We’re resuming our TAP-to-Exit program at North Hollywood Station (B Line) and Union Station (B & D Lines) at the beginning of service on Monday, Nov. 17. At the same time, we’re also launching TAP-to-Exit at the A Line’s Pomona North Station.
What this means for you: riders will need to TAP at faregates/validators when entering AND exiting these stations.
Tapping when exiting allows us to confirm that you’ve paid fare. Checking fares and improving fare compliance, in turn, helps us make the Metro system safer by ensuring our system is used for its intended purpose: getting around our region.
TAP-to-Exit was paused at North Hollywood and Union Station last spring for us to resolve technical issues with the Los Angeles Fire Department. TAP-to-Exit has been ongoing at the E Line’s Downtown Santa Monica Station.
How TAP-to-Exit works:
If you tapped your card and fare was deducted when you started your trip, tapping out will confirm fare was paid.
If you have not tapped your card when you started your trip, your fare will be collected when you TAP out. Point-of-emphasis: you are expected to pay fare when entering the system and you could be warned, cited, or removed from the system for failure to pay fare when entering.
We’ll have plenty of staff at both stations when TAP-to-Exit resumes to help riders pay fares and answer any questions. At NoHo this past summer we also added new, taller faregates that are designed to prevent fare evasion. Staff will also be on hand to help riders apply for our low-income fare program (called LIFE) that provides 20 free rides per month and unlimited free rides for the first 90 days for qualifying riders. More info here.
Some stats that we’ve collected on TAP-to-Exit:
•We surveyed riders at North Hollywood in 2024 and 90 percent felt that the program made the station cleaner, and 86 percent felt safer. The numbers were even higher among women.
•Reports to our Transit Watch app of crime and other issues (fights, drug use and graffiti) dropped by more than 40 percent on the B Line.
•After TAP-to-Exit was launched at Downtown Santa Monica Station and paired with more fare enforcement on the E Line, incidents on the E Line dropped 55 percent.
•In the first month of the program at North Hollywood, 15,000 unpaid rides were identified and paid for upon exit, amounting to an 11 percent increase in fare compliance. Overall, 120,000 fares were collected because of TAP-to-Exit, recovering over $130,000 in fare revenue that we can use to maintain and improve our system.
Tapping to exit is not new – it’s a common feature in other major transit systems across the nation, including BART in the San Francisco Bay Area, MARTA in the Atlanta area, WMATA in the Washington D.C. region, as well as in London and Tokyo — two of the world’s largest transit systems.
Feedback is welcome. TAP-to-Exit is one of many steps that we’re taking to improve safety and cleanliness on our system.
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Just back from Hong Kong and Singapore. Just tapped my debit card in and out everywhere on the system. Would be nice to have that option instead of having a 3rd card. Yes, I understand some people need the TAP card because of banking issues, but a system that could accommodate both would be great, especially for visitors. Then if we can get Metrolink on the system even better.
That’s coming starting next year I believe. You will be able to use both TAP or Credit/Debit to go in/out of the system. Not sure how that will work in regards to transfers but fare capping should still be possible if it’s anything like Kanagawa and Okinawa.
Is there a plan to roll out Tap to Exit at other end of line stations (ex Norwalk, LAX/MTC and Redondo Beach).
Also could you please provide status on the hardening of the emergency gates. I was 7th street on Saturday and saw someone reach around the emergency gate to enter the station.
Hi Ronny —
Yes, the plan is to do TAP to Exit at all the end-of-line stations. Don’t have dates yet for that — but we’ll let folks know ahead of time. There is a pilot program on the emergency gates that we’ll soon write about.
Steve Hymon
The Source
Great! I’m really pleased to see Tap to Exit happening again. Expanding to all stations – coupled with tall fare gates – should be a priority. Including installing at stations that don’t have any fencing or fare gates now (like many surface light rail stations on my line, the A line). We need to ensure all users pay their “fare” share! 🙂
“to resolve technical issues” I would think the fire department was more concerned with safety issues than technical issues.
BART recently saw major improvements in safety after rolling out taller fare gates with their already existing tap to exit. Can’t wait to see this rolled out to more stations creating a closed loop with no gaps. Glad to see we are already getting started
Steve,
Again with the disingenuous blogging; You know very well that all of those systems which require farecard (or contactless credit/debit card) use to exit use distance-based fares (except Atlanta), with vending machines inside of the paid area to allow for adding fare to the local farecard (like your TAP card). And all of those systems, including Atlanta, have fully staffed stations, usually with locally monitored CCTV systems, and have had these since their opening.
When is Metro Los Angeles implementing distance-based fares and when will all stations be fully staffed with locally monitored CCTV?
And when will Metro allow for Open-Loop fare payment?
Hi Erik —
At this time, there are no plans for distance-based fares. We do have CCTV in all the stations. Metro’s working on fare payment at validators with credit cards but don’t have a date on when that would debut.
Steve Hymon
The Source
Long overdue. They need to make this universal across all Metro stations. The fact that LAFD even had a say to halt it is bonkers.
Any word on when Downtown Santa Monica is getting the new fare gates? Last time I went, the wheelchair-accessible gate had gotten stuck in the open position.
Hi Pat —
No word on taller faregates for DTSM — that station is not included in first two phases of the project. I’ll see if it might be part of future phase.
Steve Hymon
The Source
Unless something has changed since then, Downtown Santa Monica was on the list of stations getting the new gates on the Sep 9, 2025 Westside Service Council presentation under “Next Generation Faregates Update – 15 Stations Scheduled for Fall/Winter 2025” (page 3 of the link below)
https://media.metro.net/board/Items/2025/09_September/20250910WSCitem4.pdf
I commute from Orange County to LA using my Metrolink ticket and I’ve never been able to able to tap or scan my ticket for boarding. Any chance that a mobile ticket can be created to travel between different transportation systems? Maybe including scanners that can scan Metrolink tickets at exits?
How does tap-to-exit even help with safety? The only reason Metro got the numbers it did in its trial period was because of the 4 or 5 officers stationed at the exits to enforce tap-to-exit. The moment they were gone, it was back to the old system of exiting from the emergency exits (the preferred exit for many of the unpaid riders, even for stations without tap-to-exit). I witnessed this at North Hollywood even when tap-to-exit was still in effect while I waited downstairs 40 minutes fora bus. It was 5am on a Saturday, and no officers were present. Several people who just got off the subway walked into the locked turnstiles before walking over to the emergency exit, while some went straight to the emergency exit. While the program was active at Union Station, some people exiting saw the officers and the locked turnstiles and went back down to the platform. And finally, at Lake Station, with the tall faregates, multiple people found ways to unlatch the emergency exit from the outside in the few minutes I was waiting for the A line, though it did take considerably more effort than it used to. Exiting was through the emergency exit, and I saw that some people deliberately closed it softly to prevent it from latching.
Kind of surprised at the change of tone on here. People went from crying wolf to actually glad this program that actually worked come back.
Two things to help: 1) Please work on the emergency gates. Too many people know to just reach around, press it open, and walk right in. I’m sure there is a better system for that so people from the outside can’t easily access those gates. 2) Have more police stationed by the faregates. If not more, remind them to stay by the fares. Too many times they are standing too far when even they are not paying attention to people sneaking in, and the “security’ personnel hired, also don’t pay attention. I know they can’t cite people but they should be more helpful in deterring unpaid riders and the rules of the station platforms like no loud music, alcohol consumption, and smoking.
Will all the new D line extension stations be opened with tap-to-exit and taller fare gates?
Given the wealth of fare-reduction programs offered by Metro to riders who are elderly/students/medically disabled/low income, there’s little justification for fare evasion.
I’ve seen, as I have for decades, at “B” line stations, departing passengers using the emergency gates as non-paying would-be riders politely wait to enter the station. This is a failure for the thousands of dollars Metro paid to install new evasion avoidant gates.
I use the “E” line often and have noticed people of every description breeze onto the platform with nary a glance at the fare-taking devices. In fact, at one station, the loud tone created by tapping startled a gentleman who had literally NEVER before heard the sound and didn’t understand its meaning. He explained he used the “E” line regularly and found it useful.
I have also sat in articulated buses, near rear-entrance Tap devices, and noticed, perhaps, <1% of entering passengers pay a fare.
I wish Metro's trains, buses could be entirely free, but given the agency is said to face a vast, structural deficit, I fail to understand how it can justify not enforcing its own regulations.
"No eating, smoking, playing loud music…" How many times have I heard that
announcement on trains? How many times have I noticed those rules are not enforced?
As to the rare occasions when either LAPD or Metro law enforcement officers appear and ask for a show of Tap cards, it becomes transit theatre. To have a card in one's possession does not correlate with the USE of said card. Cards were once checked with a portable device; no more.
We all want as many riders as possible for the usual litany of reasons, but if Metro chooses not to enforce its own regulations, small wonder many people also choose not to abide by them, to our collective loss.
Stupid question: What happens if someone loses their card after they enter and before they exit? How do they get out? Do they have to stay in forever, like in the “Charlie on the MTA” song?
At Downtown Santa Monica station I saw metal barricades in front of the emergency exits though on the south side, which is not cool. I understand the goal to discourage use of the emergency exit, but this is a fire safety issue.
I am a Metrolink rider. I have the Metrolink monthly on my phone. How do I tap to exit?
If I hold a Metrolink monthly ticket how do I ‘tap’ to ride Metrorail?
Any plans on bringing back late night service on the weekends on the B & D lines? Any discussions at least?
And to add: now just need to see active fare enforcement in stations and on trains. The Daily News piece the other day was eye opening on how little actual fare checking is done. Yikes! https://www.dailynews.com/2025/11/16/how-la-metro-quietly-stopped-enforcing-fares/amp/
When will fare gates be installed at the Downtown Azusa A Line station? It appears that the new stations in Glendora and San Dimas already have them.
This is a very interesting concept. What are the benefits of having a tap to enter/exit system that charges the same amount for everyone, regardless of destination, instead of the Asian style pay for as far as you go system? This could be tracked by the station you enter and exit. This could be a good way for the Metro to earn greater revenue.
Honestly, the return of TAP-to-Exit at North Hollywood, Union Station, and Pomona–North feels like a step in the right direction. It makes sense that Metro wants to reduce fare evasion and create safer, more orderly stations, especially when other major transit systems already use tap-out. But there are still things to think about. Turnstiles can slow people down during rush hour, and it’s not clear whether fare enforcement alone will fix larger issues like safety concerns or the need for more visible staff support. This policy helps, but it doesn’t solve everything. How will Metro make sure TAP-to-Exit improves the rider experience without creating new barriers or slowdowns for everyday commuters?