Cash was king on the MBTA for a few hours Tuesday, as the transit agency was unable to accept credit or debit card payments at stations.

The T said on Twitter at 10:19 a.m. that it was unable to accept the card payments. The issue was resolved shortly after 1 p.m.

#MBTA Fares: Credit/Debit card sales are temp unavailable at all stations & online at https://t.co/U4WBPZRBct. — MBTA (@MBTA) May 31, 2016

While the system was down, MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo directed passengers traveling without cash to use ATMs at busy subway stations. Or they could use credit and debit cards to add value at retail locations that allow users to reload their CharlieCards and buy passes and tickets, he said.


Pesaturo said the T’s tech staff is working to identify why the credit card server system failed.