Tag: Ticket machine

Rail Ticket Machines Fail – Again

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Setting a Trend Now Are We?

 

On the 31st of January of THIS YEAR (so no more than three weeks ago as I write this) I wrote a post that was indicative of not being a good look for Auckland. It was called “OH MY – Not a Good Look For Auckland” and illustrated some embarrassment a local had when showing much-needed international investors around Britomart Station:

Made a big mistake yesterday. I showed some international investors around the waterfront yesterday knowing it would be vibrant with Anniversary day regatta on. All was well until they wanted to go see our train station (which was Britomart). What a “disaster” that turned out to be.

They stood there for about 5-10min taking it all in, watching as the same people were at the ticket box with one person working (at that particular ticket box (The station platform level one on the other side of the gates where the “Onboard Fare is usually paid)) trying to sort something out for five minutes. As a result people were coming and going from the waiting queue annoyed.

The investors were not impressed at all and said that what they seen of Auckland doesn’t impress them as a viable city to invest in. They said love the wide open spaces, weather etc. but just doesn’t stack up as commercially viable. 

 

The post continued to go on about the three Rail Ticket Machines in the Britomart Central Post Office end failing and not dispensing tickets causing queues and frustrations at the ticket office as passengers tried to purchase their ticket, pass through the gate line on the platform level and board their train BEFORE the train takes off!

 

Well three weekends later we have EXACTLY the same situation to the point it has been occurring every weekend since mid-January: all three rail ticket machines at Britomart failing causing queues and frustrations at the ticket office as passengers tried to purchase their ticket, pass through the gate line on the platform level and board their train BEFORE the train takes off! And again the machine service technicians were called and again they refuse to come out until the Monday morning peak services to service the machine!

 

So today – Sunday and being the beautiful weather that it is we are going to have this due to the three Ticket Machines being offline until tomorrow: “queues and frustrations at the ticket office as passengers tried to purchase their ticket, pass through the gate line on the platform level and board their train BEFORE the train takes off!”

 

Now how many more times will I be repeating this until Auckland Transport pulls finger and gets a technician service that is meant to do what it contracted to do: FIX THE FAULT WITHIN TWO HOURS OF NOTIFICATION – NOT WAIT UNTIL MONDAY!

 

Although while Britomart was offline, technicians were spotted replenishing the Sylvia Park Rail Ticket Machines yesterday – an improvement to Anniversary Weekend when the machine wouldn’t be serviced until the following Tuesday!

 

Time to flick an email to the Council Accountability and Performance Committee and file a LGOIMA request on the rate these so-called advanced machines keep “breaking down” and the level of service we ratepayers are paying to having the machines serviced!

 

Wonder if I will be writing this exact same post next weekend? iPredict Contracts anyone?

 

Oh My

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Not a Good Look For Auckland

 

Some feedback from a reader (who has asked to remain anonymous which BR:AKL will do as requested) on their experience with our rail system down at Britomart over the recent Auckland Anniversary Weekend:

 

Made a big mistake yesterday. I showed some international investors around the waterfront yesterday knowing it would be vibrant with Anniversary day regatta on. All was well until they wanted to go see our train station (which was Britomart). What a “disaster” that turned out to be.

They stood there for about 5-10min taking it all in, watching as the same people were at the ticket box with one person working (at that particular ticket box (The station platform level one on the other side of the gates where the “Onboard Fare is usually paid)) trying to sort something out for five minutes. As a result people were coming and going from the waiting queue annoyed.

The investors were not impressed at all and said that what they seen of Auckland doesn’t impress them as a viable city to invest in. They said love the wide open spaces, weather etc. but just doesn’t stack up as commercially viable. 

While I am here: Every time I go into Station Square in Newmarket to show potential investors/tenants the vacant shops I pray there are humans (besides the unemployed and school kids hanging around during school hours I might pray but the poor tenants are mental wrecks waiting for the last  four years for the trains to arrive every thee minutes and what was it like 17,000 people using that station.

 

The person who sent in the above also sent in some photos to boot (Anniversary Monday):

 

Well after another anonymous reader fed to the blog some statistics from the Anniversary Weekend I am not surprised that our friend above was rather disheartened and the investors spooked off.

The statistics I am referring to is how many Rail Ticket Machines had some kind of fault in them. 37 faults on 31 machines out of an approximate total of 57 rail ticket machines across the Auckland rail network over the long weekend. The faults can range from:

  • Machine has no change
  • No paper (so the machine goes “offline” as it can’t print tickets)
  • Printer Fault (can put the machine offline)
  • Machine just turned off
  • Bank Note Device not accepting your $20 bill 😛

So 31 out of 57 machines had either one or more of the above listed faults in the weekend. To make it worse, if you call it in to the AT-HOP help desk the technician won’t come until Tuesday to “fix” the issue (I kid you not).

 

Now to make life harder, those with AT-HOP cards who would tag on and off like I do when travelling by train would have faced numerous tagging posts “offline” meaning you need to go find another tag post. I knew of a couple of stations (I went travelling on the train in the weekend “exploring”) that had two out of three of their tag posts offline. Again call it into AT-HOP help desk and the technician comes out Tuesday.

 

What on earth happened over the Anniversary weekend when Auckland had all the tourists in. I thought we were meant to make our good train system that – good; not bloody difficult and spooking off people.

Groan – the amount of work to advance the good system into an Advanced First-Class system just keeps piling up and up and up with no light at the end of the tunnel.

 

Come on guys – I know you can do better 😦