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If you’ve ever sprinted through Jamaica Station dragging a suitcase and silently begging a MetroCard machine to cooperate, relief is finally on the horizon. OMNY vending machines for the JFK AirTrain are set to arrive soon, marking the next phase of New York’s long-running transition away from swipes and toward taps.
The update first surfaced in a now-viral Instagram post showing signage for “OMNY AirTrain JFK vending machines coming soon,” offering an early look at what’s replacing the last vestiges of MetroCard hardware at one of the city’s busiest transit gateways. Jamaica Station, long dubbed the “final boss” of airport travel, has been slowly shedding its legacy machines ever since the broader MetroCard phase-out began at the start of 2026.
For years, the AirTrain held onto physical cards longer than most riders expected, forcing travelers into long lines just to buy a card they’d likely use once. Now, with the transition accelerating, the new OMNY kiosks are expected to bridge a key gap: helping riders who don’t use smartphones or contactless credit cards still access the system. The machines will let customers purchase and reload physical OMNY cards using cash or credit, an important workaround for some international visitors and anyone not fully living the digital-wallet lifestyle.
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Contactless payments are already accepted at Jamaica and Howard Beach stations, but dedicated vending machines have been a missing piece since the MetroCard phase-out.
According to a Port Authority response circulating online, preloaded MetroCards with enough balance can still be used at existing gates for now, though on-site sales have largely ended. Airport employees can temporarily buy select MetroCards at designated airport offices, while retail vendors may continue selling remaining stock until supplies run out.
What the new kiosks won’t solve (at least not yet) is the lingering question about discounted AirTrain passes and how frequent riders will navigate OMNY pricing over the long term. The Port Authority has said it’s working toward solutions, but the pricing for regular users under OMNY remains unclear.
For now, though, the takeaway is simple: the days of frantically hunting for a MetroCard machine before a flight are numbered. Once the vending machines go live, Jamaica Station could finally feel less like a transit obstacle course—and a little more like the seamless airport connector New York has been waiting for.