BART Fare Media History (Tickets, Clipper)
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This page covers the historical variety of tickets, transfers, and clipper cards used on BART and from BART stations.
As part of the automatic fare collection system, BART passengers used tickets to enter and exit the paid area of every station. Tickets were supplemented by Translink II (later Clipper) and eventually replaced by the end of November 2023. |
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Sections:
Tickets and AFC Development
Ticket Types
Blue Ticket (Normal Fare)
Red Ticket (Youth/Disability)
Green (Senior)
Yellow (Promotional)
Purple (Test)
Translink I
Translink II
Clipper
Transfers (BART to Bus/Bus to BART and BART to Muni/Muni to BART)
Tickets and AFC Development
Ticket Types
Blue Ticket (Normal Fare)
Red Ticket (Youth/Disability)
Green (Senior)
Yellow (Promotional)
Purple (Test)
Translink I
Translink II
Clipper
Transfers (BART to Bus/Bus to BART and BART to Muni/Muni to BART)
Tickets and AFC Development
"Magstripe" (magnetic stripe) tickets were wallet-sized stored value cards used to enter and exit the paid areas of the system via fare gates, alongside the use of associated ticket vending machines and addfare machines. The original Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) system was developed by IBM.
In typical BART fashion, the tickets were the most advanced fare media in widespread use in the early 1970s. Comparable Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) systems, such as the Illionis Central (1968) and PATCO (1969) used a similarly sized card, but the entire obverse side was dedicated to an iron-oxide layer for the encoding of information via a binary scheme. This system for the eastern systems was developed by Advanced Data Systems.
BART was the first transit application of the narrow magstripe card in the world. Although now outdated, public transit systems across the world use this BART-pioneered technology.
In typical BART fashion, the tickets were the most advanced fare media in widespread use in the early 1970s. Comparable Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) systems, such as the Illionis Central (1968) and PATCO (1969) used a similarly sized card, but the entire obverse side was dedicated to an iron-oxide layer for the encoding of information via a binary scheme. This system for the eastern systems was developed by Advanced Data Systems.
BART was the first transit application of the narrow magstripe card in the world. Although now outdated, public transit systems across the world use this BART-pioneered technology.
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Ticket Types
Tickets sold: 1972 - 2023
Blue: Normal Fare
Red: Youth/Disabled (two different discount levels)
Green: Senior
Orange: School (None in collection)
Yellow: Promotional
Purple: Promotional
Purple: Test Ticket
Blue: Normal Fare
Red: Youth/Disabled (two different discount levels)
Green: Senior
Orange: School (None in collection)
Yellow: Promotional
Purple: Promotional
Purple: Test Ticket
Blue Ticket (Normal Fare)
The standard Blue ticket was for normal fare riders.
The design of the ticket changed moderately through the decades. In the final approximately 15 years, some tickets sported different messages/advertisements on the rear.
The design of the ticket changed moderately through the decades. In the final approximately 15 years, some tickets sported different messages/advertisements on the rear.
The Systemwide Rehabilitation Program around the turn of the century included Automatic Fare Collection (AFC) Replacement: Replacement of all faregates, ticket vending machines, and addfare machines. The new tickets of the 2000s had a larger magstripe as compared to older tickets.
Red Ticket (Youth/Disability)
Youth: 50% discount for persons aged 5 to 18 years of age.
Disability: 62.5% discount for persons with a qualifying disability.
Disability: 62.5% discount for persons with a qualifying disability.
Green (Senior)
For persons aged 65 and over.
Senior: 62.5% discount
Senior: 62.5% discount
Yellow (Weekend Promotional Round Trip)
Handed out to riders for a fare-free trip from any station to any station on the weekend.
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Purple (Test)
For employee use only.
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BART Plus
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Value added for transfers to/from BART and:
AC Transit (local) BART Express County Connection Dumbarton Express (local) Martinez Link SamTrans SF Muni Santa Clara County Transit Union City Transit Replaced by Clipper. |
TransLink I
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The first TransLink was a demonstration project for a common ticket for use on BART, County Connection, and BART Express busses. It lasted from 1993 to about December 1995, and was financed through a $4 million FTA grant via the MTC.
Translink was touted as the first joint bus and rail stored value ticket system in the United States. The fare equipment for the busses were named "Bus Ticket Validators (BTVs)" and were produced the French company CGA. They required the insertion of the ticket into the BTV, and carried a moderately attractive transfer discount. TransLink was abandoned due to issues with BTV performance ("rough roads") and administration expenses. Data from the TransLink project was used to influence the second TransLink project based around a contactless smart card. |
Translink II
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TransLink was a project of “smart” fare cards with an RFID chip allowing “seamless access to all 26 Bay Area transit systems”. The cards rolled out in 2009, at first for 5 agencies. BART began fare payments using TransLink on August 3rd, 2009.
In 2010, TransLink was rebranded into Clipper. The cards have some degree of limited use on the BART system. |
Clipper
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TransLink II evolved into the Clipper card, which is now the only normal form of fare payment on the BART system.
There are but a few commemorative clipper cards. These are the cards I have been able to find. |
BART to Bus and BART to Muni Transfers
Sources
Warner, David. "Implementing a 21st Century Fare Collection System on a 20th Century Zone System." 2009. Port Authority Transit Corporation/AREMA
https://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2009/news20090803-0
Last updated 12/24/24
Warner, David. "Implementing a 21st Century Fare Collection System on a 20th Century Zone System." 2009. Port Authority Transit Corporation/AREMA
https://www.bart.gov/news/articles/2009/news20090803-0
Last updated 12/24/24
