Paying for bus, train and ferry rides across the Bay Area just became a little easier.
Beginning Wednesday, riders on nearly every transit agency in the region will be able to use their credit or debit cards — rather than just pre-paid Clipper cards — to pay for all of their trips.
The switch to the Tap and Ride system includes every transit system that had used Clipper cards in the past, including Caltrain, the Valley Transportation Authority, AC Transit, SamTrans, Muni, Petaluma Transit, the San Francisco Bay Ferry, SMART train and Golden Gate Transit.
The move follows a similar change by BART in August. The goal is to ease access to transit for residents and out-of-town visitors, by doing away with a requirement for many riders to first purchase Clipper cards at transit stations and pre-load money onto them.
“We’re all about getting more people onto transit, and this lowers the barrier to doing so by making fare payment as easy as buying a cup of coffee,” said Rebecca Long, a spokesperson for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission.”
