period that goes until the end of September.

The ID holder will not have to pay, but the bus operator will suggest that the card holder contacts Panther Central to make sure their ID is valid. Ritchie said this is so that Port Authority has time to iron out any issues that arise during the first few months of the program.

After October 1, anyone whose ID gets rejected on the bus will have to pay the standard fare or will not be able to ride, just like anyone else in the system would have to do if they present a monthly pass that’s outdated.

Ritchie said Port Authority has no control over whose ID is valid or invalid, they get all of their information from the University. If a person’s card is invalid, it means the person either graduated, no longer works for Pitt or there is a problem with their status.

Fedele said that students’ cards will be deactivated once they are not registered for classes at the end of their senior year.

Freshmen cards will be activated as soon as the ID is issued, which is normally at their

summer Pitt Start, Fedele said.

The new Pitt ID system is all a part of a bigger change happening at Port Authority, Ritchie said. It’s the first phase of the new smart card system.

The new cards, called Connect Cards, will give people the ability to pay by using their smart cards, which Ritchie said is simpler than going to the downtown service system or local store to buy bus passes. Users can even recharge their cards at home on their computers using a credit card.

“It makes payment and travel a lot easier,” Ritchie said.

Riders will be able to buy daily, weekend or monthly passes or just put a certain amount of money on the card and use it until it runs out.

“It gives you a lot of different options but its all through one card,” Ritchie said.

Pitt students and employees test the new system first because the University switched over all ID cards to the technology more than a year ago.

“It was the logical first group to start off our smart card program with,” Ritchie said.

And Fedele said the University is happy to start out the new system.

“Pitt is excited about the new system and glad to work with Port Authority as they

move to a more efficient system of fare collecting,” Fedele said.