T Fares

[printman2000]

My family and I will be spending 4 days in Boston relying totally on public transportation. I plan to buy the $15 week pass.

Am I reading correctly that my 10 and 7 year old will be able to ride for free? $30 for "Unlimited travel on Subway, Local Bus, Inner Harbor Ferry, and Commuter Rail Zone 1A" sounds likea great deal.

My older son is about to turn 10 but is very tall for his age an most people think he is older than he is. Will we be asked to prove his age at all?

 

[AG1]

Yes, eleven years old and under ride for free with a paid adult and is a good deal. Be advised that the "1A" commuter rail zone doesn't get you very far and there isn't a day pass bargain for zones "1-8" to the suburbs.

 

[Joel N. Weber II]

I think the 1A commuter rail zone covers travel between commuter rail stops that also happen to have subway service, and most of the stops on the Fairmount Line, and I think that's it. I have never taken a zone 1A commuter rail trip in nearly 10 years of living in the Boston area, though there may have been times when if I was paying attention to the schedule, it would be the best way to get between Porter Square and the part of downtown Boston near North Station. (The other problem is that the official policy is that if you have your monthly pass on a contactless CharlieCard, as I do, the pass isn't good for 1A trips because the commuter rail conductor can't read the pass. I haven't tried to find out what happens if I show a conductor my receipt from the vending machine plus the CharlieCard, which ought to be sufficient to demonstrate that I am in fact holding a valid monthly pass, even without a fancy electronic reader.)

At $15 per adult per 7 day pass, you need to make about 9 one way trips for the pass to be cheaper than paying $1.70 per subway trip on a CharlieCard. If you're planning to make a round trip on the subway each of the four days, plus an extra one way trip on one day, you could easily make that many trips.

 

[printman2000]

I have not made any plans yet that involve commuter rail. I will be using it for light rail and buses.

Thanks for the price comparison. I am pretty sure we will easily use the 9 round trips.

 

[printman2000]

Does anyone know if you can get the 7 day pass from a vending machine? We will be arriving at South Station on 448 due in at 9:45pm but pretty regularly runs late. The sales office closes at 10:00.

If so, do the vending machines take credit cards or do you have to shove $15 cash into it?

 

[AG1]

Does anyone know if you can get the 7 day pass from a vending machine? We will be arriving at South Station on 448 due in at 9:45pm but pretty regularly runs late. The sales office closes at 10:00.
If so, do the vending machines take credit cards or do you have to shove $15 cash into it?

Only the Amtrak and T-Commuter Rail vending machines are on the main floor of South Station.The T-Subway vending machines are down one level in the subway concourse. There is a customer service office near the machines. There are no staffed ticket windows, just the vending machines and yes, they take credit cards.

 

[printman2000]

Thanks Rick!

Are you sure about not having staffed windows at South Station? http://www.mbta.com/fares_and_passes/sales...2FSouth+Station

 

[Joel N. Weber II]

Some of the subway vending machines take cash (generally like half or something of the ones at each station), and all of them take credit cards.

 

[AG1]

Thanks Rick!
Are you sure about not having staffed windows at South Station? http://www.mbta.com/fares_and_passes/sales...2FSouth+Station

I guess I'm wrong. The sign at the window says "Commuter Rail" which is operated by the MBCR for the MBTA. The"Charlie"fare ticket and "Charlie" fare card, which I use, cannot be purchased at that window.