This past Friday, New York City’s Metropolitan Transit Authority took an important new step. OMNY, or One Metro New York, is the city’s new fare payment system. Passengers who use OMNY pay their fares using a contactless card, or a digital wallet. Here are videos that demonstrate how to use them:
Riders must create an account in order to use OMNY, and can do so at the OMNY website.
As of Summer 2019, payment via OMNY is only available for full-fare, transfer-free rides on portions of the 4, 5, and 6 subway lines, and all Staten Island MTA buses. However, OMNY rollout will continue over the next several years. Eventually all passengers on all MTA bus, subway, and commuter rail lines in the New York City metropolitan area will be able to use OMNY to pay fares. A replenishable OMNY fare card will be made available. In 2023, the MetroCard, which riders currently use to “swipe” through turnstiles, will be retired.
Many other cities throughout the world have already made the transition to contactless fare payment systems for mass transit, including London, Rio de Janeiro, Adelaide, Toronto, and Seoul.
