Check out the Metro Fares and ORCA webpage for information on the process and different fare options, and use the ORCA website to obtain a card. If you are riding Washington State Ferries, you can either load your WSF Monthly Pass onto your ORCA Card (create your ownShip-to-Shore Pass) or pay individual ferry trips with an E-Path (walk-on fares only).
The card allows 2 hour transfers, when using E-purse you loaded onto the card, you are charged the most expensive fare of any trip within that window, between trips on the Link light rail, Metro buses, Seattle streetcars, Sound Transit Express buses, Sounder trains, Community Transit buses, Everett Transit buses, Pierce Transit buses, Kitsap Transit buses, Kitsap Transit buses, Kitsap Transit buses, and water taxis, and King County Water Taxis. If you pay with e-purse or Regional Pass, transfers are allowed on any bus or rail system within the region. The cost of the ride is deducted automatically from the ORCA card, and transfer credits are calculated if a transfer is needed to complete the ride. If you do transfer to a higher-fare bus or train, you can pay the cost difference in cash or e-purse values you add to your ORCA card.
Paying with an ORCA automatically gives you a two-hour transit pass, which credits your fare you already paid on your way into the other bus. Some people load up their ORCA cards with cash and pay every fare as they go, taking advantage of a two-hour transfer window for their initial fare to transfer between buses and the Link, provided that fare is equal or lower in value. Because ORCA cards are accepted at six different transit agencies as well as Washington States ferry system, tapping in/out will make sure that your fare goes to the agency that gave you the trip. Sound Transit requires passengers to tap on/off at the Link and Sounder trains to let us know the proper fare to charge you, or to your ORCA card vendor.
These convenient cards are accepted at most Seattle-area downtown transit options, including Community Transit, Everett Transit, King County Transit, Kitsap Transit, Pierce Transit, Sound Transit, and the Washington State Ferries. The ORCA Card is a regional transit pass that employees can use anytime, anywhere on Metro, Sound Transit, Pierce Transit, Kitsap Transit, Community Transit, and Everett Transit regular bus services throughout King, Snohomish, Pierce, and Kitsap counties. The ORCA card (for One Regional Card For All) is a smart, contactless, stored-value bus transit system for the Puget Sound region in Washington, U.S. ORCA cards make paying for buses, trains, and ferries throughout the region simpler, and they may save people money.
The easiest way to pay for your bus, train and ferry options is by using an ORCA card (one Regional Card for All). Senior ORCA cards (for riders age 65 or older), which are available as Regional Reduced Fare Passes that let you pay a reduced fare for all local transit services throughout ten counties, can be obtained this week from ORCA To-Go Crews at the UW and Capitol Hill stations, at King Street Center, online, or by ordering by mail. Youth ORCA cards (for riders ages 6-18) are made available to many students through their public schools, but they are also available from the ORCA to-go crew at Westlake Station and Capitol Hill Station this week, at the King Street Center, online, and through the mail. Students who are registered at SPSSeattle Public Schools by mid-August and eligible for an ORCA card will be automatically issued a new one for the new school year.
Students should not qualify for any other transportation mode through Seattle Public Schools. Seattle City Schools programs will continue to offer Oregon Statewide Card orca cards for Seattle Public School students, if funding allows. Middle School students (6th-8th grades) are eligible for the Districts ORCA Card, and students within a walking radius who request it can receive the ORCA Card provided through City of Seattles Opportunity ORCA Program. South Seattle College-issued ORCA cards are usable on the ferry services operated by King County (West Seattle Water Taxi) and Kitsap County (Port Orchard & Annapolis, and Fast Ferry out of Bremerton). To pay the Youth Fare, customers must show proof of age and purchase their first ORCA Card either by mail or in-person at the customer service office.
An ORCA Youth Card allows youth 6-18 years old to pay just $1.50 per ride, including transfers to other services (within 2 hour windows) such as Link Light Rail, Sound Transit buses, Community Transit, and other participating agencies. All other participating agencies in ORCA will accept an ORCA LIFT card, but cardholders will pay current adult standard fares for services provided by these agencies. The ORCA LIFT Card, launched by King County Metro in 2015, is a reduced-fare transit pass for qualifying riders.
The new system also eliminates a one- or two-day delay when loading funds on the myORCA card, which allows riders to have instant access to their fare funds. Under the new system, riders are able to manage their accounts in the myORCA mobile app, instantly access fare money on their ORCA cards, and transfer balances between cards. Under the new system, transit riders can move balances between cards and manage their accounts around the clock.
The Transportation and Parking Services department is selling discounted ORCA cards at locations with e-purse funds and monthly passes that will be loaded for the term. Employers pay a set annual fee for each employee, and they each get one ORCA card, which covers nearly all Central Puget Sound Transit services, including vanpool. Because students are now required to deposit a portion of the value of the transit pass on the ORCA card up front, students will have immediate access to use their cards once they have added that value.