Re: [melb] yearly met cards

[Railvic <railvic@iprimus.com.au>]

Jeremy Lunn wrote:
> 
> I am just wondering if anyone knows what has happened to using smart
> cards for monthly, half yearly and yearly tickets?
> 
> I got a student yearly ticket and it already doesn't work.  I've treated
> it with care and kept it safe in my wallet.  There are no obvious
> creases in it.  But it didn't even last one month.  Even with the thin
> layer of plastic in the middle (so I don't see how normal monthly
> tickets can last a week).
> 
> Not even Telecom used paper phone cards.  They always used those plastic
> ones.  Well I don't remember paper ones anyway and I am pretty sure that
> they were newly introduced in the early 90s.
> 
> So a plastic card would surely last much longer than a metcard.  But
> it's insane that they are using magnetic strips at all for anything more
> than weekly.
> 
> How hard can it be to get smart card readers to work?

Are you willing to pay $25 to have your damaged Metcard Xpress
replaced?  Keep in mind these cards are not inserting into validators
(instead read by the yellow external spot), therefore, if such request
is made, it will most likely to $$$$ (Excuse of ticket damaged by
validators will become irrelevant).  All M>Trains, Connex, M>Trams and
Yarra Tram staff have been issued with Metcard Xpress and they have
signed and agreed to such fee for replacement.  From what I have seen so
far, some customers will have trouble keeping Metcard Xpress in working
order, not to mention losing them ...

Peter