City of Phoenix/Valley Metro
Platinum Pass Program
American Public Transportation
Association
2013 Fare Collection Workshop &
Transitech Conference
PUBLIC TRANSIT DEPARTMENT
Overview
• Platinum Pass Program Summary
• Enrolling in the Program
• Card Management
• Billing and Payment
• Program Benefits
• Program Statistics
• Other Smart Card Programs
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Platinum Pass Program Summary
• Valley Metro - City of Phoenix Partnership
• Smart Card Technology
• Employer-Based Program
• Post Payment Fare Program
• Bus and Light Rail
• Benefits Employers, Employees, and the
Entire Valley
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Enrolling in the Program
• Opening a Platinum Pass Account
 Valley Metro web site
 Submit application/agreement
 City of Phoenix processes applications/agreements &
orders
 Submit order upon approval
 20 card minimum initial purchase
• Validity period usually three years
• Minimum 5 cards used each month
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Card Management
• Smart Card Inventory Controls
• Orders Received and Processed by City of
Phoenix
• Smart Cards Encoded and Printed
• Fare Collection System Database Updated
• Passes Issued to Company and Company
Issues to Employees
• Passes Deactivated at Customer Request
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Billing and Payment
• Monthly Billing Based on Usage Not to
Exceed Equivalent Monthly Pass
• Billing Summary Report Provided with Each
Invoice
• Payment Due 30 Days From Invoice Date
• Payment Monitoring
Total past due amount < 0.5% of annual revenue
• Renewals
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Program Benefits
• Conveniently provide passes to large
number of transit users
• Employers may subsidize part, or all, of the
cost as an employee benefit
• Employer is only charged for actual number
of rides with a cap
 Maximum $64 per month for local bus and light rail
 Maximum $104 per month for Express/RAPID bus
• Cards can be deactivated if lost or stolen
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Program Benefits
• Extra cards can be ordered and used
immediately upon receipt
• Employer receives one monthly invoice for
total charges on all cards being used
• A billing summary showing total charges per
card is provided to each customer
• A detailed billing report that shows the day,
time and route for each boarding is available
for an additional $25 per month
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Program Statistics
•
•
•
•
Program Administration – 4 FTE’s
250 Customers
120,000 Active Passes
Annual Revenue
FY 2010-11 $10,451,000
FY 2011-12 $10,206,000
• Annual Card Production
FY 2010-11 92,000
FY 2011-12 82,000
• FY 2011-12 Deactivations 19,500
• FY 2011-12 Customer Contacts 5,800
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Other Smart Card Programs
• Arizona State University Student
U-Pass
Per boarding charge, no maximum
About 15,000 passes provided to ASU
Bill ASU monthly
$2 million annual revenue
• Semester Pass
12 Local colleges
Pre-paid
$200K annual revenue
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QUESTIONS?
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