TTC phasing out tokens and tickets

Torontosun.com
Nov. 25, 2019
Antonella Artuso

TTC subway collector booths will stop selling regular tokens, tickets and passes in a massive effort to push riders to PRESTO.

The system will continue to accept tokens and tickets for now, but after Saturday TTC customers will only be able to purchase them at some third-party retailers like 7-11 and Shopper’s Drug Mart.

“We realize that there are customers out there who have stockpiles of tickets and tokens, so we haven’t set a stop-accepting date in the system,” TTC spokesman Heather Brown said. “So customers can still use tickets, tokens and their TTC day passes to pay their fare.”

“Those customers who don’t have a stockpile of tickets or tokens should switch to PRESTO,” she advised, adding t the goal remains to end the use of tokens and tickets.

Brown said the system will also continue to accept cash fares, but riders are encouraged to purchase a PRESTO card or a one-ride, two-ride or day pass PRESTO ticket.

“While people don’t like change, the reality is those customers that use tickets and tokens today can easily transition to PRESTO because the same fare cost for example is available on PRESTO,” she said. “So what would have cost a customer $3.10 using a token, that same fare is available on the e-purse payment on their PRESTO card.”

The TTC has previously reported that poor maintenance of PRESTO technology -- the responsibility of the provincial agency Metrolinx -- cost the municipal transit system $3.4 million in lost fares.

Brown said the reliability of the PRESTO machines has improved dramatically.

“We are at -- both on our service vehicles and in our stations -- at 98% of the card readers being available,” she said. “We have PRESTO adoption rate right of 83% and we expect that to grow once we stop the sale of tickets and tokens.”

PRESTO cards are set up to deduct an adult fare.

Seniors, youths or post secondary students have to go to a Shopper’s Drug Mart or TTC Customer Service Centre with government or TTC post secondary photo ID to get their PRESTO cards reset for the lower fare, she said.

The TTC is encouraging its customers to pick up a PRESTO card before next weekend to avoid line-ups.

“It’s the end of tokens and tickets in the system so it’s one more step towards the full adoption of PRESTO and then a key pillar of our modernization,” Brown said.