My bus rolls into Port Authority. I’ve got 10 minutes to get across town for my first meeting. I sprint down the escalator, run through droves of people, and arrive at a subway turnstile. I swipe my MetroCard through the magnetic reader, step forward—only to get crotch-checked by a locked metal bar and flipped the finger by a screen that displays “PLEASE SWIPE AGAIN.” I give it another swipe. “INSUFFICIENT FARE.”

To refill my MetroCard, I power walk toward the kiosk. It refuses to read my credit card. I swipe a few more times. Nothing. I sift through my back pocket, discover a crumpled ten-dollar bill, and slide it into the machine. It won’t accept my cash. I waffle-iron the bill flat with my hands and feed it back in.

The kiosk spits out my refilled MetroCard. Baked into its awful blue and yellow design is this same awful experience, on repeat.

The MetroCard has been a defining artifact of New York City’s subway system for more than three decades. In that time, some might argue, it has become an icon of design. I respectfully disagree.

Design is inextricable from experience. The MetroCard’s design is as outdated as its technology. Fortunately, after years of poor MetroCard experiences like mine, the MTA has made its final update to the swiping technology.

In 1993, the MetroCard was introduced as a replacement for subway tokens. It existed for decades as New Yorkers’ dominant method for accessing the subway. But in 2019, the MTA announced they were introducing a tap-and-go system called OMNY. That year, they installed it on Staten Island buses and across 16 subways as part of a pilot program. Over the next four years, they installed OMNY machines throughout all five boroughs.

Manhattan and Brooklyn were early adopters. By November 2024, 60% of riders were........

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