You are assuming the 1/2 hr is worthwhile having. In my case, I was on
the 5.07pm from East Camberwell and tried to validate at 5.22pm. As the
ticket was validated to 8pm anyway (when I eventually came to a willing
validator at Flagstaff around 5.50pm), I didn't gain anyway. Nor did I
want to. Not everyone is dishonest you know.
Besides, most people wanting to be dishonest are going to look for ways
to not use their ticket at all, not to try and score 1/2 hr extra (big
deal !)
> And, if you were going to a station where you did not have to leave through
> an automatic barrier, would you still be more than happy to validate on the
> way out? (Why should you, there's no-one there to check your ticket, and
> you can then use the same ticket tomorrow!)
>
In my case, yes. I am not out to rort the system but it isn't always
easy to comply if you slip up once and want to rectify your mistake. At
least with humans, there are more options.
> > Perhaps they could put validators on trains like they do on
> > buses and trams for dills like me who want to do the right thing but
> > until they are used to the system will sometimes forget.
>
> And then it would be just like the scratch tickets, where everybody
> scratched/validated as soon as an inspector appeared. The way it is, you
> have to have a validated ticket to be on the train. And it makes sense.
>
I am not sure it would be like that at all. If there was a validator up
one end of the carriage only in a prominent position or even on only one
carriage of a 3 car set, when the inspectors get on, you would be so
obviously validating your ticket, you would immediately draw suspicion
on yourself. And given most inspectors enter from one end of the
carriage, you have a 50% chance of walking past them to validate your
ticket. Which of course they will check as you walk past. In my humble
opinion, tram travellers have more chance of rorting the system in this
way as most of them sit within a seat or two of a validator and you
aren't being forced to validate at all by the system - it is purely up
to you.
> > They would also be good for if the single validator at many of the
> stations packs it in
> > as people can still validate their ticket.
>
> Don't most stations have 2 (or more) validators?
Very few. Of all the ones I know of, most of them only have a single
validator. Certainly most of the stations Box Hill - Camberwell only
have 1.
Even Greensborough, reputedly one of if not the busiest station on the
Hurstbridge line only has 2 validators on the Up side and 1 on the down.
When that gets implemented this week, there's going to be some cheesed
off commuters!
> But, I agree. What _is_
> the situation if your station's validator's are all stuffed, and you can't
> get out at Flinders St. While they still have a "All other tickets"
> barrier, this won't be a problem, but what about after that?
>
> Regards,
>
> Mike Alexander
> (malex@bigfoot.com)