A few years ago there was a major change to the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) network. The change, which occurred in 2014, was a switch from the popular Chicago Card to a new “Ventra” card. Ventra was essentially a new and improved Chicago Card which offered contactless payment on all CTA busses and trains.
At first, when Ventra rolled out, it was an epic failure. Busses were constantly delayed as it took several attempts for the cards to read. I can’t tell you how many times you’d plop the card on the reader only for it to deny you a ride. Additionally, there were several times where the system crashed entirely which meant free rides for all. The whole transition was honestly comical. This article sums up the Ventra rollout failure nicely.
Surprisingly Ventra is close to 5 years old now and somehow I’ve been able to hang onto my original card. I don’t think I’ve ever carried a card this long. Sadly, my Ventra card has finally expired and it’s time to get a new one. Thankfully, Ventra was on top of things this time and sent me a renewal email a few weeks ago. After confirming my current address I received a second email letting me know that my new card was on the way.
My New Ventra Card
After receing that final confirmation email I had to wait a few weeks for my new card today. Then, today, finally, my new Ventra card arrived!
Inside of a Ventra branded envelope was the following mailer which contained my new Ventra card.
The old Ventra card was just a boring grey card with Ventra and MasterCard logos on the front. The new card by comparison is actually quite attractive.
The front of the card contains a 50 shades of blue triangle patter with subtle Ventra branding. While the back of the card contains some information about Ventra and a card number and CVV code.
Overall, I’m quite pleased with the new card and activating the card was truly as easy as calling the number listed on the card and confirming receipt of the card.
Using My New Ventra Card
Ventra card is extremely easy to use these days. All you have to do is register your Ventra card to your account and add funds to the card. You can then set the card up to auto-reload as funds drop below a certain threshold. From then on you just have to tap the card on a Ventra card reader and funds are automatically deducted from your account.
Likewise, you can also add 30 day passes to your card for about $100 each. These passes allow for unlimited rides on CTA busses and trains for 30 day periods. Buying a 30 day pass ends up being a great deal if ride the train or bus twice a day most days of the month.
Another great use of Ventra is to use the Ventra mobile app to purchase Metra train tickets. Metra is Chicago’s commuter train network and buying rides through the app couldn’t be easier. My office is currently very near Chicago’s Ogilvie train station I’ve been using Metra as a shortcut to get to O’Hare airport. If you don’t mind paying a few extra bucks you can take the Metra to the Jefferson Park Blue Line station and cut the commute to the airport down to just under an hour door to door.
Overall Venrta is great these days and using the system couldn’t be easier. Interestingly enough, I don’t think I’ll ever actually use my new Ventra card.
Why I Won’t Carry My New Ventra Card
While the Ventra card is quite easy to use, I don’t think I’ll actually ever carry my card. That’s because I recently discovered that you can use Mobile Pay or any other contactless cards to pay for Ventra rides. This side of Ventra isn’t advertised and I’d be willing to bet that most riders have no idea that you can use Apple Pay to pay for CTA rides.
In the past to pay for a CTA ride I’d have to take my wallet out of my pocket and then pull my Ventra card out of my wallet. I used to be able to tap my entire wallet onto the reader, but that changed when I got a contactless Amex. With two contactless cards in my wallet I ran the risk of being double charged for rides.
Now, I simply pay for my CTA rides with Apple Pay on my iPhone. The process is extremely easy and I haven’t run into any issues yet. Also, I have my Chase Sapphire Reserve card as the default card on my Apple Pay account. So not only is it easy to pay for rides, but I also earn 3X points on each purchase.
Final Thoughts
Well, I must say that I am excited about the new Ventra card. I think the card looks great and I’m sure given the advancements in contactless cards over the past few years that there won’t be many issues when using the card. However, given that I now use Apple Pay to pay for CTA rides I suppose that I’ll never actually use my new Ventra card. Now I’m curious to see how long it takes for other rides to learn that they can use Apple Pay and stop using the Ventra card as well.
