ORCA

I'm part of the test group for ORCA, the new bus pass. I was thinking about volunteering for the test phase, because I ride two of the routes they're testing on each day (194 to Sea-Tac, 140 to Burien) but decided not to sign up because I'm trying to find a new job. But as I stood, terribly hung over at the bus stop, a recruiter came over and I didn't feel like saying no, so I went ahead and filled out his form. About a week ago, the card finally came. I hoped to be able to test out the "transfer" function, but I haven't seen any ORCA readers on the 194 yet. However, the card has worked every time I've "tagged" it on the 140.

This card has some serious advantages over traditional bus passes. The most important one is that each card has a unique number, which is registered upon receipt. It can be disabled and replaced for $5 if it's lost, and has an account tied to it, so you can store a balance for things like buying more than one fare, upgrading a fare, or transferring without having to ask for a paper transfer, even between different transit agencies. Also, it works like many key cards for buildings, by which I mean it only has to come near the sensor, and can be tagged from within a wallet or purse. That should cut down on the amount of morons fumbling around because they didn't pull their pass out while waiting at the stop or during the ride.

Paranoid people Privacy advocates won't like having a bus pass that is associated with an account and could potentially be used to track their movements, and that's the only criticism I can think of that people may have with the new card. My only suggestion is for them to allow a small line of credit so people can be billed for use rather than having to have some money in their account. I'll submit that as part of my user input even though it doesn't apply to my rides.