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Metro riders can now use a contactless credit or debit card, smartphone or other payment-enabled device at participating parking facilities as the transit agency expands its Tap. Ride. Go. system.

The payment option is already available on buses and at rail stations alongside Smart Trip cards. Metro is introducing it at parking facilities through a phased rollout, allowing the agency to test and refine upgraded equipment, software and fare systems before adding more locations.

Customers who enter Metro Rail with a physical or mobile Smart Trip card will continue to be automatically recognized for applicable parking benefits. Metro said its systems will distinguish rail customers from non-rail customers so parking transactions are processed accurately and consistently.

Updated signs will identify participating stations.

Metro serves approximately 4 million people across a 2,054-square-mile area spanning Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia. Its network includes six rail lines, 98 stations, 126 bus routes and door-to-door paratransit service.

The system handled 268.9 million trips in 2025 and operates with a $5 billion operating and capital budget. Since 2022, Metro has completed several transit-oriented development projects involving housing, offices and retail space that generated $15 million in regional tax revenue.

More than 30,000 cameras monitor the transit system. Metro reported that rail fare evasion has fallen 82% and that its crime rate is at a historic low.

In 2025, the American Public Transportation Association named Metro its Transit Agency of the Year, recognizing ridership growth, record customer satisfaction, the redesigned bus network, expanded rail service and other customer-experience improvements.