according to the invention , a fare card for storing information in a plurality of different ways for use in a transit system is disclosed . the fare card includes a card body that has at least a first region and a second region . the first region is located adjacent to an edge of the card body and has a first thickness . the second region has a second thickness that is different than the first thickness . a first data storage element for storing fare information is included in the first region , and a second data storage element is included in the second region .