The Go-To card is a
contactless smart card
A contactless smart card is a contactless credential whose dimensions are credit-card size. Its embedded integrated circuits can store (and sometimes process) data and communicate with a terminal via NFC. Commonplace uses include transit ticke ...
used to pay
fares for
bus
A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
,
light rail, and
commuter rail lines operated by
Metro Transit and other transit agencies in the
Twin Cities area of
Minnesota. The system has significantly sped up boardings on area buses while alleviating wear and tear on existing
ticket machine
A ticket machine, also known as a ticket vending machine (TVM), is a vending machine that produces paper or electronic tickets, or recharges a stored-value card or smart card or the user's mobile wallet, typically on a smartphone. For instance, ...
s and fare boxes. The old magnetic strip reading machines were weather sensitive and could not be placed out in the elements like at the Hiawatha Line light rail stations.
The Go-To card went into full operation in early 2007.
Problems and delays
The Go-To card was originally meant to go into service in September 2003 and become the first such system in the
United States, but technical difficulties delayed introduction.
Cubic Transportation Systems, Inc. worked under a contract valued at
$16.4 million (equivalent to $ million in ), but Metro Transit stopped payment at $9.4 million in May 2003 when it became apparent that the rollout would be behind schedule.
[Blake, Laurie (December 22, 2004) "`Go To' card runs into a few speed bumps - Metro Transit's frequent-ride card should debut soon" '']Star Tribune
The ''Star Tribune'' is the largest newspaper in Minnesota. It originated as the ''Minneapolis Tribune'' in 1867 and the competing ''Minneapolis Daily Star'' in 1920. During the 1930s and 1940s, Minneapolis's competing newspapers were consolida ...
''
Cubic Transportation Systems initially promoted this system as the first contactless smart card installation in the country, but since introduction was delayed, at least one other system in the U.S. went into use ahead of the Go-To card. While traditional smart card systems require the card to be swiped through or inserted into a reader, the Go-To card requires a passenger to tap it against the reading device. This reduces mechanical wear dramatically, and removes the need for readers to be hardened against the sometimes cold and wet climate of Minnesota. Ticket machines on Metro Transit's
Blue Line were designed with the Go-To card in mind.
Before this system was sent into full release, some Metro Transit employees and selected area riders were part of a test program, started in the latter half of 2004, using the cards as they go about their daily business. In November 2004 after five months of service, Metro Transit's general manager stated that the devices only achieved 20% reliability.
Cubic said that the issues that were originally delaying introduction were
software problems. Frequently, either the reader or the card did not properly detect when it has been used. Software for the central computer system, which handles synchronization and how funds are replenished, was not fully operational until late April 2005. In March 2006 Metro Transit sent Cubic a letter of default demanding a plan to correct issues with the 2 and a half year delayed system.
The underlying technology is
Philips'
MIFARE
MIFARE is the NXP Semiconductors-owned trademark of a series of integrated circuit (IC) chips used in contactless smart cards and proximity cards.
The brand name covers proprietary solutions based upon various levels of the ISO/IEC 14443 Type A ...
system, implementing the
ISO/IEC 14443 (Type A) standard.
Full service
In November 2005, Metro Transit allowed 18,000 trial users to begin using the Go-To card system, with hopes of rolling out the cards to all users by the fourth quarter of 2006.
On November 15, 2006, Metro Transit unveiled the Go-To card for 2,500 users to use during a trial period lasting until January 31, 2007. By April 2007, Go-To cards were being sold to the general public at Metro Transit stores. It is also possible to buy and refill cards at other locations that sell transit passes, such as some local grocery stores.
Metropass
The Metropass is a transit pass for trains and buses sold at a discounted rate to employees purchased by local companies. The pass is purchased monthly and allows unlimited rides during the month.
College transit pass programs
University of Minnesota
The Metro Transit U-Pass program was created in 2000 and was a discounted transit pass sold only to
University of Minnesota students or employees taking at least one credit of courses. The pass allowed for an unlimited number of rides during the semester it was purchased and had a mandatory $19 (as of Spring 2013) transportation fee not included with the actual cost of the pass. The University of Minnesota switched to the Go-To card in 2007 which allowed for semester renewal up to six years. For the 2021-2022 school year, the cost was $114. Starting with the 2022-2023 school year, the U-Pass was eliminated in favor of a $45 increase in the mandatory transportation fee but the universal availability of unlimited transit rides for all students.
The Campus Zone Pass allowed free travel between the
West Bank,
East Bank
Transjordan, the East Bank, or the Transjordanian Highlands ( ar, شرق الأردن), is the part of the Southern Levant east of the Jordan River, mostly contained in present-day Jordan.
The region, known as Transjordan, was controlled by num ...
, and
Stadium Village Green Line light rail stations. The card was free to registered students, faculty, and staff of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. The Campus Zone Pass was eliminated with the introduction of the Universal Transit Pass program for University of Minnesota students.
College Pass
The Go-To College Pass is a pass good for unlimited bus and train rides per semester in the
Minneapolis-St. Paul area sold at a discounted rate to eligible college and university students. Participating schools include
Anoka-Ramsey Community College
Anoka-Ramsey Community College is a public community college in Cambridge and Coon Rapids, Minnesota. Founded in 1965, the college annually serves more than 12,500 students as they pursue associate degrees that transfer as the first two years of ...
,
Anoka Technical College,
Augsburg University
Augsburg University is a private university in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It was founded in 1869 as a Norwegian-American Lutheran seminary known as Augsburg Seminarium. Today, the ...
,
Aveda Institute
Aveda Corporation ( ) is an American cosmetics company founded by Horst Rechelbacher, now owned by Estée Lauder Companies, and headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Aveda manufactures skin and body care, cosmetics, perfume (internally calle ...
,
Bethel University,
Century College
Century College is a two-year community college and technical college in White Bear Lake, Minnesota. It is a member of the Minnesota State system. It was founded in 1967 as Lakewood State Junior College and in 1996 merged with Northeast Metro Te ...
,
Concordia University
Concordia University ( French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...
,
Dunwoody College of Technology
Dunwoody College of Technology is a private technology school in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It offers Bachelor of Science (B.S.), Bachelor of Architecture (B. Arch) and Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degrees.
History
Dunwoody College was ...
,
Hamline University,
Hennepin Technical College
Hennepin Technical College is a public technical school with two campuses in suburban Minneapolis, Minnesota.
History
Beginning in 1967, Twin Cities suburban school districts began advocating at the Minnesota Legislature for legislation that w ...
,
Inver Hills Community College,
Macalester College,
Metropolitan State University
Metropolitan State University (Metro State) is a public university in the Minneapolis–St. Paul, Minnesota metropolitan area. It is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. ,
Minneapolis Business College
Minneapolis Business College (MBC) was a for-profit career college in Roseville, Minnesota. It was founded in 1874 and moved to its current suburban location in 1983. It had nearby housing for students but over half of students came from the ...
,
Minneapolis College of Art and Design
The Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) is a private college specializing in the visual arts and located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. MCAD currently enrolls approximately 800 students. MCAD is one of just a few major art schools to offer ...
,
Minneapolis Community and Technical College
Minneapolis Community and Technical College (Minneapolis College) is a public community college in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It has one of the most diverse student populations in the state and enrolls nearly 11,100 credit students annually. Minneap ...
,
Normandale Community College
Normandale Community College is a public community college in Bloomington, Minnesota. The college serves primarily the communities of the southwestern portion of the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area. Established in 1968 as Normandale S ...
,
North Central University
North Central University (NCU) is a private Christian university associated with the Assemblies of God and located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is owned and operated by 11 Assemblies of God districts of the upper Midwest. NCU was founded in 1 ...
,
North Hennepin Community College
North Hennepin Community College (NHCC) is a public community college in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. It was founded in 1966 and is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.
History
The college was founded in 1966 as N ...
,
Northwestern Health Sciences University
Northwestern Health Sciences University (NWHSU) is a private university focused on alternative health care and located in Bloomington, Minnesota. The university has educational programs in chiropractic, Traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture, ...
,
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota
Saint Mary's University of Minnesota, (SMUMN) is a private Catholic university with an undergraduate residential college in Winona, Minnesota; graduate and professional programs in Winona, the Twin Cities, and Rochester; and various course d ...
,
St. Catherine University,
Saint Paul College
Saint Paul College is a public community college in Saint Paul, Minnesota. It is part of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System. The college enrolls nearly 15,000 students in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul metropolitan area; the ave ...
and
University of St. Thomas.
Ridership at Augsburg and Macalester nearly doubled after all students were given universal transit passes allowing unlimited transit rides.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Go-To Card
Contactless smart cards
Fare collection systems in the United States
Transportation in Minneapolis–Saint Paul
Metro Transit (Minnesota)