Pittsburgh Regional Transit is starting a two-year process to update and simplify its fare payment system.
Over the next two years, most transit riders will have to change their ConnectCard for a new card. That new card will work with all aspects of a rider’s transit account, including vending machines and mobile payment scanners on transit vehicles.
Jeffrey Devlin, the agency’s chief innovation officer, outlined how the new system will work for the authority board’s technology committee Thursday. Essentially, the new system will take advantage of the flexibility of the Masabi Ready2Ride validators that handle the pay-by-phone app that debuted in August 2021.
The first step in the process will be replacing 76 fare vending machines located at prominent bus and light rail stations. The committee recommended the full board approve an $8.85 million contract with Parkeon Inc. for its Flowbird system when it meets next week, but committee chairwoman Jennifer Liptak said there will be additional contracts in the near future.
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“This is the first step in a very long process,” Liptak said.
Other parts of the project will involve replacing ConnectCards, which should begin by the end of the year, and installing new cash-only fare boxes on 720 buses and 80 light rail trains. The agency promises a “robust” advertising campaign to make sure riders know about the changes.
CEO Katharine Eagan Kelleman said the agency will see what it can do to keep senior citizens from having to replace their free-ride cards.
Devlin said the current fare boxes are more than 14 years old and “have reached the end of their useful life.” The system also uses proprietary technology, so PRT couldn’t add equipment from another company and often had to wait behind other customers for updates.
Changing fare boxes and issuing new versions of the ConnectCard will allow the agency to use the flexibility of the Masabi system.
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Mobile ticket validators such as this one are now available to Pittsburgh light rail riders. (Courtesy of Pittsburgh Regional Transit)
“We’re now ready to expand the Masabi system and use it to its full advantage,” Devlin said. “It’s not a fast change.”
Devlin didn’t have an expected cost for the entire project, but he said the new vending machines are expected to be the most expensive element.
Riders should see a series of benefits from the changes.
Now, for example, riders who have a ConnectCard and also use the mobile payment app have two separate transit accounts. Also, the ConnectCard system often takes a couple of days to add money to a rider’s account.
Cards with the Masabi system add money to the account instantly and can be used with new vending machines, third-party vendors such as convenience stores that sell transit products and to pay fares. Riders won’t need a second account.
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The new system also will make it easier for the agency to implement fare capping for cash riders in the future. Right now, riders who pay in cash have to pay two full fares if they need to transfer to another transit vehicle to reach their destination while riders who use ConnectCards or the mobile app can transfer for free within three hours.
Laura Wiens, executive director of Pittsburghers for Public Transit, said her agency would be happy with it changes. PPT has been pushing for fare capping for several years.
“We’re supportive of that,” she said. “The current system hasn’t been able to provide the fare products we need.”
Devlin said the vending machines are the first step because it could take as long as a year to have them built and delivered.
“It’s a long rollout, but we think it will be beneficial to a lot of people,” Kelleman said. “The goal at the end is to make it as easy as possible for riders to use our system.”
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With mobile tickets, customers present a QR code on their phone screen to be read by validators on the bus or rail car. (Courtesy of Pittsburgh Regional Transit)
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Ed covers transportation at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he’s currently on strike. Email him at eblazina@unionprogress.com.
You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take, and QB Russell Wilson didn’t miss his chance to join the Pittsburgh Steelers after his exit from Denver, ultimately driven by a shared vision with Pittsburgh. Wilson sat down with ESPN’s Hannah Storm and discussed his decision-making process in choosing to come to the Steel City.
Wilson described several prominent Steelers players who made sales pitches during the 2024 offseason, including fellow Walter Payton Man of the Year Award winner Cam Heyward, fellow Wisconsin alumnus T.J. Watt, and former All-Pro Minkah Fitzpatrick.
While playing with such elite talent seems like an offer too good to pass up, Wilson stated that his decision to sign with Pittsburgh stemmed from a shared vision with the team’s philosophy, including a similar football belief system: “I think Coach Tomlin and I share the same vision, love for the game, passion behind it, and obsession with it.”
While the success in the early chapters of the 2024 season can be credited to QB Justin Fields, no one can deny that Wilson helped make the Pittsburgh Steelers potential Super Bowl contenders.
PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers got plenty of good injury news on Thursday as multiple players returned to practice after missing Wednesday’s session.
Running back Najee Harris, who missed Wednesday with an ankle injury, was a full participant in practice on Thursday. Cornerback Cory Trice was a full participant in his first practice back from injury.
Meanwhile, running back Jaylen Warren (back) and cornerback C.J. Henderson (neck) were the two players who did not practice on Thursday that fully practiced on Wednesday. Tight end MyCole Pruitt (knee / rest) did not practice for the second straight day, but the veteran needs less practice time than others due to his veteran status.
Wide receiver Van Jefferson (quad) and cornerback Donte Jackson (hamstring) were limited after missing practice on Wednesday. Both players seem likely to play this Sunday but are being limited.
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Meanwhile, outside linebacker Nick Herbig feels like a full-go after practicing fully for the second straight day. He and Preston Smith will make up the edge rusher rotation as Alex Highsmith (ankle) has already been ruled out.
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Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Diontae Johnson isn’t holding any grudges as he and his new team, the Baltimore Ravens, descend upon Acrisure Stadium for an AFC North showdown in Week 11.
Johnson struck a reminiscent and reflective tone when speaking to reporters about his return to Pittsburgh, stating that stepping onto the field and into the visitor’s locker room with a different uniform on will provide a foreign feeling.
“Just being back in that stadium, where it all started, it’s going to be different,” Johnson said. “I actually have never been in the away locker room [in Pittsburgh], so that’s going to be different for me, but I’m ready to get back there, just to see the good people that I made relationships with, but other than that, it’s a big moment for me.”
Johnson’s NFL career began in 2019, when he was selected in the third round of the NFL Draft out of Toledo. He’d call the Steel City home for five seasons through the end of the 2023 campaign, recording 391 receptions for 4,363 yards and 25 touchdowns across 77 games (67 starts).
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With one year remaining on his deal, Pittsburgh dealt the 2021 Pro Bowler to the Carolina Panthers back in March for cornerback Donte Jackson and a 2024 sixth-round pick, which was used to take Iowa defensive tackle Logan Lee.
Johnson was Carolina’s most productive receiver throughout his seven contests there this season, posting 30 catches for 357 yards and three scores.
With the Panthers far removed from the playoff race, he was traded to the Ravens along with a 2025 sixth-round selection on Oct. 29 in exchange for a 2025 fifth-rounder.
The 28-year-old hasn’t unearthed much of a role since arriving in Baltimore, however, as he’s only taken 23 snaps in his two contests with the team thus far.
Johnson isn’t stressing about his lack of involvement though, stating that he has to remain prepared and can’t worry about how the game plays out given that it’s largely out of his control.
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“They’re working me in there slowly, but, you know, I just go out there, whenever they call my number, going to do my thing,” Johnson said. “So I can’t go in there just expecting a lot. I’m putting a lot of pressure on myself. However the game goes, I’m all for it.”
While he would love to show the Steelers what they’re missing, especially after Mike Tomlin’s recent comments downplaying his potential impact on Sunday’s matchup, there’s no guarantee Johnson will have a true opportunity to do so.
Regardless, it appears he’s relishing the chance to come back to Pittsburgh and catch up with some old friends.
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