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yesterday

BART to Accept Credit Cards and Digital Wallets at Fare Gates Starting Aug. 20

Contactless riders will avoid a $6.40 excursion fee through a 30-minute grace period during the pilot phase.

FILE: Fare evasion turnstiles at the Embarcadero BART Station in San Francisco in February 2025.
Starting next week BART riders will be able to tap a credit card at payment turnstiles. For years, the only way to tap was using the Clipper Card.
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Overview

  • The pilot at BART stations accepts Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover and digital wallets including Apple Pay and Google Pay.
  • The $6.40 excursion charge, which generated over $1 million on short tap-in/tap-out trips in fiscal 2022, is effectively eliminated for contactless riders under the grace period.
  • Months of field testing since June have addressed technical integration and bank network connectivity ahead of the launch.
  • Riders transferring to other Bay Area buses and trains must still use a Clipper card to access transfer discounts.
  • Officials warn of “card clash” when multiple payment cards are detected and advise removing extra cards or adjusting phone wallet settings.