http://www.timesunion.com/business/article/CDTA-touts-Navigator-fares-benefits-12442403.php
CDTA touts Navigator fares' benefits
Updated 5:27 pm, Tuesday, December 19, 2017
Lower fares, no more financial losses with damaged or destroyed cardboard fare cards, and more ways to pay are some of the incentives the Capital District Transportation Authority is offering to passengers as it moves to upgrade its fare system.
The Navigator system, first announced back in 2016, will soon be available as an app on Android and Apple smartphones, giving passengers access to mobile tickets and joining the Navigator chip card in offering discounted rides.
The $1.50 cash fare is discounted to $1.30 for those using Navigator, and after three rides, or the cost of a day pass, any additional rides that day are free, said Jonathan Scherzer, CDTA's marketing director. Monthly and 31-day passes can be loaded onto your mobile phone app or Navigator card, although at this point they'll remain on one or the other.
And the paper Swiper cards and day passes? They'll go away Dec. 31, and you'll need to use the last of them by March 31. You'll still be able to pay cash, although change cards also will no longer be available, so you'll want to have exact change.
Participants in the CDTA's Universal Access program will continue to pay as they always have, either with a student or staff ID or with a Navigator card.
The app will be available at the Apple App Store and Google Play sometime before Jan. 1, Scherzer said Tuesday. The plastic Navigator card is available at dozens of locations throughout the Capital Region.
If you lose your registered Navigator card or mobile phone, CDTA said it will protect your balance.
CDTA doesn't charge for the physical Navigator card itself, said spokeswoman Jaime Watson. The cards expire after 10 years. More details on the program may be found at https://www.cdta.org/navigator-faq.
