Technical Description of a MetroCard

Andre Cunningham

City College of New York

The MetroCard helps New Yorkers quickly pay their fare to get on buses and trains so they don’t have to drive around which would take a longer time. This was not always the case. The MetroCard and the MTA company in general did not exist at first. When subways and buses became prominent in New York, most systems were run by private companies meaning they would have to organize their subway and bus lines. The first official line would be known as the Interborough Rapid Transit Company, or IRT for short, during the year of 1904. They first set up in Manhattan and slowly expanded to the other boroughs (Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens). The IRT would hold 28 stations that spanded the distance of 9.1 miles.

In the year of 1953, New York would create the New York City Transit Authority which was usually called the TA. This is not to get confused with the MTA as the TA only controlled the trains and buses the city owned, not all since private corporations still owned some buses and trains. In this same year, the first train currency would be established. Subway Tokens, would take the place of coins and were priced at 2 for 30 cents.

 

Photo Credit: Getty Images; New York Transit Museum

As seen above to the left, subway tokens looked like a thicker quarter with a hole in the center. As seen above to the right, the token were price 2 for 30 cents and were available for purchase at small machines located in the subway.

Later down the road, in 1962,  the city would take over the trains and buses from the private corporations due to financial issues most likely due to the depression. This will lead to the creation of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority or as of today known as the MTA for short. MetroCards would come in the year of 1996 with the addition of seven day and thirty day unlimited MetroCards in 1998. Originally the cards would be purchased from a person but the MTA realized that created a vending machine would be easier for both employees and travelers so that is what they have onde in 1999. The MTA would stop accepting and producing tokens in 2003.

Photo Credit: AFP/Getty Images / Emmanuel Dunand

Picture above shows the vending machines for MetroCards located in subway stations.

 

Raymond deKozan would be known as the inventor for the famous MetroCard. He was an engineer that later became a businessman. He was born in Richmond, Virginia on February 21, 1936. He would attend and obtain his electrical engineering degree from the University of Virginia. Before working with the MTA and the MetroCard, he first worked with Glenn L. .Martin Co. while the space race went on between the United States and the Soviet Union. After dying at the age of 74 due to a brief illness, he left behind his wife and three children, two daughters and one son.

DeKozan wanted to find a way to stop the selling of tokens as people were getting tired of carrying so much on them. He came to the conclusion of the MetroCard. Travelers liked the idea so much they immediately wanted the production of tokens to cease and MetroCards to begin production. In present times, MetroCards are used all around New York for all MTA buses and trains.

Photo Credit: iStock

Picture above shows a modern day MetroCard.

 

When going into the technology and science behind a MetroCard, all a person needs to know is that everything takes places in the black, magnetic strip. In the strip, an encoding takes

place depending on the amount of money in the card. The strip is made up of a large amount of microparticles that helps encode the information. Most people relate the process to binary code encoding information with 0’s and 1’s. The microparticles can be viewed as small arrows pointing in a different patterns for different values on the card. As of today, we know that the MetroCard holds 3 lines of information. The first line and second line holds the card type (time or value based), expiration date, the amount of times the card has been used and the value left on

the card, whether it be the money or time value. The third line holds the line that is changed every time you swipe your card to get on a bus or train.

 

Photo Credit: Blogspot/Sidewalk Science

A visual of how someone can view the encoding of the MetroCard

Photo Credit: Greater Greater Washington

Picture above shows the farebox of MTA buses in order to pay the fare with your MetroCard.

Photo Credit: Untapped Cities

Picture above shows the turntable where train travelers swipe their MetroCard to pay the fare.

 

In conclusion, the MetroCard, created by Raymond deKozan, will go on to be one of the greatest innovations for New York public transportation. It helped to discontinue the hassle of tokens into something less of a bother to carry. New Yorkers rely on it every day whether it is to get to school/work or to go visit a friend in a different borough. No one knows how long the MetroCard will last but for now, there seems to be nothing close to replacing it.

 

References

 

Cook, L. (2016, October 28). Learn all about the history of the MTA. Retrieved from https://www.amny.com/transit/history-of-the-mta-learn-about-the-city-s-transit-system-from-its-inception-1.11931586

Emily. (1970, January 01). This Magnetic Moment: An Introduction to the MetroCard. Retrieved from http://sidewalkscience.blogspot.com/2008/11/this-magnetic-moment-introduction-to.html

New York City Transit – History and Chronology. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://web.mta.info/nyct/facts/ffhist.htm

Smerd, J. (2010, October 22). In Memoriam: Inventor of MetroCard dies. Retrieved from https://www.crainsnewyork.com/article/20101022/FREE/101029939/in-memoriam-inventor-of-metrocard-dies