16 February 2011

MyWay rollout starts Monday - One card to rule them all?

| johnboy
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MyWay Office

Chief Minister Stanhope has rather buried the lead in announcing the MyWay rollout is starting on Monday with Canberra’s Seniors being offered a combined MyWay/Senior’s card.

“MyWay represents the way forward for bus travel in the ACT and the first stage of this will be sending letters to the ACT’s 47,000 Seniors Card holders over a three-week period to give them the option of replacing their card with a combined ACT Seniors MyWay card,” Mr Stanhope said.

“Seniors interested in taking up the offer just need to complete the application form that will be enclosed with the letter and take it to any Canberra Connect Shopfront, ACT Public Library or the Council on the Ageing office in Hughes.”

The letters will be sent out by the Council on the Ageing, which has been working closely with the ACT Government over the seniors rollout.

“As an added incentive, seniors who take up this offer before the end of Seniors Week on 25 March 2011 will have $10 worth of bus travel pre-loaded onto their card,” Mr Stanhope said.

Mr Stanhope the seniors roll out would be followed by a gradual rollout to the rest of the ACT.

One wonders what other cards and services are planned to be integrated? Drivers’ licences anyone?

As for the rollout timetable, here’s what the great one has to say:

“MyWay cards are expected to be made available to the general community on Monday, 7 March. Cash fares will continue to apply and there will be a transition period until Monday, 11 April. School students will begin using MyWay cards from the start of the second term.”

Mr Stanhope said that the technical issues which had been identified in the trial of the MyWay system had now been rectified.

More information is available from Transport For Canberra.

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What was wrong with the old system again?
Didn’t they just change the tickets as well? Instead of a thin strip most of the buses print out what looks like a docket that “acts” like a transfer card as well.
So, 8 mil on an upgrade that we didn’t need, with a phased rollout that should have the project manager’s(or managers) qualification revoked.

As far as I can tell, it’s a good way to cut bus routes or reallocate from low usage to high usage areas/routes and “track” people as you register your card.

You get better value from a monthly card.

Very Busy said :

It’s been like that since last Wednesday. Coincidently only a couple of days since school came back on deck. Still not enough drivers?

No, TAMS have recently implemented a new network which requires more buses than ACTION have in their fleet – not driver shortage, it’s bus shortage.

Really! Wow, ACT government incompetence falls to new depths.

I wonder in which universe the number of buses to perform a timetable is not an upper limit in the network/timetable design. Obviously the answer is the one in which TAMS transport planners live.

Although I suppose they could go and lease some spare buses from another operator, and contract out the services ACTION can’t supply to another operator.

Very Busy said :

No, TAMS have recently implemented a new network which requires more buses than ACTION have in their fleet – not driver shortage, it’s bus shortage.

Yet seven of the Renault buses are currently up for sale by tender, and sixteen brand new MAN & Scania buses are in Woden Depot awaiting fitout and commissioning.

Mr Evil said :

So MyWay is the bus ticket equivalent of the GDE and the Hume Hilton?

Announced as being ready with much fanfare – when the reality is very much different.

“ACT Labor – we’re taking the ACT population for a ride”.

Spot on, but this time I can’t work out why!!!!…..the election is still a long way off.

Holditz said :

It’s been like that since last Wednesday. Coincidently only a couple of days since school came back on deck. Still not enough drivers?

No, TAMS have recently implemented a new network which requires more buses than ACTION have in their fleet – not driver shortage, it’s bus shortage.

Good luck getting some seniors, some of whom should not be driving, off the road and on to buses. Their medical exam is a joke and their eye test is easier than the one younger drivers have to do at the shop front. And I’m yet to be convinced that an 80 year old’s reaction times are as good as perhaps a 30 year old so why are they allowed to drive as quickly?

Also, what is the point of the $10 free credit. I thought over 70’s or some such group got free bus travel all the time?

So MyWay is the bus ticket equivalent of the GDE and the Hume Hilton?

Announced as being ready with much fanfare – when the reality is very much different.

“ACT Labor – we’re taking the ACT population for a ride”.

MyWay is Ngunnawal for myki

sexynotsmart10:10 pm 16 Feb 11

omg forgot to add…

PS: in protest to this obvious favouritism of Boomers, join me in an act of civil disobedience by delivering a stirring rendition of Frank Sinatra’s classic “My Way” the first time you use the new ticket.

And if you hear anyone bursting into said song, support them by joining in!

sexynotsmart10:06 pm 16 Feb 11

Yeah great, let’s align the bus ticket with the Seniors’ card. Wouldn’t we get better coverage by aligning with a drivers’ license or school ID card?

I seem to recall an ACTION rep saying recently that the business case for MyWay was making passengers board faster and gaining on-off data.

The first is very pertinent to peak times – people commuting to work. Aging bints typically hit the buses after that delightful Larry Emdur finishes his morning show.

The second – it’s a sad situation, but I’m pretty sure seniors ride the buses just as something to do. They get off where they got on.

So can someone enlighten me as to why we’re aligning MyWay and the Senior Card?

p1 said :

I can see plenty of opportunity to combine cards. Medicare, concession card, drivers licence, library card, etc. I shall call it the “Australia Card”.

LOL . . that’s what I thought.

Gungahlin Al said :

.Four buses passed our Flemington Road stop this morning without stopping because they were already packed to the door. As a result, an hour & 15 minutes from Harrison to Civic??

It’s been like that since last Wednesday. Coincidently only a couple of days since school came back on deck. Still not enough drivers? Also, there’s been long lines waiting at the Civic-bound 300 stop at Woden Interchange around 7:19-7:25, and queuing has become the rule, rather than the exception, and the 314 comes late.

sblake said :

one of our older residents you have no hope at all.

I really hope that seniors adopt this card, but I don’t hold much hope. Many elderly people (who don’t have the Senior Card, and free bus travel) would rather buy a cash fare rather than invest in a 10 ride, weekly or monthly card, even though it would save them money. It’s easier to do and less fiddly.

Gungahlin Al said :

Ticketing is only a small part of the problem with ACTION. Four buses passed our Flemington Road stop this morning without stopping because they were already packed to the door. As a result, an hour & 15 minutes from Harrison to Civic?? Plenty of time to fire off angry email to Jon Stanhope…

Hahaha I think I was on one of those buses. Priceless reactions on the faces.

Gantz said :

I just left the MyWay office in civic, as I wanted to inquire as i will need a new ticket on Monday. The lovely lady smiled, then laughed a little and said its still a few months off, just buy your normal adult 10 ride ticket, its still in the trial phase.

You can’t buy the new tickets until Monday 7 March!

sblake said :

… you are asked to give up almost all your bank details to Action and then you have to wait at least 7 days for your card and then keep your account over the $10 mark so it doesn’t get refused and so on and so on.

Again, Monday 7 March, unless you’re a senior. The websites I’ve looked at say that you cannot buy a card online yet. And it’s not ACTION – it’s Transport For Canberra.

I have just attempted to understand the MYWAY web site.hey, if you don’t have a computer or are confused easily or are one of our older residents you have no hope at all.It is a completely confusing and confused and poorly designed website where you are asked to give up almost all your bank details to Action and then you have to wait at least 7 days for your card and then keep your account over the $10 mark so it doesn’t get refused and so on and so on.

I just left the MyWay office in civic, as I wanted to inquire as i will need a new ticket on Monday. The lovely lady smiled, then laughed a little and said its still a few months off, just buy your normal adult 10 ride ticket, its still in the trial phase.

I said oh, I apologies, its just that there have been announcements made today, again, laughing a little, she said to not pay any attention to them, get your ticket, more info will be available soon. Sooo…..???

Holierthanthou said :

… but they could easily get their trip analysis system make educated and sensible guesses where an untagged-off passenger disembarked, using previous trip info for the passenger, using another passenger’s disembarking detail or taking a stab that they got off at the interchange.

Or they could install tag-off points at Bus Stations and major bus stops – like they have at Perth Train Stations. But then that would cost more money, and you can’t do that!

MyWay:
Cards have a unique serial identifier.
All stored information is linked to the unique identifier of your MyWay card.
Card usage and journey travel data will be used to make resourcing and timetable descisions.
Cards allow convenience features (like bpay or autoloading) and the financial advantages of the discount when linked to personal data (credit card\bank account).
Registration for further convenience features require further personal data.

Anyone want to guess how long until ACTION\TransportACT fails a Privacy audit?
(But if there’s an incident of violence on a bus, how easy will it be to pull the travel history and\or home address of almost everyone on board at the time?)

i’d rather keep the current tickets. you score a few freebies on them! lol

Holierthanthou11:48 am 16 Feb 11

Not impressed by the $1.48 fine for not tagging off, particularly when this might be easily not done inadvertently during rush periods with a press of passengers surging off.
I can understand Action want information (and I would tag off even if this mean hearted fine was not implemented), but they could easily get their trip analysis system make educated and sensible guesses where an untagged-off passenger disembarked, using previous trip info for the passenger, using another passenger’s disembarking detail or taking a stab that they got off at the interchange.

I can see plenty of opportunity to combine cards. Medicare, concession card, drivers licence, library card, etc. I shall call it the “Australia Card”.

Gungahlin Al10:06 am 16 Feb 11

Ticketing is only a small part of the problem with ACTION. Four buses passed our Flemington Road stop this morning without stopping because they were already packed to the door. As a result, an hour & 15 minutes from Harrison to Civic?? Plenty of time to fire off angry email to Jon Stanhope…

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