How to load your auto sweep / easy trip RFID

Railroads and expressways have been a part of transportation in the Philippines for a long time. Whether you plan to go out of town or for business purposes, these toll roads greatly benefit everyone’s time and energy. However, we are now going through something extraordinary with the COVID-19 pandemic: this forced all of us to live a different lifestyle, and it affected businesses greatly. Those using these toll booths have decreased significantly as most places are on lockdown.

The government’s initiative is to provide these cards with the technology to open the booth for you; it will also provide how much balance you have left on your card. At the same time, the goal is to also lessen traffic congestion to reduce the spread of the virus. Depending on your usage and the distance of your destinations, the balance of your card may run out quickly. Thankfully, there are 2 convenient ways to reload your auto sweep/easy trip RFID: this can be done over-the-counter or online.

Over-the-counter

There are numerous reloading sites available all over different areas. This is made possible with partnerships done by the government and the establishments. For the auto-switch RFID, you will have the option to reload in places such as "Savemore," "7/11," "Waltermart,” and more. To top up the account, you will only need the account number found at the back of your Autosweep card.

Once you have given your account number to the cashier, they will proceed to help you put the load in it. The process may only take a few seconds to a minute; once this is finished, you will be able to see your balance on the application. If the balance did not show up, it is best to wait for a few minutes. If a long time has passed and you do not see the load you’ve paid for, then you should visit the web or call (02) 5-318-8655 (TOLL).

As for the easy-trip RFID, you can reload this in malls such as "SM," "Robinsons," and convenience stores like “Waltermart” and "7/11.”. It is the same process as the easy trip, as you will need your account number and will be talking with a representative. They will help you in reloading if you are having a hard time.

The important thing to take note of is the office hours for these establishments. With the pandemic, a lot of office hours have changed, or maybe some have even closed. You have to make sure the area that you’re going to is open and running before attempting to reload.

Online

Reloading online is deemed the safe and popular choice, as you no longer have to go out and risk getting infected. There are numerous applications and banks that allow you to pay online, such as G-Cash, BDO, BPI, Paymaya, and many more. To reload using these apps, you will first need to open the app.

Once you are there, you will go to the “pay bills” option. This may differ from bank to bank; some may have it titled “payments” or “top-ups”; it merely depends on what bank you have. After this, you will see the option for "transportation,” which is for "toll,” and the "e-wallet.”. You will then see the option of “Auto sweep RFID” or “Easytrip RFID.”. This is where you will proceed to input your account number and amount to reload. The final step will be to just press continue and pay the amount given.

Like over-the-counter, it will also only ask for the account number of your RFID, and then you will be all set. You will receive a text or email confirming your payment, and your card should have the balance that you paid for afterwards. You must also need to have enough balance in your bank to purchase loads, or the transaction may not push through.

The only con of reloading online is the poor connectivity and response rate of some of the applications used. People have been complaining about issues with their payment, which therefore led to them not being able to use the card. This is why there are people who force themselves to do over-the-counter reloading.

You will be able to see the cashier give you a load on the spot, and you will be able to check if it arrived in your application. Whatever way you deem is best, this is a good step for us in preventing the spread of the virus. It’s good that there are barriers when going to these areas, and you must have these RFIDs. It’s also a useful technique to prevent people from going out of town merely for leisure; they will think the line for the RFID is not worth it.