From: grammatim@verizon.net   
      
   On Saturday, May 27, 2023 at 4:18:56 PM UTC-4, John Levine wrote:   
   > According to Peter T. Daniels :   
      
   > >The last time I put money on my MetroCard, it was just before the    
   > >discount was reduced, so my money goes farther than it would have    
   > >if I had waited a few weeks.   
   >   
   > Interesting point. The preload bonus is going away with OMNY. My    
   > credit card gives me about a 1.5% rebate, which I guess is a less than    
   > what the preload was.    
   >    
   > On the other hand, if you preload a card and then don't spend it    
   > for a year, that in effect costs you 5%.    
      
   How so? No one is paying 5% interest on regular accounts.   
      
   > And on the third hand, people who ride every day get the benefit of    
   > the fare cap without prepaying for a pass, so it's slightly better for    
   > frequent riders, meh for us tourists.    
      
   I went to a biweekly concert at the Grad Center, Thursday afternoons.    
   Sometimes I then went up to Columbia to use the library. And a monthly    
   talk on seven first-Saturdays per year. And very occasional entertainment    
   events.   
      
   > I don't see any point to the prepaid OMNY cards unless you absolutely    
   > do not have a bank account in any form. They cost $5 and are no better    
   > than any other debit card.   
      
   We'll see whether there's a charge for the first Senior card.   
      
   I most certainly never use a debit card. (My Chase ATM card happens to be    
   a debit card, but I would never use it to pay for anything.)   
      
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    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)