Everyone:
With today being the 20th of the month when new passes go on sale each month I found
that Jenkintown has December 2019 legacy passes on sale. From what I learned some
stations have ticket office machines installed to handle Key sales but are not in service or are currently being tested.
http://www.septa.org/key/updates/key-ou ... tions.html
The best bet to continue to purchase a legacy pass is to note which stations sell parking
permits which get combined with legacy monthly passes or to contact your station to find
out the pass types that are being sold. This is likely to change from month-to-month while the new Key TOMs are placed into service.
Agents and Clerks working outlying ticket offices are going to have to be trained to
operate these new machines and how to handle Key sales.
Jeff: I noted your mention concerning coins from the UK and the "hapless" SBA Dollar.
I will mention Canada - which no doubt learned from the mistakes that the US Mint made concerning dollar coins.
Canada eliminated printing their $1 bill on June 30, 1989 after placing the "Loonie" dollar coin in circulation beginning in 1987 which was of a brass yellow color.
Around the end of 1990 the last CDN $1 bills were removed from circulation.
That transition from a $1 paper bill to a dollar coin took four years. Just a few years later
Canada eliminated printing their $2 bill (which was widely used unlike $2 bills in the US) in February 1996 in favor of a new $2 coin nicknamed the "Toonie" leaving the $5 bill
as the lowest denomination currency notes.
I noted the mention of toll roads that issue tickets requiring payment to the furthest
exit with the loss of a toll ticket - with the conversion to cashless tolling vehicle owners
without EZ Passes get their license plate photographed upon exit and a bill is sent to
the registrant. Many toll facilities are going cashless including the PA Turnpike.
I understand SEPTA charging a $3.75 intermediate fare for failing to tap in and out
on a given trip. This should not be charged to weekly or monthly pass riders unless
they go out of zone on peak hour trips the same way as step-up charges have been
applied for legacy passes. Charging the Zone NJ $10 OB fare as a penalty for failure
to tap in or out (the highest possible RRD fare) will only result in problems...
RCT: Close ticket offices outside Center City? ABSOLUTELY NOT!!!
With Ryan mentioning the lackluster performance of the Key TVMs (the term "Ticket
Machine" or "TVM" is much better than the " Kiosk" term) closing ticket offices and not
providing a "welcoming" human element that Regional Rail has traditionally always had
would be the wrong way. In comparison it took the LIRR to go through at least three
generations of ticket vending machines until they found a system of TVMs and TOMs
that were easy to use and that riders would readily accept which is in service today
after being first introduced in mid 2001.
In case anyone is unaware legacy one way tickets of all types are valid for six months.
QT Tickets bought from Key "kiosks" (such as those at the Airport) are only valid on
the date of sale. If SEPTA changes the validity period of tickets from six months to
ONE DAY under the Key system this is going to affect ALL riders that do not use Legacy
passes or a Key. Taking away the option of purchasing a ticket for ANY future use is
not the way a change adding any outlying TVMs should be applied.
MACTRAXX
EXPRESS TRAIN TO NEW YORK PENN STATION-NO JAMAICA ON THIS TRAIN-PLEASE STAND CLEAR OF THE CLOSING TRAIN DOORS