CNBNews

The PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Visa Prepaid Card is one of the lowest-fee prepaid cards on the market, and does not require a bank account or credit rating to use. Riders can use it to wave and pay at PATCO gates and parking terminals, just like the current PATCO FREEDOM® Card, and anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted including telephone and online purchases.  The cards can be loaded, reloaded and managed many ways, including online at PATCOpilot.com, at the FREEDOM Card Services Center located at the Broadway station, and at kiosks located in the 8th and Market Street, Broadway, Ferry Avenue, Haddonfield, Woodcrest and Lindenwold PATCO stations. For riders with a transit benefits account, the card is able to track transit and retail purchases separately, and transit benefits can be loaded to the card and be designated for fare purchase only.

To participate, PATCO riders must get a PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Visa Prepaid Card and then load their card with funds at special kiosks located in six PATCO stations. Once the card is loaded it can be used  like a FREEDOM Card to pay their PATCO fare and parking as well as make retail purchases anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted, including telephone and online purchases and bill payment. Once the card has been registered, it is FDIC insured and can be used for cash back on purchases and for ATM withdrawals. 

Other benefits of the PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Visa Prepaid Card include no usage fee for paying for retail purchases, riding the transit system or paying for parking, no overdraft fees or interest, and no fee to reload the card. Pay checks can be directly deposited to the PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Visa Prepaid Card, and the card can be used anywhere you see the payWave contactless symbol. 

PATCO, a subsidiary of Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA), has teamed with Cubic Transportation Systems Inc., the world’s leading provider of automated fare collection systems and services for public transportation. Cubic developed and funded the pilot to assist transit agencies like PATCO that are facing shrinking budgets, and are looking for ways to reduce costs of operations and create avenues for additional revenues.

“Cubic is excited about this opportunity to field the first full deployment of a general purpose reloadable prepaid card,” said Steve Shewmaker, president, Cubic Transportation Systems Worldwide.  “This is all about making life for the transit agency and their customers even more convenient.” 

Open payment systems (also called open-loop payment)  using contactless bank cards are a form of payment that allow transit agencies to reduce the costs of managing and distributing their own fare payment cards, while making fare payment more convenient for commuters. The majority of transit fare cards in use today are closed loop payment systems, meaning they can only be used for transit payments and not for other uses such as retail purchases. 

“Open payment is a part of the future of transit fare collection, and with the PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Prepaid Visa Card, we can help to ensure that all of our riders, whether banked or unbanked, have access to a new level of payment convenience and security,” said John J. Matheussen, President of PATCO, a subsidiary of the Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA).  “We are pleased to partner with Cubic on this groundbreaking pilot.”

After the pilot ends, the PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Visa Prepaid Card will continue to be accepted anywhere Visa debit cards are accepted until the expiration date published on the card. The PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Visa Prepaid Card is the only contactless bank card that riders can use for payment during the first phase of the pilot program.

“We are pleased to play a role in bringing open payments to PATCO passengers. The popularity of contactless and prepaid cards has been driven by consumer desire for financial products that simplify their purchase experience as well as provide them with more control over their money. The PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Card does both,” said Shewmaker.  

To get the PATCO Wave & Pay ANYWHERE Visa Prepaid Card or learn more about the PATCO pilot, visit PATCOpilot.com, call 1 (866) 317-9343, or visit the FREEDOM Card Services Center located at the Broadway Station.