Ventra - Feedback and Updates

[owine]

This is clever.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ventra-fails/id733121316?mt=8

[BusHunter]

This is clever.

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ventra-fails/id733121316?mt=8

Need for one to tell you when you get overcharged, and it emails Ventra over and over until they refund your money. I see his card failed at four out of between 12-15 spots. He's doing better than me. I'm about 50 percent on the stop notices. There's a turnstile at Addison/Brown line that hasn't received my card yet. (thank goodness there's more than one turnstile) Last night there were people on the #76 that were just being waived thru. There cards just were not working. The operator was saying do this do that and nothing worked. I can't believe he can't check a balance at least. Who is the purchaser/decision maker buying Ventra, the system? They must not have even tried it out.

[sw4400]

I had my first encounter with the "slow" Ventra reader yesterday on #1122 working route #9. I tapped my card, it said "Processing" for about 10 seconds, perhaps a little more before saying "GO". I checked my account and was deducted for the 7-Day Pass($0.00). I know awhile back probably on here there was talk about being charged by the reader if you left via the front doors. That's not always true, you just have to not tap where your cards are by the Ventra reader. The same equally can be said for the Chicago Card/Chicago Card Plus readers. You hit the area where the card is up near that reader and it can read and deduct from there. Nobody ever complained about that when they are standing up at the farebox or when they had the "GO Lanes" on the NOVA LFS and New Flyers(5800's), I don't think the GO Lanes existed when the 1000's were delivered.

[jajuan]

I had my first encounter with the "slow" Ventra reader yesterday on #1122 working route #9. I tapped my card, it said "Processing" for about 10 seconds, perhaps a little more before saying "GO". I checked my account and was deducted for the 7-Day Pass($0.00). I know awhile back probably on here there was talk about being charged by the reader if you left via the front doors. That's not always true, you just have to not tap where your cards are by the Ventra reader. The same equally can be said for the Chicago Card/Chicago Card Plus readers. You hit the area where the card is up near that reader and it can read and deduct from there. Nobody ever complained about that when they are standing up at the farebox or when they had the "GO Lanes" on the NOVA LFS and New Flyers(5800's), I don't think the GO Lanes existed when the 1000's were delivered.

Actually I think they did but got phased out shortly after the first 1000s hit the road. Remember the oldest 1000s were on the road starting in 2006.

[owine]

I wish Ventra would send an email after it auto reloads.

[jajuan]

I wish Ventra would send an email after it auto reloads.

It doesn't do that? It does so when you reload a card on your own.

[owine]

It doesn't do that? It does so when you reload a card on your own.

I didn't get one for the auto reload or when I manually purchased a pass last time when auto reload failed.

[MarioM]

I didn't get one for the auto reload or when I manually purchased a pass last time when auto reload failed.

Log in to your Ventra account.

Go to Manage Account and then click on Account Settings.

Under Notification Preferences does it say "Alert Email: yes"?

Also check to make sure your email address is correct.

[sw4400]

Personally, I'd leave the "Auto-Reload" option off and just manually reload it. There's plenty of venues to do reloads at, both cash and passes... with the hiccups Ventra has, I wouldn't trust them with Credit/Debit info even for a reload.

[BiT]

Log in to your Ventra account.

Go to Manage Account and then click on Account Settings.

Under Notification Preferences does it say "Alert Email: yes"?

Also check to make sure your email address is correct.

Yes: make sure your Account Settings are correct. That's what caused the class action lawsuit: the card was debited on 9/27 and then again for $20.00 on 10/4 after very few rides but a lot of $2.00 charges to Customer Service and at least one duplicate fare.

[Busjack]

Yes: make sure your Account Settings are correct. That's what caused the class action lawsuit: the card was debited on 9/27 and then again for $20.00 on 10/4 after very few rides but a lot of $2.00 charges to Customer Service and at least one duplicate fare.

According to the Tribune, it has nothing to do with account settings. It had to do with what you said in the last sentence, despite that paragon of Truth, Tammy Chase saying there was no charge for calling customer service. Just think, CTA could have eliminated all fares if there were. Sort of chicken and egg, though.

[owine]

Log in to your Ventra account.

Go to Manage Account and then click on Account Settings.

Under Notification Preferences does it say "Alert Email: yes"?

Also check to make sure your email address is correct.

Yes I have it set correctly. I haven't gotten any emails from Ventra since my card was activated after the transition from CC/CCP.

Personally, I'd leave the "Auto-Reload" option off and just manually reload it. There's plenty of venues to do reloads at, both cash and passes... with the hiccups Ventra has, I wouldn't trust them with Credit/Debit info even for a reload.

Well, last time they didn't reload it automatically, I had to manually load the pass once I noticed it expired. I'm not concerned with them having card information as I load with a pre-tax Mastercard issued by by employer's benefit provider. There is a maximum of $100 on the card at a time so there's nothing for them to steal.

[Busjack]

Yes I have it set correctly. I haven't gotten any emails from Ventra since my card was activated after the transition from CC/CCP.

Well, last time they didn't reload it automatically, I had to manually load the pass once I noticed it expired. I'm not concerned with them having card information as I load with a pre-tax Mastercard issued by by employer's benefit provider. There is a maximum of $100 on the card at a time so there's nothing for them to steal.

Apparently the current stink on the CTA Tattler* was some employer remitting directly but it not showing up in the Ventra accounts. I, of course, would be more worried about someone stealing $100 than $2.25.

_______

*Aside from Kevin O'Neil himself getting the runaround from the phone line.

[owine]

Apparently the current stink on the CTA Tattler* was some employer remitting directly but it not showing up in the Ventra accounts. I, of course, would be more worried about someone stealing $100 than $2.25.

_______

*Aside from Kevin O'Neil himself getting the runaround from the phone line.

My situation is NOT the Transit Benefit program offered by the CTA. My employer sends pre-tax money to a third party company which just establishes an account linked to a prepaid debit card to use for eligible expenses. My Ventra account is not established through this third party.

[jajuan]

Personally, I'd leave the "Auto-Reload" option off and just manually reload it. There's plenty of venues to do reloads at, both cash and passes... with the hiccups Ventra has, I wouldn't trust them with Credit/Debit info even for a reload.

Well outside of the initial issue of kids' Ventra cards not showing balances after their parents' loaded them online, one issue that actually did respond to and fix right away, there have been no reports of anyone having a problem with loading their cards on their own online. So that's an overcomplication to go through all that to reload especially given Busjack's point that suburban riders still have too few* available locations to turn to for a reload.

*The last point makes your 'There's plenty of venues to reload' statement false if you're a suburban Ventra card holder.

[Busjack]

My situation is NOT the Transit Benefit program offered by the CTA. My employer sends pre-tax money to a third party company which just establishes an account linked to a prepaid debit card to use for eligible expenses. My Ventra account is not established through this third party.

What you say squares with what Cheryl said on the CTA Tattler.

But again, having to get a debit card, which apparently can't be used directly at a reader, but must be inserted into a Ventra machine to reload a Ventra card sure doesn't make it simpler than either the employer handing out 30 day passes or direct payment to Ventra working. Your employer doesn't give out a debit card and expect that you will pay FICA with it, for instance.

[Chicagolooper]

Having used Ventra for a little over a month now in various situations, I am finding it is working fine. I am very careful in how I tap the card - actually, I hold the card as shown in the tattler's video - and the charges have been accurate and the card readers have worked fine. I do believe there are card readers in service that may be defective and they will need a program to understand when they need to be maintained. However, I am much more comfortable with Ventra now and even if Metra just used them to collect cash payment of fares on board their trains, I think it would be workable.

I was in San Francisco in September and used their similar system, the Clipper Card, and I was very impressed with it. It worked well for a visitor. I think given enough time, Metra can figure it out and get it to work for them. Even with the manual ticket system, if they don't have enough conductors, there have been times when I have had a ticket but no one collected it. Now that they are only good for two weeks after purchase (I am speaking of regular fare tickets) it is tantamount to paying the fare anyway even if they don't collect the ticket. In St. Louis, the system is such that there is no collector, but if the inspector asks to see your ticket and you have none, there is a significant fine - making it to one's advantage not to want to test the system.

In any case, I think Ventra is beginning to take hold and I would say the troubles they had were directly related to the lack of planning for the roll out, the mess up of the mailings, and the programming fixes that were needed due to the way people here in Chicago use their cards.

Just my two cents worth.....

[owine]

What you say squares with what Cheryl said on the CTA Tattler.

But again, having to get a debit card, which apparently can't be used directly at a reader, but must be inserted into a Ventra machine to reload a Ventra card sure doesn't make it simpler than either the employer handing out 30 day passes or direct payment to Ventra working. Your employer doesn't give out a debit card and expect that you will pay FICA with it, for instance.

It's because my employer is national and therefore only has to worry about one benefit provider that can provide pre-tax transit spending to all employees instead of individual programs in various cities/municipalities. But yes, it would be nice if the debit card the provider issued was contactless.

[brownliner]

 

What you say squares with what Cheryl said on the CTA Tattler.

But again, having to get a debit card, which apparently can't be used directly at a reader, but must be inserted into a Ventra machine to reload a Ventra card sure doesn't make it simpler than either the employer handing out 30 day passes or direct payment to Ventra working. Your employer doesn't give out a debit card and expect that you will pay FICA with it, for instance.

 

Lots of third party benefits programs give you a debit card to pay whatever the benefit is. Transit, various other travel reimbursements, flexible heath spending, whatever. The employer does not have to deal with the complication of multiple providers, nor worry about how the employee chooses to spend the benefit.

And, of course, you can set the debit card up as the recurring funding source, so you don't have to do anything to reload the card.

[brownliner]

 

Personally, I'd leave the "Auto-Reload" option off and just manually reload it. There's plenty of venues to do reloads at, both cash and passes... with the hiccups Ventra has, I wouldn't trust them with Credit/Debit info even for a reload.

 

I have auto reload because I don't want to ever think about what the balance of the card is. I want to be able to use it, without going to a train station to put money on it. I don't ride every day, or even every week these days, so the amount I spend is highly variable.

Not having auto reload isn't going to keep a ventra reader from charging me twice. It might keep me from being able to get on a bus at 2am. If they excessively charge my credit card, there are other ways of dealing with that, but I rather doubt they'll rack up more than a couple hundred in charges before I (or my bank) notice.

[sw4400]

Protagonists telling it like it is regarding Ventra.... Photo

[Amtrak41]

http://gapersblock.com/mechanics/2013/11/11/ventras-parent-company-an-international-history-of-fare-card-glitches/

[Busjack]

...

And, of course, you can set the debit card up as the recurring funding source, so you don't have to do anything to reload the card.

I take it that that doesn't overcome the objection that CTA just took $100, although apparently one wouldn't be able to blame it on the benefits administrator.

[Busjack]

Protagonists telling it like it is regarding Ventra.... Photo

It might be, but someone wasn't too creative about it.

[Busjack]

http://gapersblock.com/mechanics/2013/11/11/ventras-parent-company-an-international-history-of-fare-card-glitches/

A good find on your part. This illustrates that this isn't just the usual "CTA doesn't know what it is doing" but that Cubic has had a history of this, which finally blew up in its face. As Geoff Peterson would have put it, London Mayor Boris Johnson should have "kicked Cubic's @$$" instead of putting up with the stuff. The London story brings up two points I made before:

• The SEPTA proposal (as you put it) of charging the maximum fare if someone doesn't tap out not only won't work, but hasn't.
• There was the mention of dormant funds. There was the previous discussion about dormancy charges on transit accounts; as indicated, maybe CTA figured out it was easier to bleed the accounts with the dormancy charges rather than just make the money inaccessible.