Metro Vancouver's Compass card

In the days of paper fares long before computers and electronic ticketing, BC Transit's paper fares were carried in stacks of three on a pedestal in front of each bus driver. The tickets were pre-printed with the current date, and the positioning of the stacks were adjusted so that the tear would indicate the time issued when they were pulled off their stacks.

This system was highly inconvenient as it required bus drivers to adjust the tilting of the tickets every 15 minutes to reflect the expiry times. These times were rounded to the nearest 15 minute of the clock, and drivers had no way of verifying the amount of change deposited in the farebox.

Around 2003 to 2004, TransLink switched to fares with magnetic strips, just like those found on credit and debit cards. The SkyTrain's 1986 ticket machines were replaced with computerized TVMs with a touchscreen interface that dispensed a credit card-sized ticket with a magnetic strip, and fareboxes on buses were replaced with electronic fareboxes that did the same. The expiry date and time were printed on these tickets for inspection on the SkyTrain, while passengers boarding a bus inserted the tickets into the farebox to verify them.

Magnetic strips were very cool when they were invented in 1960. They allowed credit cards to be charged by a machine via a modem (instead of being verified by phone and then imprinted and mailed in), and allowed employees at secure buildings to enter using their ID badges without carrying a key. Unfortunately, TransLink made the switch only a few years before magnetic strips fell out of use, replaced with contactless smart cards instead. Unlike magnetic strips, smart cards didn't get demagnetized by your cell phone, which caused your credit card to be declined at the checkout counter and left the cashier and everyone behind you in line thinking you're broke.

Remember when credit card machines looked like this?

For as long as the SkyTrain has existed, it has been a victim of fare evasion. The lack of fare gates or turnstiles at stations meant that anyone could walk on board, with no ensure riders had a ticket. In a world where the honor system is largely ineffective, fare-paying riders wanted TransLink to install faregates to reduce the $18 millions of dollars lost every year to fare evasion. Many people were angry about paying the full fare for their trip, while others could get away with a free ride.

At the same time, TransLink customers wanted TransLink to eliminate the existing inefficient three zone scheme of measuring fares, wishing for a card that could record the exact distance traveled and determine the fare accordingly. They dreamed of an electronic system that worked in conjunction with faregates like the ones used by the Seoul Bus Transport Association in South Korea, one that would eliminate fare evasion and charge all users a fair fare. (I'd say pun not intended, but let's face it: you guys know the truth.)

A passenger avoiding paying for a 2 zone fare by walking across the SkyBridge.

TransLink refused to take action, telling the public that installation of faregates and operation of their corresponding electronic fare collection system would exceed the mere $18 million dollars they currently lost to fare evasion each year. In 2010, their fare revenue totaled $412 million, so they reasoned $18 million was only a fraction or their income. People who felt the three zone fare system was unfair would just have to deal with it, because they weren't going to purchase the necessary technology to implement an electronic distance tracking system. Besides, if you thought a three-zone system was bad, HandyDART users have to deal with nine zones.

In 2009, TransLink finally relented, announcing that faregates would be installed and would read contactless smart cards to collect fares and allow access to the SkyTrain. Since this required modifications to Expo Line SkyTrain stations which weren't designed to accommodate faregates the way Canada and Millennium Line stations were, the whole project would be timed with the renovation of the aging stations, some of which have been operating since 1986. The costs of the project would be divided between the provincial and federal governments, as well as TransLink. The system was projected to go live in 2013.

Cubic Corporation was selected to supply and install the equipment. TransLink held a contest in October 2010 to name the system, with the promise of an iPad and a year's worth of free transit to the winner. In March 2011, the 30,000+ entries were narrowed down to Starfish, Compass, and Tpass. The public was asked to vote on the name they preferred and select the winner of the contest. The users of TransLink's services opted for Compass, a name shared by San Diego County's electronic fare system also operated by Cubic.

The winner of the contest was announced to be Oleksiy Gayda from Burnaby. He was randomly drawn, out of seventy two people who submitted the same name, to not only win the prizes, but generally be known as the person who came up with the name Compass. The names of the seventy one other people who also submitted the name Compass were not released, so nearly 100 people will go the rest of their lives with the knowledge that they helped name Compass, but knowing that no one else will ever know.

Oleksiy Gayda is credited with the naming of the Compass card system.

In 2012, faregates began to be installed in SkyTrain stations. At the same time, Compass card readers, known as mobile validators, were installed on the buses in TransLink's fleet, and the original farebox control panels with only an LED segment display, number pad, and 6 function keys were replaced with touchscreens which controlled both the farebox and the mobile Compass validators.

Although the faregates and mobile validators had long been installed by 2013, their activation was delayed to 2014. TransLink held only a month long beta test in October. Selected passengers were asked to tap their Compass cards in and out as they traveled through the system to test them, while paying their usual fare. / Beta testers complained of having to enter a 20 digit serial number each time they wanted to provide feedback, and at least one reported that they only received their testing kit – containing a Compass card, brochures to provide to curious onlookers, and instructions – after the test was complete.

During the test, many taps on mobile validators failed without reason, and the mobile validators didn't work at all (despite remaining powered) while the bus' engine was shut off. Some of the mobile validators testers encountered had exited the Compass card software and was showing the Windows Mobile home screen. Despite these issues, TransLink declined to hold another period of testing before the system would go live.

A mobile validator onboard a bus which has exited the Compass card application and is displaying the Windows Mobile home screen.

In the beginning of 2014, TransLink corrected many of the technical issues discovered during the beta test and started slowly rolling out the Compass card to BC Bus Pass holders. BC Bus Passes are government-subsidized transit passes provided to qualifying individuals for unlimited travel across the TransLink network and are represented by red Compass cards. Other groups who received Compass cards at this time were Canadian National Institute for the Blind members and employees of TransLink and its operating companies.

Controversy arose in August 2013 when it was discovered that the paper transfers dispensed onboard buses could not be used to operate the SkyTrain faregates. A rider who begins their trip at a bus stop and pays their fare by depositing change into the farebox onboard a bus will still need to purchase a Compass card if they need to use the SkyTrain later. This is because installing fareboxes to dispense Compass cards or adding magnetic strip readers to the faregates would grossly increase the cost of the Compass project, which had already gone over budget.

TransLink justified their decision by saying that a lot of time would be provided to transition to the Compass system before the SkyTrain faregates were closed, during which time passengers could still walk through with their paper-based transfers from the bus. Continuing to allow paper-based transfer holders to access the SkyTrain would discourage customers resistive to change from getting a Compass card.

To make things worse, it had become apparent that the Compass card system will not eliminate fare evasion once and for all as many had hoped. Bus riders may tap their cards out before their bus crosses a zone boundary while still remaining on board. Transit Police will continue to conduct fare checks on the SkyTrain system and buses using handheld computers which will verify the fare on Compass cards. Anyone caught fare evading will continue to be subject to the same fine.

These issues will not actually come into existence any time soon. In July 2014, TransLink delayed Compass yet again due to technical problems, providing no timeframe for arrival this time. They stress that “extended-delivery schedules are common with major-system changes” such as the one they are bringing about, and have been experienced by cities worldwide.

At the time of writing, TransLink is propagating Compass cards out to U-Pass holders. Students attending one of the 10 post-secondary institutions participating in the U-Pass program will receive their Compass cards in 3 waves. All U-Pass holders are projected to receive their Compass cards by the end of July 2015.

Supposedly, this delay will not cost TransLink extra, as the work being done by Cubic is within the conditions of the original contract they were supposed to fulfill before they are paid. In the mean time, Chicago residents have filed a class-action lawsuit against Cubic after their own Cubic payment card system, Venture, failed to perform as advertised, charging users double or triple per trip. TransLink advises there's no need for that sort of concern with Compass as Venture was a debit card-based system while Compass is exclusively an electronic fare card.

Although the end goal of the Compass card system is to charge fares based on distance traveled, the three zone fare scheme will stay in place until further notice once the system finally goes live. TransLink is providing time for riders to adjust to the new system before introducing distance-based fares. There are also plans to develop a Compass app, which allow a cardholder to use a NFC enabled device such as their smartphone or watch in place of their Compass card.

Compass Vending Machines will replace the ticket machines currently at Millennium and Expo Line SkyTrain stations. They will also be installed at 18 London Drugs locations. These machines will allow passengers to purchase and reload Compass cards, as well as to check their card balance and trip history. The ticket machines currently in operation at Canada Line SkyTrain stations are already equipped with Compass functionality and will not need to be replaced.

Faredealer locations which currently sell Farecards and Faresavers will dispense Compass cards in pre-loaded denominations. Customers purchasing these cards will not have the ability to customize the amount of funds to load, and these retail locations are unable to reload cards. If someone wishes to reload a card in person, they can do so at the Compass Card Service Center. Otherwise, they may reload by phone or online.

Since the Compass system won't know how far you'll go until you tap out, a three zone fare is subtracted from your card upon tapping in, and whatever you don't use is refunded afterwards. Cards have a $6 credit which allows your card to go into the negative for one single trip, after which you must reload it before it can be used again. This prevents riders from getting stuck on the SkyTrain forever, the way Charlie got stuck on Boston's M.T.A. when it introduced exit fares in 1949.

But did he ever return?
No he never returned and his fate is still unlearned...
He may ride forever 'neath the streets of Boston
He's the man who never returned

BC Bus Pass holders, CNIB members, and TransLink and its operating companies' staff will receive red, yellow, and white Compass cards respectively, which will allow for unlimited travel. The majority of the Compass cards held by the public will be blue Compass Cards, while those qualifying for a concession fare will carry an orange card.

In addition to these, there will also be a white colored Compass ticket. TransLink describes Compass tickets as a card for individuals who do not have a Compass card but require one-time access to transit. A Compass card intended for people without a Compass card seems like an oxymoron, and TransLink has not provided information as to why a blue Compass card could not be simply used once for this purpose.