Carte orange

A holder of the pass was entitled to unlimited use of the public transit system within a given period of time, with Cartes oranges being available for durations of one week or one month.

The Carte Orange itself was composed of a metro ticket and an identity card, both of which were stored in a small, transparent, flexible plastic folder.

As an additional security measure, many Paris Métro turnstiles did not accept the same Carte orange ticket more than once in a short lapse of time.

In the event that someone accidentally exited a station prematurely (by following the wrong signs, for instance), it may have been necessary to wait (usually only a few minutes) before re-using the ticket.

The intention of this mechanism was to prevent multiple passengers from using a single Carte orange to enter an unmonitored metro entrance.

The Charles de Gaulle Airport RER stop (located in Zone 5) was, unfortunately for tourists, one of those stations that did not have an accessible ticket window on the incoming side.

Nevertheless, the Carte orange was novel in that it was the first ticket that gave the passenger unlimited access to all of the region's public transports for a flat rate, and during a specific period of time.

Furthermore, the RATP and the SNCF, respectively responsible for Île de France and national public transit, had to work out a revenue-sharing scheme, but this proved to be relatively easy.

The consequence of the phase out of the Carte orange is that it is more expensive for short-term visitors and tourists to take advantage of the maximum discounts available from advance bulk purchase of trips.