Ticket Machines - machines missing or broken, and penalty fare implications (merged topics)

[whole diary]

[Btline]

e.g. They CON railcard holders into paying the ^12 minimum fare for their ticket, when the actually ticket costs less.

Are you saying that you can select your ticket, then add a YP Railcard, and the price goes up?  I'm sure you must have reported this fault when it happened?

Paul

It does, and it isn't a fault. (well it should be really!)

[JayMac]

I beleive the machines are German in origin you can certainly buy group tickets in all their macihnes.

The two TVMs^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine) at Nailsea & Backwell are by Scheidt & Bachmann - similar to those used in Germany, as has been confirmed elsewhere on this forum.

How exactly is Scheidt pronounced? I have an idea on this, that could also be used as a pejorative for these  Ticket Vending Machine (TVM)s!


Edit: VickiS - Clarifying Acronym

[bobg]

How exactly is Scheidt pronounced? I have an idea on this, that could also be used as a pejorative for these TVMs^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine)!

It's pronounced exactly as you think! 

[paul7575]

Are you saying that you can select your ticket, then add a YP Railcard, and the price goes up?  I'm sure you must have reported this fault when it happened?

It does, and it isn't a fault. (well it should be really!)

Fault is probably the wrong word. Programming error is probably more correct. I checked today how SWT^▸ (South West Trains)'s machines deal with the minimum fare on the Network Card, (^13.00 on weekdays). If you select Network Card for a fare lower than ^13.00, a warning page comes up explaining that you are about to pay too much, do you really want to proceed.

There is a reason why you might want to use a Network Card unneccesarily though, because paying a couple of quid extra might allow you to benefit as you can take up to four children with you at a 20% fare. However this option is really only relevant at a TVM^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine) if you have already added the children to the details of the group travelling - for a single passenger it would be much more logical to blank the Network Card for all fares below ^13.00 on weekdays.  However I know the Network Card is not displayed at all before 1000 on weekdays - it follows that the machines could also be programmed to not display 16-25 card for fares less than ^12.00 before 1000 either...

If I ever get to a station before 1000 weekdays    I'll have a check of how SWT's machines deal with 16-25 cards -unless someone else does it in the mean time.  Reasoning being that if SWT's TVMs deal with it 'safely', FGW^▸ (First Great Western)'s machines (being the same manufacturer under the skin, ie S&B), should be able to do the same...

Paul

[Chris from Nailsea]

From the Gloucestershire Gazette:

Call for ticket machine at Yate Train Station

A ticket machine would save hours of queuing for Yate rail commuters, it has been claimed by campaigners who want to see more passengers on board local trains.

The Friends of Yate Train Station said a simple dispenser which sold tickets from Yate to Bristol would save people a lot of time and encourage more people to use the network.

Chairman and town councillor Sue Walker said: ^Not having ticket machines means people have to queue in all weathers to buy a ticket at Yate. When the train arrives, if they are still in the queue, they have to rush to get on board. They have no chance of paying on board because it is too overcrowded for the ticket collector to get round. People then have to queue to buy a ticket at the other end and for those going to work that is just not fair.^

She added: ^It is a real disincentive. There must be a way for us, South Gloucestershire Council, and First Great Western to solve this.^

Julian Crow, regional manager for First Great Western, said there was a high risk that vandals would target ticket machines. He said: ^Unfortunately we do have some highly motivated vandals who like taking things apart. But we are looking on the Severn Beach line at whether some very simple car park ticket machines would work for train tickets. They are relatively inexpensive. They would provide a very limited range of tickets but that may be enough. Obviously we are very anxious to ensure that people do buy tickets to travel.^

He said the company would monitor how effective the machines are when they are installed at Severn Beach before they are adopted at Yate station.

A multi-ticket card, such as the Oyster^▸ (Smartcard system used by passengers on Transport for London services) card in London, is being considered for use around Bristol. If the project gets the go ahead it would enable passengers to use one card for rail, bus and coach fares.

[eightf48544]

From above

"Obviously we are very anxious to ensure that people do buy tickets to travel.^

Doh!

[johoare]

The ticket machines at Maidenhead yesterday morning were either not working (Shoppenhangers road entrance) or cash only (the ones at the main entrance).. So there was a very long queue in the booking hall... Well done to the people in the ticket office though for clearing the queue as fast as possible which kept it all very good natured as far as I could see.. I managed to still get my train (although that was helped by it being 5 minutes late too  )..

I was wondering if this was this a result of the BT exchange fire/flood at Paddington on Wednesday?

Incidentally, why are the credit card screens on those machines so low down and difficult to see. I'm not tall and I struggle to see the display without stooping down? It must be hard work for taller people? 

[paul7575]

Probably the flood/fire, ticket machine failures were reported in a few areas yesterday, and not just on FGW^▸ (First Great Western)

I believe the CC readers and PIN pads are (or have to be?) at a height suitable for wheelchair users...

Paul

[Chris from Nailsea]

Well, it could be worse!  See http://money.ca.msn.com/savings-debt/gallery/gallery.aspx?cp-documentid=23530950&page=1 

[johoare]

Probably the flood/fire, ticket machine failures were reported in a few areas yesterday, and not just on FGW^▸ (First Great Western)

I believe the CC readers and PIN pads are (or have to be?) at a height suitable for wheelchair users...

Paul

Thanks Paul.. It affected lots of retail outlets too amongst other places.. I thought it might be down to that..

If the credit card machines are at a height for Wheelchair users, can they see the tcket selection screen which points upwards to see which tickets they want? It was the ease of seeing them (for me) versus how hard it is to see the credit card display that made me question it really?

[johoare]

This morning I was buying a travelcard for London and wanted to travel on the 9.03 from Maidenhead to Paddginton which is during the peak.. It was about about 8.55am.. without even thinking I pressed the usual button on the ticket machine.. Luckily something made me check before I paid as it turned out that this was the off-peak travelcard which isn't valid on my train..The first train that is valid on (apparently) is the 9.17 departure..

Is this a new feature? Or a problem with the machines today?.. I couldn't find the ticket I wanted so then had to go and queue up to buy a ticket from a real person...

A man there also got caught out by this but managed to buy the ticket and was therefore trying to pay the difference when he realised..

[eightf48544]

Very interesting.

I've just caught a piece on R4 today about Passenger Focus complaining that TVMs^▸ (Ticket Vending Machine) didn't sell off peak tickets before 09:30 and thus where ther is no ticket office and a train shortly after 09:30 people didn't have enough time to buy a ticket.

The exact opposite of your problem.

TOCs^▸ (Train Operating Company) are really going to have to grasp the ticket issuing problem, if they are going to rely on more and more TVMs to save staff costs then they have to be flexible enough to sell the right ticket at anytime. Or say off peak tickets have NOT VAlid before 09:30 on them in BOLD and this is also against the fare in the list.

Also another of my beefs 4 for 2 not being available from TVMs I understand from other posts that on websites 4 for 2 appears on the list of Railcards. therefore presumably the machines could be programed with this option.

Last night 20 http://www.swrs.co.uk/ members travelled from Slough to Windsor and back on our annual mystery tour which ended at Gooch's grave in Clewer for ^1 each on 4 for 2 but luckily Slough Booking Office was still open. 

[JayMac]

From the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page):

Rail ticket machines prices 'not always cheapest'

Passenger groups have accused companies of not always offering the cheapest fares on station ticket machines.

Machines in stations are meant to cut queues but the BBC has found passengers are sometimes unable to use machines to buy off-peak tickets in advance. As a result, some passengers pay too much or are forced to wait for the peak period to end.

Pressure group Passenger Focus said the issue was of concern and "a big problem for some passengers". If passengers have to wait for the end of the peak period in order to purchase the cheapest ticket, then they can be left with very little time to board the train if it is leaving shortly afterwards.

There are just over 2,200 rail ticket vending machines in the UK^▸ (United Kingdom).

Jocelyn Pearson, from Passenger Focus, said: "Of course we're very worried because passengers are telling us it's a problem. People sometimes go to the machines and then don't have enough time to get onto the platform and get the train they want."

The white-collar rail union, the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association, said the issue showed train companies were putting profits before passengers.

A spokesman for the Association of Train Operating Companies said only a small number of passengers are affected by the problem and companies had promised to look into the issue. But it insists rail companies do not want to mislead customers by offering fares that are not valid at the time of purchase.

"....only a small number of passengers are affected...." And that makes it alright does it?

'Well, Your Honour, I only defrauded a few people.....'

[Worcester_Passenger]

I've had similar problem with the London Midland machine at Worcester Foregate Street.

A Saver Return to Preston isn't valid before 09:00.

But, they are valid when combined with a Railcard.

But the ticket machine still won't sell you one.

Missed my train (and my connection to Preston) on account of this last week.

[JayMac]

I was under the impression that the 'Peak' exemption for Railcard holders on Virgin priced journeys only applies to travel on Virgin services, not connecting services as well. Thats what the restriction code information appears to say.

    
2) Holders of 16-25, Senior, 
Disabled Persons, HM Forces   
and Family & Friends Railcards
, New Deal Photocards and     
Inter-Rail (Code 70) Cards   
travelling with Off-Peak     
tickets may use ANY Virgin   
train service, as long as the
journey being made is priced 
by Virgin Trains.

So from Worcester, you'd need to split at Brum to travel 'Peak' with Virgin.