EasyCard

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Obverse side of a standard adult EasyCard.

EasyCard (traditional Chinese: 悠遊卡) is a contactless smartcard system operated by Taipei Smart Card Corporation for use on the Taipei Rapid Transit System and on buses and other public transport services in Taipei since June 2002. It is similar to the Octopus cards in Hong Kong.

Like many electronic fare systems, the card employs RFID technology to operate without contact.

In addition to the EasyCard being used on the Taipei Metro and buses, the card is also accepted at public car parks adjacent to Metro stations and in other areas of Taipei. Starting in 2008, the EasyCard can be used to pay for boat rides in areas such as Danshui.

The stored value on the card can be replenished at convenience stores around Taipei, such as 7-11. The simplicity of usage and availability has made EasyCard a household name, being used by most commuters in Taipei.

The name Easycard was chosen in a public contest, where the general public was asked to propose names, in the end a name chosen by the management.

The card costs 500 TWD, purchasable at any MRT station. 100 TWD is a refundable deposit and 400 TWD is credit. Unused credit and the deposit are refunded on return of card. Fares on the MRT are based on distance. Fares are discounted when using Easy card credit compared with the purchase of a single ticket. By default, there is only one passenger allowed per EasyCard - i.e. you cannot have multiple passengers traveling on a single EasyCard by scanning it multiple times. However, passengers often ask bus drivers to reset the card count in order to pay for another passenger.

A trial allowing the payment of Taxi fares with the card is underway [1] In addition the card can be used as a credit card for transactions up to 500 TWD [2]