Nov. 11—Clipper experienced technical difficulties Saturday afternoon that blocked some public transportation riders from reloading their cards from their phones for several hours.
Around 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Clipper warned that it was working to fix an issue that was preventing mobile card users from reloading their Clipper cards through both the Apple and Android wallet apps. The problem was soon resolved, according to a 5:30 p.m. social media post by Clipper.
During the disruption, BART said users may have to purchase physical cards to be able to ride. Unlike mobile cards, which are free to set up, new plastic Clipper cards cost $3 each.
Some users reported they were still able to reload mobile cards as usual. Others complained on X, formerly known as Twitter, that they were unable to process transactions or that they were charged multiple times for a single transaction.
Clipper said transactions that did not go through will not be processed. Anyone who was charged multiple times can contact Clipper customer service at 877-878-8883 or [email protected] to be refunded, according to Clipper.
The technical difficulty coincided with the first day of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit being held in downtown San Francisco. With security blocking off large parts of the South of Market area and Nob Hill to cars, riding public transportation may be the only way to avoid traffic nightmares plaguing downtown.
— APEC in San Francisco: How to navigate street closures and transportation woes
BART previously announced it would phase out paper tickets on Nov. 30, leaving riders with the option of either purchasing the $3 physical card or using their mobile phones. Clipper has also announced plans to let riders pay fares by tapping their debit or credit cards directly. That new system is scheduled to launch in the summer.
Reach Megan Fan Munce: [email protected]
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