ORCA, One Regional Card for All, is being rolled out on a limited basis beginning today, for travelers in the Seattle area using bus, train or ferry. The new contactless card is scheduled to replace about 300 passes, tickets and transfers and will work for all seven of the major public transportation agencies serving King, Kitsap, Pierce and Snohomish counties.

The limited rollout will continue for several weeks followed by a more extensive ORCA launch and customer awareness campaign expected in June. The phase-in of ORCA will continue through the end of the year as people’s current transit passes expire and are replaced by ORCA cards. The phased process will give transit customers and the agencies time to transition to the new system.

ORCA cards are also equipped with an e-purse that allows riders to preload fare value onto the card. With each trip–whether the trip involves one agency’s system or transfers between systems–the correct total fare amount, including any transfer value, is automatically deducted from the value on the card. Riders can also take unlimited trips by purchasing a monthly pass on their ORCA card.

With ORCA, customers will have more options for paying their transit fare. Riders can buy and revalue ORCA cards online, by phone, by mail, and in person at transit agency customer service offices, ticket vending machines and select retail businesses around the region.

ORCA cardholders can check their accounts online, by phone or at ticket vending machines. Customers will have the option to register their cards, which allows them to restore their card value if it is lost or stolen. Registered cardholders can select an autoload feature that can add value to a card when the e-purse is drawn down to a certain amount or when their monthly pass expires.