VIA's new fareboxes offer more convenient options so you can pay your way, whether you choose contactless credit card, mobile wallet, goCard, goCard lite, the goMobile+ app, or cash.
Benefits of the New System
New and modern fare boxes will replace current fare boxes to speed up boardings, provide more options for customers and reduce delays.
Credit Cards
Change Receipts
Mobile Wallet
goMobile & goCard
Transfer & Day Passes
Same Low Fares
Know Before You Go
If you board a bus with the new technology, but have an e-fare card, simply show it to the VIA operator when boarding.
If you have a goCard lite and board a bus that hasn’t been upgraded with our new fare box, present the card to the Operator.
If you have a goCard lite, and board a bus that has been updated with VIA’s new fare box, just tap and go.
Riders can exchange any unvalidated e-fare card for a new goCard Lite card at any Customer Service ticket window beginning late October.
Using the New Fare Box
New goCard lite
replaces e-fare card
We have replaced the pre-loaded magnetic stripe e-fare cards with upgraded pre-loaded goCard lite smartcards. Instead of dipping an e-fare card to activate it, you will tap the goCard lite on the new farebox. The value remaining on the card, or the expiration will be displayed on the farebox screen. The goCard lite cards are not reloadable.
Customers can now purchase goCard lite passes — preloaded with a 31-Day Pass, 7-Day Pass or Day Pass — at many local retailers, including most H-E-B stores listed below. The term starts the first time they are tapped on the bus.
H-E-B LOCATIONS
#01 1955 Nacogdoches Rd.
#03 108 N. Rosillo St.
#04 1601 Nogalitos St.
#05 2118 Fredericksburg Rd.
#07 415 N. New Braunfels Ave.
#08 300 W. Olmos Dr.
#09 735 S.W. Military Dr.
#10 2130 Culebra Rd.
#11 400 Valley Hi Dr.
#12 18140 San Pedro Ave.
#13 4100 S. New Braunfels Ave.
#14 6839 San Pedro Ave.
#16 721 Castroville Rd.
#18 1520 Austin Hwy.
#19 6580 FM 78
#20 2929 Thousand Oaks
#21 3323 S. E. Military Dr.
#22 1015 S. W.W. White Rd.
#23 5910 Babcock Rd.
#24 6000 West Ave.
#25 7951 Guilbeau Rd.
#27 8231 Marbach Rd.
#29 9900 Wurzbach Rd.
#30 5601 Bandera Rd.
#33 14087 O’Connor Road
#34 6030 Montgomery Drive
#35 15000 San Pedro
#36 7010 S. Zarzamora St.
#37 9255 Grissom Road
#38 11551 West Ave.
#41 10718 Potranco Road
#43 999 East Basse Road
#44 12018 Perrin Beitel Road
#45 12125 Alamo Ranch Parkway
#48 17238 Bulverde Road
Frequently Asked Questions
Riders can choose from several options to pay right on the bus:
• VISA, Mastercard, and Discover credit and debit cards with contact-less chip
• Mobile wallets using Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, and Google Pay
• VIA goMobile+ app
• Transit app
• Reloadable VIA goCards
• VIA goCard lites pre-loaded with a pass or value
• Cash
Currently, riders can only pay their bus fare by credit card or mobile wallet.
Simply tap your contactless-enabled bank card or mobile wallet on the reader where the contactless symbol is located at the top of the farebox.
If your contactless-enabled bank card is not being accepted on the bus, it may be due to one of the following reasons:
• You have a new card. If you have a new contactless-enabled card, you might need to activate it first. If after activating your new contactless-enabled bank card it is still not working, please contact your card issuer at the phone number listed on the back of your card.
• Your card issuer has declined payment. This may be due to your bank account not having enough funds for the journey. Please check with your card issuer.
• Your card may be damaged or expired. If this happens, you’ll need to get your card reissued by contacting your card issuer.
• Your card type is not accepted, e.g. American Express, and other card brands.
Yes, Tap-to-Pay transactions are processed through the same secure networks used for all other Visa, Mastercard, and Discover transactions. Contactless cards are built on secure EMV® Chip technology, which has proven effective at reducing counterfeit fraud.
No, there are no additional fees to use contactless-enabled payment methods.
No, the goCard is reloadable and the goCard lite is limited use. Both utilize the same Tap and Gotechnology.
The goCard lite is VIA’s new disposable Tap and Go that will function similar to the previous e-fare card, with limited-use fare that can be loaded with a specific pass.
Customers can purchase goCard lite passes at VIA Customer Centers, and at most H-E-B stores.
The goCard lite is a disposable, limited-use card that is activated upon the first tap on the bus and is not reloadable.
You can visit the goCard lite portal or call our customer Goline at (210) 362-2020.
Yes, VIA still accepts cash, but paying with exact fare is highly recommended. Operators can only provide a change receipt if the amount due is more than $1.00.
Customers can register their card at the goCard lite portal.
If you registered your card at the goCard lite portal, contact a Customer Service Representative at (210) 362-2020 or in person at any VIA Customer Service Center during normal business hours to report your card lost or stolen.
The value on an unregistered goCard lite can not be recovered.
There is no personal information stored on your goCard lite.
No, but you can exchange it for a new goCard lite at any of Customer Service centers during normal business hours through January 31, 2025.
No, you will continue using it by showing it to the Operator when boarding until the noted expiration date on the pass.