Why the low Patco price?

Jersey_Mike wrote:Don't praise the fare system yet. The contactless cards are insecure and can be cloned by a remote attacker with a laptop and an antenna. Also, with stored value you can't hoarde rides in advance of a fare increase. The paper tickets are no help as they expire in 3 days. This makes getting 2-ride paper tickets highly risky as if your return station zone changes or you take NJT home you can end up with a wasted ride.

I will sorely miss the old fare collection system.

It's true that the RFID chips still are an insecure technology to use for fare transactions. Honestly, the same goes for anything using RFID, especially credit cards that are currently using the RFID technology.[/b]

Even with the current fare system problems... i will NOT feel nostogic about the old system.. missed too many trains and have had too many quarters rejected.

You should have used the Universal Transit Token instead of quarters. I always liked how PATCO was one of the early adopters of the UTT. The DC Metro could learn a thing or two as it gives all its change in quarters. Now there's a frustrating fare system.

Jersey_Mike wrote: You should have used the Universal Transit Token instead of quarters. I always liked how PATCO was one of the early adopters of the UTT. The DC Metro could learn a thing or two as it gives all its change in quarters. Now there's a frustrating fare system.

For those of you scratching your heads wondering what UTT's are, that's Jersey Mike's term for dollar coins.
I found them very convenient, as I used the UTT's that I received in change upon purchasing my NJT ticket at Lindenwold last Friday to purchase my CTA card on Saturday.
Yes, I took PATCO to Lindenwold.

I miss the old fare system like I would miss a wart on the bottom of my foot. It was state-of-the-art in 1969 and well past it's prime in 2008.

I do wish they had made the paper tickets stored-value with no expiration rather than O&D with 3-day expiration, but they didn't. And I hope that the ability to check the Freedom Card balance on-line comes sooner rather than later. Having to look at the small display on the gate or checking the balance on a TVM is a pain. If something is flukey about your card, with the present system you might not know for a while unless you are a maticulous record keeper (like me). And filling out paper forms to change account info like the credit card data is so twentieth century.

As for fares, the original 1969 fare from Lindenwold to Philadelphia was 60 cents. Applying inflation per the CPI, that would translate to a $3.50 fare today. $2.45 is a bargain.