Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Fares needed on board METRO tomorrow, Jan. 1, 2009

After five successful days of free rides, carrying upwards of 280,000 people on board METRO, tomorrow begins revenue service. Fares will be required with the rollout of service on Thursday, Jan. 1 at 4 a.m.

Fares can be purchased from METRO fare vending machines – a minimum of two per station area – or existing bus fare media can be used. Because METRO and bus service share the same fare system, pricing and passes are also the same and can be use interchangeably from bus to rail, rail to bus.

Fares start at $1.25 for a single ride (on bus or rail, not both) and up to $45 for a 31-day pass. Passes must be activated before boarding.

An all-day, 3-day, 7-day or 31-day pass only needs to be activated once; with activation, the pass will be stamped with its expiration date. If you have a platinum pass (or plastic bus card), you must tap this card on the orange validator pad located on the fare vending machines before each boarding.

And make sure to keep your pass handy as METRO works on a proof-of-payment system; you are likely to run into a security officer who will ask to see your valid transit pass. If you cannot present a valid pass, citations can be issued ranging from $50 - $500.

Source: Metro Rail

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