June 25, 2014
ALBANY, N.Y. (June 26, 2014) The Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) Board of Directors approved proposed smart card and mobile ticket offerings along with an outreach schedule for its New Fare Collection System (NFCS) at its monthly meeting in Rensselaer.
The proposal includes no changes to the cash/base fare to ride fixed route buses or on BusPlus. There will be no changes to the cash/base fare to use STAR or NX service. The changes deal almost exclusively with prepayment programs.
A key feature of CDTA’s new fare collection system is the ability to use smart cards and mobile payment technology that offers customers new payment options and increased flexibility. The proposal focuses on stored value debit (Pay As You Go) and Frequent Rider (similar to Rolling Swipers) options. Customers will be able to choose the option they want for their smart card or mobile device and ride accordingly.
The Board also approved a public meeting schedule where CDTA will solicit feedback from customers regarding the smart card and mobile ticket options. The schedule includes 10 meetings across CDTA’s four county service area. Current plans are to present the final structure for approval by the end of 2014 with the goal of offering smart card/mobile payment features to customers by mid-2015.
Other News:
- The Board of Directors approved the local portion of $700,000 or 20 percent of the $3.5 million in project development costs as the next step in securing federal funds for the expansion of its Washington-Western Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line. CDTA has secured the funding for project development costs from the Capital District Transportation Committee (CDTC), which has included the project in their “Long Range Regional Transportation Plan,” which is a requirement to obtain FTA “Small Starts” funding.
- The Board of Directors also approved the transfer of four 40-foot Nova buses to the Rockland County Department of Transportation. As part of its fleet replacement plan, CDTA is retiring the vehicles in the fall when we receive our fiscal year 2015 Gillig bus order.
The CDTA Board of Directors meets on the last Wednesday of every month at the Rensselaer Rail Station. Board meetings are open to the public and streamed live at www.cdta.org
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ABOUT CDTA: The Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) was created in 1970 by the New York State Legislature as a public benefit corporation to provide regional transportation services by rail, bus, water and air. CDTA is the premier mobility provider in the Capital Region, providing local, express, commuter and bus rapid transit services. CDTA owns and operates the Rensselaer Rail and Saratoga Springs Train Stations. Today, nearly 650 people work to deliver a transit system that transports more than 55,000 customers each weekday.
