TriMet and partners C-TRAN and Portland Streetcar celebrated the launch of Hop Fastpass — a new and better way to pay your transit fare seamlessly throughout the Portland-Vancouver region. Hop is an electronic-fare payment system. Riders can now use contactless payment devices such as a Hop card to pay their fare on TriMet and C-TRAN buses, Portland Streetcar, MAX Light Rail, WES Commuter Rail and C-TRAN Vine. In the coming weeks, riders also will be able to use a contactless bank card or smartphone with a mobile wallet connected to a bank card to pay for their trips.
Some riders have actually been using Hop since February 2017, when a small group began testing the Hop system. This beta test group grew to more than 5,000 over the course of five months and test riders provided great feedback for improvements and adjustments. At the beginning of July, Hop cards began rolling into select grocery stores, and the Hop mobile app showed up in the Apple App Store and Google Play. Now it’s time for all riders to enjoy the benefits of tapping!
“The benefits of this new fare system will be far reaching, bringing more efficiency to TriMet and providing important benefits for our riders, including saving money the more they ride,” said TriMet General Manager Neil McFarlane. “We are thankful for our partnership with C-TRAN and Portland Streetcar to make this regional fare system a reality.”
“Our Hop beta testers expressed excitement about how easy the card is to use, how quickly it enables them to board the bus, and how it helps them keep track of their transit use,” said C-TRAN Executive Director/CEO Shawn M. Donaghy. “With this next generation of electronic fare, our customers will benefit from multiple ways to pay. The Hop card is helping to redefine regional transportation, and we could not have had better partners than TriMet and the Portland Streetcar.”
“Hop Fastpass is the type of investment in convenience our riders expect and deserve from the system,” said Portland Streetcar Executive Director Dan Bower.
