Quote:
Originally Posted by memememe76
Why is one more likely to lose a faresaver than their Compass Card? Really, how hard is it go Safeway or 7-11 to get a bus pass?
We'll see about the first benefit. I also thought that the implementation and continued maintenance of the fairgates would cost more than any savings from fare evasion. And, lower fares? Maybe for Vancouverites. Don't see how this benefits people from Surrey and the Fraser Valley. Although this one-zoned bus trip is great for people in Surrey going to Richmond or vice versa (Yay!), but that has nothing to do with distance-based fares system. And it's temporary.
|
I don't know about all people, but I don't carry my fare savers in my wallet. The books don't fit in the card slots.
Living in Surrey means I don't always need a 1 zone, 2 zone or 3 zone. I would have 3 different books on my end table, too much for my wallet. So I would pick up the ones I would think I would need for the day and put them in my coat pocket. But sometimes you leave them in one coat pocket, and put on a different coat, or just don't bring the right one with you. Or you just lose track of where you last had them. Or I will put them in the pocket of my computer bag and forget they are there. Or you don't realize your book only has 1 ticket left and there isn't really time to pick up another book before you need it, or your book is empty and you thought you would have time to go to the store to get one but didn't and now have to pay cash on the bus.
Also, sometimes you just don't have a 3 zone and need to add fare a lesser faresaver (thus losing money) or you think you are going to go 3 zones but change your mind mid trip and just go 2 (maybe you make a prolonged layover at Metrotown). The system charges you fairly for what you end up using.
And not all of us have a close by fare dealer, so it can be hard to fit buying them into your schedule. It is a bit of a pain in the ass to line up at a busy shoppers and wait 10 minutes just to give Translink money.
Now with Compass, it is easy to keep just a simple card in my wallet. I don't need to rush out to top it up, it happens automatically. And no need to worry about 3 different books of faresavers.
Not to mention the money I keep. Having 3 different books means I have $94.50 tied up in unused transit fares. With Compass, I only have $20 tied up at a time (less than even a single book of 1 zone fares).
And if I want to take the WCE, which I do take sometimes, I no longer have to line up at the machine at Waterfront. In 2 months of using it, Compass has saved so much of my time and money already.
As for faregates:
You have to think about what would happen if they were not there for Compass. Compass was going to happen with or without faregates. And I think if the faregates weren't there, then there would be a lot more accidental missed taps. With the gates there, you have something to remind you to tap (when currently you don't have to do anything). So even without gates, you would need a row of readers to get people to tap (having it like at Metrotown with readers off to the side is a nightmare).
So you were going to have to spend so much money to install readers, why not make them gates. And the province basically covered that cost under public safety ideology (not so much to recover fares, as to keep dangerous undesirables away from paying customers).
And you are forgetting the overall decreased cost of operating Compass. Money costs money to manage. Especially coins, lots of coins. Imagine how much money is lost counting that money. Even with credit card transaction fees, managing fares electronically without cash, will save Translink a lot of money.
Add on top of that the fact they don't have to print out different paper monthly passes and have a distribution network to get them out to every store in a tight, monthly schedule, and Translink will save a heck of a lot of money.
Prev
Linear Mode
