Local sports fans will now have a new option to pay for their Metro fares heading to and from games.
WMATA, in partnership with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, Littlepay, and Cubic Transportation Systems, announced Wednesday that riders can now simply tap a contactless credit or debit card, or a mobile wallet or smartwatch virtual card, on rail station fare gates to pay for their trips.
The announcement was made at the Dulles Airport station, aided by mascot representatives from the Washington Mystics (Pax), George Washington Revolutionaries (George), Washington Spirit (PK), American Eagles (Clawed), Washington Commanders (Tuddy), Washington Wizards (G-Wiz), and Washington Capitals (Slapshot).
WMATA posted a video on their Instagram showing how easy it is to tap a card for entry. They note that most contactless cards are accepted, including Mastercard, Visa, American Express, and Discover.
The Capitals, Wizards, Mystics, Nationals, Spirit, DC United, and Defenders all play inside the city throughout the year, and another team could be on the way soon. The Washington Commanders appear set to move into a new stadium at the old RFK site by 2030. The approximately 65,000-seat venue would be located a one-minute walk away from the Stadium-Armory Metro station, which is accessible via the orange, blue, and silver lines.
The new payment method will enable travelers to bypass fare machines and SmarTrip cards, although SmarTrip cards β both physical and mobile β will remain an option for paying fares and parking. Metro says they have been working on the βTap. Ride. Go.β program since late last year.
There will be some quirks to the system, such as requiring customers to use the same card to both tap in and tap out of the system. Each individual customer also requires their own card; that is, multiple people cannot use the same card on the same trip.
The service is now live at all 98 stations in DC, Maryland, and Virginia. The feature is expected to also arrive for Metrobus and parking garages in the near future.