No more recharging CharlieCards online when new site launches

The MBTA has often been the source of discomfort and irritation for Bostonians following an era of shutdowns and slow zones.

Now, the CharlieCard might be another list item of Bostonians’ ongoing transit qualms. 

After 8 a.m. on Nov. 15, the MyCharlie site, used to reload CharlieCards, will be shut down. According to the MBTA website, patrons of the T will no longer be able to use the site to reload when the replacement site is live. 

A post on X, formerly known as Twitter, about the issue reads, “So as of 11.20, you can’t buy/add value to a CharlieCard online, at home, anytime. But you can wait in line, at a machine, fumbling with physical cards. Just in time for winter. We pay people to make decisions like this?” 

This new website will allow patrons to register multiple CharlieCards, request replacement cards and even sign up for automatic payments, but adding funds to a particular card won’t be available. 

What does that mean for existing MyCharlie users? Although all information from the old MyCharlie account will be migrated over to this new site, it will require each user to create an MBTA account with the same email as their old MyCharlie account. 

“I didn’t know I could add value to my card *now.* So thanks for that, T,” wrote one X user in response to the news. 

This site seems to have long been the cause of strife for Bostonians, even over a decade ago. One X post from 2010 reads, “Dear MBTA: Why is the MyCharlie Account Center on your website so difficult to use? Seriously, it’s a usability nightmare.” 

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