Opus card at-home reloading needs $16 card reader

Commuters in Montreal, Laval, the South Shore and elsewhere in the greater Montreal area will now be able to buy weekly and monthly fares from home with the use of a computer and a $16.66cardreader.

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The STM and othertransit authorities acrossthe greater Montreal region made the joint announcement on Thursday.

Users of the following services will be able to use the card-reader program:

• STM
• AMT (commuter trains)
• Laval's STL
• Longueuil's RTL
• Association qubcoisedu transport intermunicipal et municipal (AQTIM)
• Some CITs/CRTs/OMITs

The newprogram cost $7.6 million to implement. It was funded by the transit partners, the Quebec government and a contribution fromthe federal Gas Tax Fund.

The card reader, manufactured by Fusium Solutions, costs $14.49 plus tax a total of $16.66.

So far the STM and its partners have offered no explanation as to why they chose to use a card reader rather than linking to an online system to each Opus card's unique serial number.

Right now only weekly and monthly fares will be available for purchase online.

STM users can load their cards here.

Other transit users in the area can do it here.