Fare Bit Off got Auckland Train Users?

 

[Note from Admin, I have edited this post to reflect updated circumstances since this post was originally published]

 

Yesterday I had reported in the “victory” for existing train ‘ten-trip’ users when Auckland Transport stated that they will match the discounts from the old paper “ten-trip” tickets to the new AT-HOP store value card when that card rolls out “live” from October 28.  You can see that particular post titled: FARE INCREASE CTD by hitting the hyperlink.

Since the weekend rolled by I have received numerous feedback from various channels on the inability to purchase the following day passes on-board the train: Day-Rover, Family Pass, and Discovery Pass. These day-passes are only available since September 9 this year from Britomart, Newmarket, Papakura (now open) or New Lynn Ticket Offices. The embedded brochure below highlights that change.

 

The following Auckland Transport Webpages also outline the ticketing change regime:

Ticket & Top-Up machines rolled out for AT HOP

Train Changes - Must read news for all train customers

Auckland Integrated Fares System

By the way, the discount level in that last hyperlink is wrong if the Herald clip from yesterday is to be taken for its word.

 

The Herald Clip

 

Now before we go on you need to acknowledge two things:

First is this:

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, QUERIES OR COMPLAINTS ON FARE MOVEMENTS WITH AT-HOP THEN CONTACT ANYONE OF THESE AUCKLAND COUNCILLORS ON THE ACCOUNTABILITY AND PERFORMANCE COMMITTEE WITH YOUR CONCERN. THEY ARE THE ONES THAT CAN HELP YOU (or Auckland Transport themselves) WITH YOUR CONCERN – NO ONE ELSE (including Veolia)!

 

And second the current fare guide – pre AT-HOP for fares, prices of the Day Passes, and the conditions of the Day Passes

Okay – we have all that? Good, now I can explain the issue with the inability to purchase any Day Pass from on-board the train AND the blue ticketing machines on the rail station platforms.

Per the brochures and internet material from Auckland Transport, customers are unable to purchase the Day Rover, Discovery Pass, nor the Family Pass from on the trains, ticket agents, or the ticket machines. That means there are only three places currently were you can get your Day Passes from if you want one – they are the ticket offices at Britomart, Newmarket, Papakura and New Lynn (although if you find a bus you can make a dash and get a Discovery Pass for the same price ($16) from them).

Now do we see a slight issue if you are nowhere near those ticket offices to get your passes in advance. That means you are on the official line from Auckland Transport about to get “slugged” extra to purchase your single trip tickets in order to get to a Ticket Office to purchase your Day Passes. This is because Conditions of Carriage dictate you must have a valid ticket or pass to travel on the trains to get to your destination (whether the ticket is purchased on the train until October 28, from a ticket agent, the ticket office, bus, ferry or a rail station platform ticket machine) – it is an offence not to have a valid ticket or pass if riding on the train.

So as the weekend passengers on the trains found out the hard way – through no fault of theirs nor the staff on the trains and ticket offices that they had to purchase single trip tickets in order to get to a ticket office to subsequently purchase their desired ‘Day Pass.’ You can imagine the anger from passengers and the utter frustration from train staff who were both caught AND stuck between a rock and a hard place as one had to decide on exercising discretion or not.

This accompanying Fare Matrix outlines the fares both under the existing cash system and AT-HOP store value card system (where you get discounts for using the card at a ticket machine (note AT-HOP card is now LIVE) that passengers would pay depending on the stages they travel and how much more they have to pay due to the inability to sell the Day Passes on the trains and through the ticket machines.

Again I point out that the AT-HOP cards do not go LIVE until 28 October.  The reason why I have included the AT-HOP card is to show the comparison in fares while the inability to purchase Day Passes subsequently at Ticket Machines remains.

 

The Fare Matrix

Might need to either zoom or download the pdf to see it clearly.

Note: Return tickets can not be purchased on-board the train nor currently at a rail ticket machine. Both those options are for one-way only!

The way the “1-way + Family Pass” fare works is that you need to purchase the individual single-trip tickets to travel to the ticket office in order to purchase the Family Pass for any subsequent trips. The 1-way + Family Pass” set of fares is cheaper than purchasing two sets of individual fares for the first and return trip to travel on the train. Remember a Family Pass is $24 so in some cases it is “cheaper” to purchase just two sets of individual trip tickets.

 

And yet another note: Family Passes will no longer be sold apart from “special events” from December 31 – 2012

I have also picked up that getting a Seven Stage Individual Ticket will cost $9.00  if purchased from a Rail Ticket Machine instead of $9.80 if purchased from a ticket office or on the train. But that is not going to make much of a difference here folks – at all.

So the Auckland train passenger gets hit again. First it was the ten-trip riders until that got fixed, and now those wanting Day Passes. I wonder what Auckland Transport’s reaction will be this time. And so; “no one will be worse off.” Sounds rather hollow for families wanting to take the kids out for a day on the trains only to find out it will cost them $57.80 from Papakura to Britomart and back to Papakura again (for 2 adults and 4 children) all due to the fact there is no Family Passes – just cash and AT-HOP card fares (the Fare Matrix).

 

Finally I can not place enough emphasis on this:

IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, QUERIES OR COMPLAINTS ON FARE MOVEMENTS WITH AT-HOP THEN CONTACT ANYONE OF THESE AUCKLAND COUNCILLORS ON THE ACCOUNTABILITY AND PERFORMANCE COMMITTEE WITH YOUR CONCERN. THEY ARE THE ONES THAT CAN HELP YOU (or Auckland Transport themselves) WITH YOUR CONCERN – NO ONE ELSE (including Veolia)!

 

Okay again? Veolia are following orders given from Auckland Transport – they (Veolia) can do nothing about the fact of Day Passes being removed from on board the trains or not available in Ticket Machines. So please PLEASE place all concerns to your local Councillor, the Mayor or Auckland Transport themselves.

And yes I am shaking my head at this folks.

 

Current Fares for Rail – Post AT-HOP