Press Release

CVS/pharmacy to sell SmarTrip cards in Washington Region

Metrobus and Metrorail farecards available at CVS stores beginning Tuesday, December 23

CVS/pharmacy announced today that it will sell the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority’s (Metro) SmarTrip cards in more than 190 of its stores in the Washington, D.C. region beginning Tuesday, December 23.  The rechargeable plastic farecards will retail for $10 each, which includes $5 for the cost of the card and $5 of preloaded fare so that customers can travel immediately on the Metrobus and Metrorail systems.

“We are pleased to partner with Metro by offering SmarTrip cards in nearly 200 of the most convenient retail locations in the Washington market,” said Gordon Howard, Area Vice President of CVS/pharmacy.  “Customers can easily find a CVS/pharmacy location that sells the cards by looking for the ‘SmarTrip Sold Here’ decal at our store entrances.”

The availability of additional sales outlets through CVS/pharmacy will be critical when paper transfers are eliminated on January 4, 2009.  After that date, riders will be required to use a SmarTrip card to get the benefit of free bus-to-bus transfers and discounted rail-to-bus transfers within a three-hour window.

In addition to providing free or discounted transfers, using a SmarTrip card eliminates the need for exact change on buses, speeds the boarding process and offers a 10-cent discount on regular Metrobus fares. Users can add up to $300 in value to a SmarTrip card and register it online so if the card is ever lost or stolen they won’t lose the value on the card at the time it is reported lost.

SmarTrip also has the advantage of allowing riders to pay fares for numerous transit providers with just one card. In addition to Metrorail and Metrobus, passengers can use SmarTrip to pay for travel on regional bus systems including ART, The Bus, CUE, DASH, DC Circulator, Fairfax Connector, Loudoun County Transit, Omniride and Ride On, and for parking at Metro parking facilities.