Your Cash is NO Good At Cedar Rapids School’s Sporting Events

More and more venues and events are changing to cashless, I even saw it at a parking deck for a concert in downtown Cedar Rapids.  No cash accepted the sign said.  The parking deck I get because there might not be an attendant when you leave but otherwise why the shade on cash?

The Cedar Rapids school system changed the way you can purchase tickets for their upcoming sporting events.  Effective immediately, it is now a cashless system.  Some of the schools have been using digital passes for the last four years.  If you think about it, it wasn't all that long ago that places like McDonald's didn't take anything but cash.  I was complaining back then, why don't you take my credit card so I can pay interest on a cheaper meal that will make it more expensive?  So, now that they've gone cashless, I'll complain about that.  Don't try, you can't nail jello down.

The Cedar Rapids Gazette says The ticketing system used by Cedar Rapids schools is called Bound.  Tickets to the athletic events can be purchased before an event or at the gate with touchless pay like Apple or Google Pay. After you've made your purchase the tickets can be printed or stored on a smartphone for later use.

Part of the reason for going to a cashless system is a safer environment for volunteers who otherwise would have large amounts of cash.  The district claims they'll be letting the public know of the change in a few ways. If you're getting the district's newsletter, an announcement will be made there.  The schools will supposedly email families and then they'll have signs posted at event entry points.  If you're without a credit or debit card.  They ask you to let school building leaders or administrators know at the Educational Leadership and Support Center, located at 2500 Edgewood Rd, NW, Cedar Rapids.

Get our free mobile app

The good of going cashless

According to Bankrate.com some positive reasons for going cashless.

• Convenience: Cashless transactions are quick and easy, and don't require counting out cash or making change.
• Cost savings: Businesses don't need to process cash, and can more easily balance their books.
• Crime prevention: Cashless transactions are less attractive to criminals, and digital records can help law enforcement.
• Stability: Cashless systems don't require a banking system to function, and are less vulnerable to banking collapses.
• Tax compliance: Cashless economies have higher rates of income tax compliance.
• Fraud: Cashless economies have lower rates of financial crime and fraud.
• Regulation: Cashless environments have lower banking system costs and regulation.

Are there reasons not to go cashless?

The venues must think the positives outweigh the concerns about going cashless. Some of the concerns are that people will be excluded such as those without a bank account or credit card.  There are people who prefer face-to-face transactions.  They like to see and hear who is taking their money and are concerned about general customer interactions at the point of sale coming to an end.

Is going cashless inevitable? Only time will tell.