Partners Wanted for MetroChange

In the last few months we’ve researched and developed a system that could act as a charity platform using New York City MetroCards - essentially giving people a choice to use the remaining value on their cards as a public good. 

We believe that MetroChange, if it was rolled out in the city, would allow people who use the New York City subway system to express a preference about what happens to the awkward, remaining value left on their MetroCards. MetroChange quantifies this preference, gives people an alternative to the trash can - making a claim on a portion of what, at scale, is a significant chunk of change.

The key part of this system is obvious; swiping your card, saying that you want to donate the remaining value to charity, then depositing the card in a kiosk doesn’t actually make “money” real. The money is already part of the MTA’s economy and needs to be converted into useful value.

There are two possibilities here; the MTA returns this loose change, or somebody else matches the amount without involving the MTA.

In the situation where the MTA sponsored MetroChange they would  make a donation for the amount of value seen at MetroChange kiosks each month; essentially returning missing/unused value back to the community where it originated. In many cities around the world, excess value and unclaimed change from tickets/cards is donated to charity - so MTA would really just be doing what many other authorities already do.

Another possibility would be that a foundation or organization with an interest in public transportation, urban planning and design matches the value of money seen at MetroChange kiosks and donates it to a charity each month. 

We are really interested in pursuing both these approaches - or maybe there are other approaches that we just haven’t thought of. If you work with MTA, have contacts with MTA - or you work with an organization involved in transportation, transportation policy, urban planning (groups with a stake in the future of New York city’s urban fabric) please mail us at hello@metrochange.org or twitter @metrochange.