Melbourne validators eat tickets

["Mike Alexander" <malex@bigfoot.com>]

For all those people who have been agonizing in this newsgroup about
whether to buy a Metcard weekly/monthly ticket, the following story will
definately _not_ set your mind at ease:

I got on a route 64 tram today in Swanston St. and validated my ticket
successfully. The person behind me then inserted his ticket into the _same_
validator. It made a godawful noise, then beeped and whirred a whole lot,
before finally switching on the red light, and putting "Closed" on the
display. His ticket was not returned.

Naturally, he was a bit concerned, and went and fetched the Metcard "Host".
 

The following conversation ensued:

(Passenger):	It ate my ticket.
(Host):		You must have put it in wrong.
(Passenger):	What do I do now?
(Host):		What sort of ticket was it?
(Passenger):	A weekly.
(Host):		You shouldn't have put a weekly in there.
(Passenger):	I thought you had to.
(Host):		Well, you shouldn't have let go of it. Just hold onto it, and put
the end in the machine, but don't let it go.
(Passenger):	What do I do now?
(Host):		Where did you buy it?
(Passenger):	At Blackburn, this morning.
(Host):		Is that zone 1?
(Passenger):	No, zone 2.
(Host):		You should only put zone 1 tickets in.
(Passenger):	What do I do now.


So, after basically making the guy feel pretty small for doing nothing
wrong, the host eventually wrote out a bit of paper, and told him to use
that instead of a ticket, and to ring the Metcard hotline.

He got off, about 10 stops after he had been intending to, looking very
confused. I wonder how successful the bit of paper will be instead of his
weekly. I can just imagine the next conductor tearing it up.

I bet he won't be validating again in the future.

P.S. I also saw a ticket gate at Flinders St. eat someones ticket last
week.

 
Regards,

Mike Alexander
(malex@bigfoot.com)