MTA Offers New Contactless Fare System for Subways, Buses, and Trains

By Yehudit Garmaise

  One positive invention of that has come out the increased awareness of germs in public spaces brought by the COVID pandemic is the new “contactless” fare payment system that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is making available at all the subway stations in New York City, by the end of December.

    Last week, MTA workers completed installing the agency’s new payment system, called, OMNY, on the G and R lines, which brought the number of subway stations that have tap-and-go machines to 458 out of 472 in total, leaving just 14 more stations to go for all the subway stations to provide payment without any contact.

  Once MTA passengers register for OMNY accounts, they can access their own secure, personalized dashboards that manage payment methods for subways, buses, and commuter rails, reveal trips and charges, and allow for questions to OMNY customer service representatives. 

   Now bus, subway, and train riders can use mobile wallets on their phones and contactless credit cards to pay for single-far rides. Early next year, MTA passengers will be able to buy OMNY cards that are “time-based,” that allow riders to purchase unlimited weekly passes or make free transfers for set amounts of time. 

    The MTA expects that buses in Brooklyn and Queens should have OMNY readers installed in the coming weeks, while Manhattan, Staten Island, and the Bronx have all had OMNY readers installed and enabled.

   Contactless cards allow MTA passengers to make transactions with quick taps. Many banks and financial institutions have started switching to contactless cards to make payments faster and more secure for their customers, who can request contactless cards.

   Additionally, bank customers can also link non-contactless cards to their digital wallets on their smart devices.

Photo: Marc A. Hermann / MTA New York City Transit