Compass card (British Columbia)

The Compass card is a contactless smart card automated fare collection system used primarily for public transit in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Compass card readers were first implemented as a beta in September 2013. Due to delays, full implementation to the general public began in August 2015. The system is operated by Cubic Transportation Systems and is managed by TransLink, the transportation authority for the region.

Compass cards and tickets have been required for all trips taken by SkyTrain, SeaBus, and West Coast Express since April 8, 2016. By June 2016, TransLink reported that more than 915,000 customers had switched to using Compass, which included 95% of customers who could have used other fare media such as cash or paper-based FareSaver tickets.

Riders are able to purchase Compass cards and add fare value online, by phone, or at Compass vending machines located at SeaBus terminals, SkyTrain stations, and West Coast Express stations. Compass vending machines are also available at 18 participating London Drugs retail store locations.

Overview


Users start by obtaining a Compass card, which requires a $6 refundable deposit, from one of the Compass vending machines located at SkyTrain, SeaBus, or West Coast Express stations, then add value to the card online, by phone, or directly at the vending machines. Compass cards are also available for purchase online, at London Drugs retail locations, and at various convenience stores.

TransLink estimated that 80,000 users were using the system by the end of January 2014. As of June 2016, Compass cards had been tapped on the system more than 371million times, at a rate of more than 1.5million every weekday. TransLink recorded a ridership increase of 1.8 percent and 3.2 percent in increased fare revenues in 2015, according to its 2015 annual report.

Fares
Transit riders will have the option of paying for fares by Compass card or cash, but the Compass card offers lower fares. A rider who makes a cash payment at a Compass vending machine receives a paper-based Compass Ticket which is good for transfers within the 90-minute transfer period (180 minutes for West Coast Express).

Nearly half of TransLink's revenues come from fares. TransLink uses a three-zone fare system in the region for SkyTrain, Canada Line, West Coast Express and SeaBus service, with single adult fares ranging from $2.85 to $5.60 on weekdays. All fares on buses across the region are set at the one zone rate of $2.85, a switch TransLink made during the roll out of the Compass contactless smart card payment system.

Users purchase a Compass card for a $6 refundable deposit, then load it with stored value. The $6 deposit can be used temporarily if a rider forgets to maintain enough stored value, but the value on the card must be replenished above $6 before the next trip or they will not be able to tap in.

Stored value
The following tables illustrates single trip fares during peak and off-peak hours for bus, SeaBus, and SkyTrain riders.

Users must maintain a minimum of $0.01 value on the card to tap into buses, SkyTrain, or SeaBus, and a minimum of $4.50 to tap into West Coast Express.

Other passes
DayPasses, U-Passes, and one-, two-, or three-zone monthly passes can be loaded directly onto the Compass card, with the option to renew automatically every month. Users who register online benefit from the auto renewal and balance protection, which protects the stored value in the event of card loss or theft. Passes are used prior to Stored Value being used.

History
SkyTrain and SeaBus were barrier-free at their inception. BC Transit, and later TransLink, took the position that the barrier-free proof of payment system was more effective than having fare gates or turnstiles. In the early 2000s, they estimated a five percent fare evasion rate on SkyTrain, or approximately $2million or less per year. Fare checks and fines issued inside Fare Paid Zones kept the rates at that level. Since the staff conducting the checks – SkyTrain attendants and transit police – would still be required even with physical fare barriers, maintaining a barrier fare system would be more costly than the barrier-free option.

In late 2007, the provincial Minister of Transportation, Kevin Falcon, announced interest in the installation of an access-controlled fare system.

In March 2008, Ken Dobell, a lobbyist for Cubic Corporation, started talks with Falcon with the intention of selling technology to TransLink. Dobell, BC premier Gordon Campbell's former deputy minister and previously the first CEO of TransLink, had just been found guilty of breaching the Lobbyists Registration Act.

In April 2009, the Office of the Premier, the Government of Canada, and TransLink announced the implementation of fare gates and smart cards.

In 2010, TransLink held a contest to decide the name of the smart card system. The contest received 56,000 entries with 14,000 unique names. The four finalists from the public contest were Otter, Umbrella, Compass, and George (named after George Vancouver). In January 2011, TransLink ran an online poll where participants could vote between the names Compass, TPass, and Starfish, with the latter two being introduced by TransLink. Compass was announced as the winner on March 31, 2011.

In September 2013, the Compass card system underwent a 3-week beta test phase to evaluate its functionality and user-friendliness. Selected beta testers received a Compass card loaded with $100 that could be tapped in and out, but these were not considered a valid payment of one's fare. As a result, testers were required to carry an additional valid FareSaver ticket.

The Compass Card system was launched in August 2015 as part of an initial transition phase. During this transition phase, users could still purchase and use FareSaver tickets, with fare gates at SeaBus and SkyTrain stations remaining opened. Initially, users were required to tap their card upon exiting a bus to track the number of fare zones travelled. However, in October 2015, buses were designated as a single fare zone, eliminating the need for a tap-out system on buses—a change that, while initially temporary, became permanent.

In late October 2015, cards became available from Compass vending machines at London Drugs stores. The transition phase ended on April 4, 2016, with fare gates closing and Compass cards being required to enter Seabus and SkyTrain stations.

In August 2022, TransLink announced they were working on allowing Compass cards to be stored in digital wallets; however, they noted the feature could take years to implement.

Card variants
Several limited edition versions of the Compass card, including non-card form factors, have been produced by TransLink and sold at certain locations or to commemorate events. These items have frequently been resold on other markets by scalpers at a higher price.

Accessibility
Even on buses, users with physical handicaps may have difficulty tapping their card; this is even more apparent when they are faced with fare gates, which can completely prevent their access (bus drivers can waive the fare should they choose). The temporary solution was either having transit staff on hand to assist riders with difficulties, or keeping at least one fare gate per station open when staff was not present, but TransLink closed all fare gates on July 25, 2016, and required those with disabilities which prevent them from using fare gates to contact TransLink personnel for assistance. In January 2018, TransLink launched its Universal Fare Gate Access Program. Participants in the program are provided an RFID card that automatically opens the fare gate when the card comes in range and closes the gate once the customer passes through.

Transfers from buses
Bus drivers are still required to issue paper transfers for cash fares, which are incompatible with the Compass system, requiring passengers to purchase additional Compass Tickets in order to transfer to SkyTrain or SeaBus. TransLink claimed it would cost an additional $25million to provide fare box upgrades on buses enabling them to dispense and accept Compass Tickets.

In the original full tap-in/tap-out design, a multi-zone bus trip could be completed for a single zone fare by tapping out within the first zone of travel but remaining on the bus. This fault was not publicly acknowledged by the administration until system testing in September 2013. Regardless of the loophole, Transit police or designated transit security fare enforcement officers may issue a $173 fine if they catch riders without adequate fare in a Fare Paid Zone. Furthermore, the tapping out process on buses was reported to be slow, and failure to record a passenger's tapping out may have resulted in the passenger being charged for travelling through three zones when in fact they only travelled through one or two zones.

On October 5, 2015, all bus travel throughout TransLink's system became 1-zone travel and bus passengers are neither required nor expected to tap out.

Delay in deployment and cost overrun
Despite a planned roll out in 2013, the full implementation of the system continues to be delayed by ongoing problems related to the bus tapping; this has been a serious setback for TransLink as the entire system had been supposed to be operational by 2013. The time frame announcement was pushed to late 2014, before TransLink changed its Compass Timeline website in late 2014 to remove statements promising a full Compass roll-out in late 2014, only stating that post-secondary students will receive cards in the summer of 2015, replacing the U-Pass BC, with full deployment not re-announced until September 2015.

In addition, TransLink confirmed in October 2013 that the cost overrun for the Compass card system had reached $23million due to delay related inflation and unanticipated scope creep. The Compass card system had been budgeted at $171million, but had risen to $194million.