{"id":481483,"date":"2025-12-31T03:24:13","date_gmt":"2025-12-31T03:24:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/481483\/"},"modified":"2025-12-31T03:24:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-31T03:24:13","slug":"a-final-farewell-to-the-metrocard-ahead-of-its-retirement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/481483\/","title":{"rendered":"A final farewell to the MetroCard ahead of its retirement"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s the end of the line for the MetroCard after more than 30 years of swipes across the city\u2019s transit system.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe MetroCard was there when we was broke, when we were late, when we squeezed into the train with one swipe left and that hope, that hope in our hearts,\u201d said Dupree God, who helped organize a funeral for the famed MetroCard in Washington Square Park on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p><b>What You Need To Know<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The MetroCard was first introduced in 1994 and featured a magnetic stripe with a stored value<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<li>The card replaced subway tokens, which rolled out in 1953<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<li>MetroCard will still be accepted into 2026, and the MTA will announce the final acceptance date at a later time<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>New Yorkers said FAREwell to the dearly departed payment method, while organizers read from a so-called \u201cobituary\u201d and held up an urn filled with MetroCard ashes. Sales will officially end on New Year\u2019s Eve as customers permanently switch to the MTA\u2019s tap-and-go payment system, OMNY.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLate nights on the train, trying to get from one side of the city to the other\u2026 Who do we call? We call the MetroCard. And now we\u2019ll be reminded of his absence every time we go on the train,\u201d said Kaicey Rahn, who attended the MetroCard funeral. When asked what she thought of OMNY, Rahn said, \u201cNo comment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For decades, swiping a MetroCard with ease has been the unofficial test of a true New Yorker. Now, most customers use tap-to-pay.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re goated! One swipe? Yeah, you deserve an award. The one-swiper,\u201d Brooklyn resident Max Cannon said.<\/p>\n<p>For one artist, the iconic blue and yellow card was more than just a wallet-mainstay \u2014 it was an inspiration.<\/p>\n<p>Matthew Lloyd has been drawing different scenes within the MTA MetroCard background for years. He showed his work in Long Island City on Tuesday to commemorate the card\u2019s retirement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe classic yellow MetroCard, which was once blue, is like a New York City staple. It\u2019s recognizable across all five boroughs, the tri-state area even. And I think it\u2019s just such a big symbol in New York,\u201d said Lloyd, whose exhibit is titled \u201cStand Clear of the Closing Doors Please.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The MetroCard was first introduced in 1994 and featured a magnetic stripe card with a stored value. Lifelong New Yorkers say they\u2019ll remember the MetroCard fondly as an all-access pass to the greatest city in the world.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI would see my student pass from kindergarten all the way to grade 12. It was always there for me. From the train to the bus, it was my gateway to experiencing the beauty that was New York City,\u201d one funeral attendee said.<\/p>\n<p>MetroCard will still be accepted into 2026 and the final acceptance date will be announced at a later time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s the end of the line for the MetroCard after more than 30 years of swipes across the&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":481484,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5122],"tags":[5229,7448,23953,405,403,50,5226,5225,5228,5227,117759,52,26304,11900,67,586,132,5230,68,2969,5284],"class_list":{"0":"post-481483","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-app-top-stories","10":"tag-app-traffic-transit","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-city","13":"tag-news","14":"tag-newyork","15":"tag-newyorkcity","16":"tag-ny","17":"tag-nyc","18":"tag-rebecca-greenberg","19":"tag-top-stories","20":"tag-traffic-and-transit","21":"tag-transit","22":"tag-united-states","23":"tag-united-states-of-america","24":"tag-unitedstates","25":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","26":"tag-us","27":"tag-usa","28":"tag-vod"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115812045149358829","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/481483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=481483"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/481483\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/481484"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=481483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=481483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=481483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}