Metrolinx wants to sell Presto cards at Shoppers Drug Mart stores in Ottawa

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Ottawa transit riders could get better access to Presto cards if the agency in charge of the Presto system uses Shoppers Drug Mart as a sales vehicle.

A report published on Friday for the board of directors of Metrolinx, the Ontario Crown corporation that runs Presto, says the agency is planning to extend the availability of the cards at Shoppers, including making them available at Ottawa stores.

The agency is expected to have more information on a rollout plan early in 2018.

Metrolinx has partnered with Shoppers to distribute and load Presto cards in Toronto since last spring and, according to the agency, the arrangement has “exceeded all expectations.”

Pat Scrimgeour, director of OC Transpo transit customer systems and planning, said “discussions with Metrolinx are ongoing to improve access to Presto services in Ottawa.”

The Confederation Line LRT, the second rail line on the O-Train network, is scheduled to open on an unspecified date in 2018.

Transpo is testing new ticket machines at some Trillium Line stations. People can buy and load Presto cards at the machines.

However, a retail partnership spearheaded by Metrolinx could help Transpo put more Presto cards in the hands of transit riders when the LRT line opens.

Shoppers lists more than 50 stores in Ottawa on its website.

Currently in Ottawa, there are four Transpo customer service centres and three City of Ottawa client service centres where people can get Presto cards and load them with passes and funds. People can also order cards online or by phone and wait up to 10 days to receive them.

It’s still common to see lines at Ottawa service centres near the beginning of each month, with Presto users wanting to add a monthly pass or e-purse funds to their cards.

Customers can load their cards via the Presto website, but many still prefer to make a face-to-face transaction, especially since the Presto cards are filled immediately with the funds. The online method can take up to 24 hours for Presto to register the transaction.

Metrolinx and Shoppers announced their partnership last May, rolling out the cards to an initial 10 stores in Toronto. By October, there were 93 Shoppers stores offering Presto services.

Expanding Presto sales to retailers in Toronto is paying off.

Metrolinx says more than 38,000 cards have been sold at Shoppers stores in Toronto. There has been $2.9 million in sales generated from Presto cards and the value loaded onto the cards, just from Shoppers outlets.

Metrolinx is also looking to make Presto cards available at Shoppers stores in Presto-using regions near Toronto.

jwilling@postmedia.com

twitter.com/JonathanWilling



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