Gailanne wants to know why it's so hard to find a Presto machine at the exit points surrounding Union. She thinks Billy from the comic strip Family Circus headed up the planning and placement of the card readers.
She writes:
This week, I caved in and got myself a PRESTO Card. The main reason for doing so is because my GO commuting habits have started becoming less predictable and I didn't want to keep track of multiple 10 ride tickets. I have also been taking advantage of the nice weather and riding my bicycle to and from work at least twice a week. The overall calculations of me commuting on the GO for much of the summer did not amount to anything significant to justify getting a monthly pass. Monthly passes won't happen til January due to planned holidays, as well as hope for an extended cycling season.
I left my PRESTO zones open with no defaults because of varying trips. Besides, I would like to remain accountable to my balances at all times by remembering to tap on and off.
This morning, I experienced my first frustration. Getting off the train at Union on Platform 26, I headed for the stairs leading to the east side of York Street. I looked around. For the first time, I noticed that while they have machines for stamping the paper tickets, there were no PRESTO scanners. What the...? I have never noticed this before and I have taken the same steps down to the street for more than two years - even before PRESTO was launched! I noticed two scanners. They were out of service. Just getting installed...
I then had to make a beeline up York Street and back into the station through the Front Street entrance to tap off. These machines are difficult to locate! After navigating my way through the concourse, I was finally able to locate one closer to the stairs.
Now, in all fairness, the teamway on the west side of York Street has multiple scanners. I didn't utilise those ones (like I would on the way home) because I wanted to see what it was like to locate one in the GO Concourse. One thing came to mind very quickly... Do you remember Bill Keane's comic Family Circus? Occasionally, we are treated to a map of little Billy's adventure before he arrives at a destination. It's just like trying to find a Presto Card scanner.
I never understood the Family Circus but I'd read it anyway on Sunday mornings since it was all I could do on Sunday mornings because my parents believed cable was the devil when I was kid. The only channels I got as a kid were CFTO, Global, TVOntario (God, how miserable was that station in the 80s? I hated the Green Forest with a passion and Rocket Robin Hood? That made me *want* go to church and I don't go to church).
Speaking of church, when you had no cable tv, Sundays meant all that was available on Global and CFTO were televangelists. CityTV had multicultural programs. I once watched a whole show about marinating meat in Portuguese because it was the. only. thing. on.
Then there was PBS. There I'd be, watching Anne of Green Gables - all parts - only to be interrupted by that blonde chick with the bowl cut who would start begging for pledge money. Oh my God, she went on and on. With all those fake ringing phones in the background and smiling people pretending to write down bogus information. Then they'd run a scroll of all the people who "gave" money.
Yeah, so those of you who had cable, I hated you.
But back to the Presto scavenger hunt. GO needs to invest in card scanners that are better positioned and more visible. Plus, convenient for customers! They've pushed this product so much focusing entirely on the brand and less on the value. At least, this is how it seems to me. Put card readers right on the train. Right near the door. If they make the scanners small enough for fare checking, they can mount something just as small on the coaches. Sounds good to me.
23 comments:
wasn't her name Goldie? That bitch totally made ny parents ban me from watching TV on weekends.
Worse yet they expect you to have a backup payment method if Presto is completely down. I don't buy 10 rides because I have Presto. If the system is down they should accept that I can't pay.
You get the opposite problem with Presto machines... I have seen several places where there are two readers right next to each other - less than a meter between them. (The underpass at Ajax is one place; you can see a pair at Scarborough on the south side).
I understand GO being bit light in coverage during the roll-out, but not every station has some, let's get some better coverage.
I emailed GO and asked about the lack of scanners in Union station itself (I try to avoid the GO concourse if at all possible), and was told that Union belongs to the city and they have to approve the installation of the machines, but that GO plans to have readers at every exit/entrance.
and why not on the trains!?
great idea!
and cj, rocket robin hood was the shit, u had to give it a chance.
The thing with having them on the train is people won't even bother to tap on unless they see a fare inspector, in which case they could just quietly make their way to the next car and tap on.
But I really like the co-fare thing on local transit. With Presto, you don't have to be at a GO station to get the discount when transferring to local transit after GO.
Dan, I didn't think of that. Maybe it's because I'm so honest.
Someone once wrote in a comment the stations used to be turnstile-operated. Can someone tell me more?
As an aside, there was NOTHING remotely funny about Family Circus and that other comic strip, For Better or Worse, both just crap.
Totally agree, the lack of PRESTO scanners at Union is horrible. And definitely, make them more visible!!!
I've had my PRESTO card for over a year now and had problems with it last November, my account was a mess and it took some doing to get it cleaned up. Bottom line, if I scan and the machine isn't working properly I don't care, I'm boarding the train anyways.
@lswgirl....agree with you 100%. Not my problem if there system is down.....
Ohhhhh C.J., I just read your comment about the turnstiles. YEP, I remember those "good old days"!!! I also WALKED 10 miles to the GO station and it was uphill there and back, but I disgress. Didn't matter if you had a ticket or a pass, it was awful. I don't remind 10 ride tix back then but I could be wrong. Because so many people were trying to go thru the turnstiles there was always a backlog during rush hours and more often than not, you'd miss your train.
*EDIT* there-their (thought I'd correct it before the grammar nazi's get me!)
band of brothers marching together
Heads held high in all kinds of weather
Beyond the earth, beyond the astral plane da dum de dum da dum de dum
Theme song from Rocket Robinhood
Turnstiles eh. I tried checking the Toronto Archives for any old station photos, but there doesn't seem to be any GO stuff on there (yet).
But there's a historical article online about the origins of GO Transit that mentions automated station turnstiles that took tickets, which was all replaced with the current POP system.
I remember the turnstiles, fortunately I wasn't old enough for Rush Hour. You dropped your ticket into a TTC fare-like box and went through the turnstiles and up the stairs to your train.
Actually Dan-1, I found an old black and white pic on the internet once of the interior of an old one-level train with a female "CSA", she was wearing a matching skirt and jacket and gloves! I remember the seats were low backs, it was like sitting in a lawn chair. That's back when me and my friends could go off to the EX by ourselves when we were 10 years old, YES, our parents approved! I gotta see if I can find that pic again!
I think CJ posted that pic!
Two things, first the presto scanner on the train wouldn't work. How would it know what station you are at when you tap it since it is always on the move?
Second, the old turnstiles I remember as a teen. When you entered (and it had to be through the station) you dropped one half of a paper ticket into a farebox. When you exited, everyone had to exit through the station and drop the other half of their ticket into the farebox to ensure they paid the right fare. Image the complaints on here about Oshawa if everyone had to funnel through a turnstile in the station.
I found this but doesn't have the pic of the old school CSA.
http://www.trha.ca/2009/05/placeholder-for-sat-23rd.html
Crap! The link isn't working!
This one?
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150168070683444&set=a.10150168064938444.308977.90684118443&type=1
YES!!! Good work Dan-1!!!
I've seen that picture elsewhere... it was a publicity shot, and the "passenegers" were actually GO employees.
I love the gloves on the CSA though. Got to be more hygenic.
The idea behind the current proof-of-payment is that it speeds up boarding/alighting. It is also what most passenger railways outside of North America do.
Compared to the old turnstile days, it's so much better. The only other trains I've travelled on in North America have been the Long Island Railroad and Metro North both to Manhattan and for those you have a conductor who takes your ticket, punches it and it gets left in this little clip thingy on the top of your seat so he knows he's checked your ticket.
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