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Clipper Card Use On Bay Area Transit Taking Off

OAKLAND (KCBS) _ Bay Area commuters seem to be getting the hang of the universal Clipper cards.

Transit officials said numbers for the multi-use Bay Area transit card are on the rise.

"Since October, we've really seen a climb. First to 50,000, then 100,000 and then 200,000," said Metropolitan Transportation Commission spokesperson Randy Rentschler. "We're really seeing some significant growth and now we're at 325,000."

KCBS' Anna Duckworth Reports:

Rentschler directly credits San Francisco Muni, which replaced its Fast Pass with Clipper this fall, essentially forcing thousands more people to use it.

"I think the next big jump for Clipper will be when BART fully converts," said Rentschler.

That transition is expected sometime next year, but Rentschler said it will be a slower process because of the number of machines and establishments that sell BART's magnetic-striped card.

BART officials have already notified its EZ Rider card users that they'll need to transition to the Clipper card.

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