Pace Set to Introduce Paperless TAP Vouchers
Change has city pushing independents to acquire credit card processing equipment.
By: Jonathan Bullington
The days of filling out paper TAP vouchers are coming to an end.
Chicago cabdrivers have long been frustrated with the time-consuming process of filling out paper vouchers, especially when a small mistake in that process can lead to a driver being denied reimbursement for the fare. Now, Pace hopes to streamline the TAP system and alleviate those concerns by switching from paper vouchers to electronic swipe cards.
With the help of Chicago-based Cabconnect, these new vouchers (some of which are already in use) will bear a picture of the rider and, when used, will automatically deduct the trip's cost from the rider's account. The transaction will then go to Cabconnect for processing before going to the affiliations and then on to the individual driver. The result, Pace says, will be the faster processing and payment of vouchers for both affiliations and drivers.
“With paper vouchers, it was taking several weeks [for drivers] to get their money,” Pace spokesman Patrick Wilmot said. “This system will reduce that time significantly.” He added, “If there are no issues with the transaction - i.e. no equipment problems and the transaction meets all our requirements - some of the larger [affiliations] will be able to cash out the same day. Other affiliations would be able to cash out within the next day or two.”
According to Wilmot, Pace will begin mailing cards to TAP riders toward the end of March, meaning drivers should start seeing them in use in April. Though the voucher rules - value of each voucher, wait time between trips, etc. - will not change, Pace and the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (DBACP) will train affiliations and drivers in the correct way to process the new swipe cards.
Credit card time for independents?
Since the new vouchers will essentially be credit cards, the majority of cabdrivers will be able to process them using their existing credit card equipment, according to Cabconnect's Chris Plunkett. But what about the roughly 300 independent owner-operators who have been exempted from the city's mandate of accepting credit cards?
“A requirement of a license is to take TAP vouchers,” said DBACP Deputy Commissioner Shellie Riedle. “We'll contact those without credit card processing and work with them to get them up to speed on this new technology. Pace is aware that there will be the need to accept both forms of vouchers while people make this transition,” adding the switch could take “several months.”
The city has already been in contact with independents over the last few months informing them of various credit card processing vendors it has approved for use by independents. One company on the city's list, the Brennes-Jones Group, said their systems are not yet programmed to accept the new vouchers.
“While I understand the desire to switch these to electronic, a lot of work needs to be done,” said Tim Morrissy of Brennes-Jones.
Wilmot said Pace will work with all the processing agents used by independents to get them set up to accept TAP cards. One option, he said, could include manual processing, so long as fraud protections are in place.
According to Plunkett, drivers without processing equipment could still accept vouchers by processing them through an automated phone system.
“We don't want to exclude anyone from using vouchers,” he said.
