Wednesday 20 March 2013

Good things about myki & myki mysteries

I travelled into zone 2 yesterday on the train.  I had a zone one 7 day myki pass on my myki card.  It was great to be able to get to the other end and just touch off my myki and see it deduct the little bit extra for the trip in zone 2.  I didn't have to buy an "extension ticket" or do anything else.

That's something good about myki.

I catch public transport whenever I can, including when working for clients.  Keeping track of travel expenses and GST on the old Metcard system would have been a nighmare, to the point where I probably wouldn't have bothered, or I would  have driven my car and claimed that cost back.  I love the fact that with a registered myki card I can print a tax invoice of all my travel transactions, making it easy to claim GST and business related expenses.

That's something good about myki.

I only need one card to travel, rather than carrying a poker hand of paper cards to suit a variety of travel situations. (Although used tickets did make good book marks.)

That's something good about myki.

When I lost my myki, because it was registered I was able to get the money back.  (Even though they had to issue me with a new card to do it.  The process to get the money put to one of my existing cards - which I hadn't lost - involved filling in forms; whereas getting the money back on a new card could be done over the phone.)

The first bit - that's something good about myki.

How come online top up of myki isn't instant, but auto -top up - which you set up online - is?

That's one of the myki mysteries.

How come people vandalise the machines and readers making them hard to use?

That's one of the myki mysteries (or maybe it's just a mystery).

How come Qantas can give me an electronic bag tag which knows who I am and where I'm going and check me in in seconds, but myki has to be held just-so in order to work?

That's one of the myki mysteries.

How come a new exit at platform two at Seddon Station was installed a year ago and it's still locked up?  I watched a large number of men dig a hole and the open a space in the fence. A little while later two posts were installed for the myki readers.  Then they closed the hole in the fence and the myki readers were never attached to the posts.  Everyone still has to squeeze out of the tiny and poorly designed exit during peak time as everyone has to use two machines, rendered unreadable by sun glare and vandalism.

"Exit" at Seddon Station.
Those black posts are supposed to have myki readers on them.
© divacultura 2013
That's one of the myki mysteries.  And I still don't know what went into the hole.  I wonder if it was the architect of  myki?

That's one of the myki mysteries.

Wouldn't it be great if you could use your myki to pay when you use Melbourne City Council blue bike to get around the city?

Yes it would!

Why can't I buy a myki pass for 8 to 27 days, but am locked into 7 days or 28 or more days?

That's one of the myki mysteries.


Why do people insist on touching off on trams in the city?

That's NOT one of the myki mysteries.  All of the messaging says "When travelling with myki, don't forget to touch on AND touch off".  Some of the messaging adds "to make sure you get the lowest fare". Of course people are still touching off on trams - it's crazy to expect commuters to learn different processes for using a ticket depending on what kind of vehicle they are in!

Where do the dead myki cards go?  I really hope they can be melted down and made into something handy.

That's one of the myki mysteries.

I tried really hard to come up with more things that are great about myki, but I couldn't really think of any.  Can you?

Why aren't there lots of good things about myki?

That's one of the myki mysteries.


2 comments:

  1. Seddons Station exit is a Metro issue, not a myki one.

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    Replies
    1. OK. It's still a problem. I'll raise it with metro and see what happens. I've been raising it with Myki for ages and no one has said that it's not their problem. Thanks for reading.

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