Presto chango! The TTC’s payment war with the province is over (sort of)
One of the more maddening fights between the city and the province has been the argument over rolling out the Presto payment system. The TTC wanted to investigate the possibility of “open payment,” meaning riders could pay with their credit or debit cards. Acrimony, of course, ensued. It looks like our long municipal nightmare may finally be over, though, if the Toronto Sun is right.
You’ll soon be able to tap and swipe your way to work on public transit, says Transportation Minister Kathleen Wynne.
In response to a friendly question from Liberal backbencher Kevin Flynn, Wynne told the Legislature Monday the government has started to develop the “next generation” of technology.
The province and TTC clashed earlier this year over which technology to use for fare payment across the GTA.
Thanks to the Wynne-Flynn exchange in question period, it now looks like Toronto will get both Presto and some form of open payment, and all the city had to go through was months of carping between Wynne and Adam Giambrone. When the dust settles from the election, maybe the city can actually step on the gas when it comes to rolling out Presto if this argument is finally settled.
Given that none of the remaining candidates seem to stomach a fight over this, we’ll probably have to find other excuses for Presto-based puns. After all, there’s always the inevitability a chance that the TTC will bungle the rollout.
• New technology on the way for Presto fare card: Minister [Toronto Sun]
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