Jason Bertch says while flying by the tourists frantically trying to jam their paper Metro fare cards through theturnstiles is a great idea, in reality it doesn’t mean much.
“Why would I bypass people only to stand next them a few minutes later and then battle them for space on the same train?” said Bertch, 32, who rides the Orange Line to Metro Center on weekdays.
Metro hopes to begin offering “express lanes” for SmarTrip users at three test stations by October — a concept transit officials said is similar to the E-ZPass lanes on the highways.
The new aisles will accept only SmarTrip cards and should improve the speed at which customers using SmarTrip cards move through the system, especially during the busy summer tourist season, officials said.
Metro has issued more than 1.7 million SmarTrip cards since they were introduced in May 1999 and more than 1 million remain in active use, said Metro spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein. The cards now account for 53 percent of all trip fares and can used to pay for rail, bus and parking fees.
If approved by the Metro board on Thursday, the pilot program would begin at the Anacostia station on the Green Line, and New Carrollton and Vienna stations on the Orange Line. The three stations, which all average 80 percent SmarTrip usage, would have four of their eight aisles converted to express lanes.
Tom Hartsell, 36, said he expects the new aisles are more of a “sanity aide” than anything.
“There are few things more frustrating than standing behind a family of five all passing out their cards and one by one filtering through,” said Hartsell, who commutes from Vienna to K Street. “I would rather stand on the platform and read a paper than play ‘Frogger’ at the gate.”
