OPUS Card
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Opus (stylized as OPUS) is a rechargeable, dual interface (contact/ contactless) stored-value
smart card A smart card (SC), chip card, or integrated circuit card (ICC or IC card), is a card used to control access to a resource. It is typically a plastic credit card-sized card with an Embedded system, embedded integrated circuit (IC) chip. Many smart ...
using the Calypso Standard and is used by major
public transit Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of wh ...
operators in
Greater Montreal Greater Montreal (, ) is the most populous metropolitan area in Quebec and the second most populous in Canada after Greater Toronto. In 2015, Statistics Canada identified Montreal's Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) as with a population of 4,02 ...
and
Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...
, Quebec, Canada. It complies with the
ISO/IEC 14443 ISO/IEC 14443 ''Identification cards – Contactless integrated circuit cards – Proximity cards'' is an international standard that defines proximity cards used for identification, and the transmission protocols for communicating with it. The ...
standard for smartcards and can be read by smartphones with an NFC antenna. The name of the card in French, , is a pun on the word in French for smart cards with embedded chips, . Since the reorganization of public transport governance in metropolitan Montreal came into effect on June 1, 2017, the Opus ticketing system has been the property of the Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain (ARTM), which has entrusted its management to the
Société de transport de Montréal The Société de transport de Montréal (, STM; ) is a public transport agency that operates transit bus and rapid transit services in the urban agglomeration of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Established in 1861 as the "Montreal City Passenger Railwa ...
(STM).


Fares

Compared to the previous system, the Opus card is integrated with other transit networks of neighbouring cities, and does not risk becoming demagnetized and rendered useless. A new Opus card costs CAD$6. The cards expire after four years, and there is no charge for replacements. One card can contain up to four different kinds of fares. For example, an Opus card can contain an STM monthly pass, ten STL tickets, six CIT Laurentides tickets, and two train tickets for Exo zone 5 or both individual STM tickets and a weekly or monthly pass. Unlike other transit cards, such as Presto (Ontario) and
Compass A compass is a device that shows the cardinal directions used for navigation and geographic orientation. It commonly consists of a magnetized needle or other element, such as a compass card or compass rose, which can pivot to align itself with No ...
(Metro Vancouver), the Opus is not a stored-value system. The appropriate fare is deducted when paying at any machine, in a similar fashion to PayPass, and daily, weekly, and monthly passes are used before individual tickets. The main goal behind the creation of this card was to reduce
fare evasion Fare evasion or fare dodging is the act of travel without payment on public transit. When considered problematic, it is mitigated by revenue protection officers and ticket barriers, staffed or automatic, are in place to ensure only those with va ...
in the province's transit systems. The card is available at various points of sale where local transit fares are currently sold. Re-filling stations can be found at
Montreal Metro The Montreal Metro (, ) is a rubber-tired underground rapid transit system serving Greater Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The metro, operated by the Société de transport de Montréal (STM), was inaugurated on October 14, 1966, during the tenure ...
stations, train stations, and Exo bus terminals, as well as from specified retailers where local transit fares are sold. Costs to the STM related to the project were approximately $138 million, compared to the original estimated cost of some $100 million. The project was originally supposed to be implemented in 2006. The Opus card has been widely criticized for its lack of stored-value capability and for being able to load only four types of tickets/passes simultaneously, factors that significantly reduce the capability and flexibility that would have otherwise been gained from a stored-value system.


Rollout phases

* Q2 2008 – Testing with employees of transit authorities and select groups of testers. * Q2 2008 – Deployed for users of the RTL only. * Q4 2008 – Deployed for students on all STM, STL and RTL as well as Exo TRAM users. * Late Q4 2008 – Deployed for all regular fare users of all three transit authorities as well as Exo TRAM users. * Q2 2009 – Start of deployment for users of CIT systems. * Q2 2010 – End of deployment for users of CIT systems. In preparation for this new step in Montreal's public transportation network, turnstiles that incorporate the reader and vending machines were installed in Metro stations; buses had previously been fitted with new fare boxes that incorporate the card reader, in order to ensure the uniformity of methods of payment across Montreal’s transit network and that of its suburbs.


Participating transit authorities


See also

* List of smart cards


References


External links


Official website
{{Canadian smartcards Public transport in Quebec Montreal Metro Exo (public transit) Société de transport de Montréal Contactless smart cards Fare collection systems in Canada