Paying Your Fare
The price you pay for your TransLink fare depends on the time of day and how many zones you travel through. During the regular fare period (Monday to Friday, from start of service to 6:30 p.m.), you pay according to the number of zone boundaries you cross. After 6:30 p.m. on weekdays and all day Saturday, Sunday and Holidays, discount fares apply and purchasing a one-zone ticket will allow you to travel through all zones.
Buying a single fare lets you travel for up to 90 minutes across Metro Vancouver. You can travel for one, two or three zones by bus, SeaBus or SkyTrain. Tickets for West Coast Express must be purchased separately as they are priced differently.
Prepaid Fare Media is perfect for frequent travellers who want to save some money, or for those who don’t want to worry about having exact change for the bus. FareSavers (books of 10 discounted tickets) and DayPasses are sold by FareDealer vendors in the form of prepaid fare media and don’t have specific dates for travel, so you can buy them in bulk for future travel dates. DayPasses valid for that day only can be purchased at ticket vending machines at any SkyTrain Station. Availability of prepaid fare media, and form of accepted payment, varies by FareDealer locations.
Paying on the Bus
If you’re paying by cash, you must use exact coin fare. Put the coins in the right-hand slot of the farebox. You’ll receive a transfer – a small paper card with a magnetic strip on the back. This transfer can be used on other buses, SeaBus and SkyTrain, and is also your proof of payment.
When you pay by FareSaver tickets or transfers, you put them in the left-hand slot of the farebox.
Tickets and transfers are inserted with the arrow pointing down and the magnetic stripe facing you. When you insert your transfer into the farebox, the machine will automatically tell you if your transfer is still valid (90 minutes from the time of purchase).
On the back of the transfer along the top, you will find the day of travel, time the transfer expires, and the bus route number.
Paying on the SkyTrain
Before entering the Fare Paid Zone, pay for your ticket at the ticket vending machines. These machines accept coins (except pennies) and bills (up to $20). Debit and credit cards are accepted at most SkyTrain stations.
The ticket machines are all touch screen. They will ask you to select how many zones you are traveling through. Once you have paid, they will dispense a ticket with a paper magnetic strip on the back. These tickets also work in bus fareboxes.
Validating Your Ticket
If you’re using a FareSaver ticket, or a pre-purchased DayPass, you’ll need to validate it before use. This is done either on your first bus or at one of the blue validators next to the ticket vending machines at SkyTrain/SeaBus stations.
Note: DayPasses purchased at ticket vending machines are valid for that day only. You can purchase DayPasses for future use at authorized FareDealer vendors.
Keep Your Proof of Payment
Remember to keep your validated FareSaver ticket or transfer for inspection purposes or to use as a transfer ticket.