Has anyone been having problems using their bus transfer lately?

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Really? With e-fix my claims take about 2 weeks to resolve...

 

I've actually filed some claims right there at Stone Street and it still took a few months. That's why I don't bother anymore.

[checkmatechamp13]

I really don't understand why folks even bother with the . You can simply dispute the charge with your credit card company and get the money back quicker that way. I get my money back in a few days when I have a problem rather than a few months. I refuse to give the more of my money while they sit there and take their sweet time getting it back to me and earn interest on top of it. Disgusting. This whole Metrocard set up has allowed them to nickle and dime us to death and that's one reason why they should just get rid of the stupid bonus since they get money from the odd amounts that they leave on people's cards from them if they don't use them. They should also be required to issue a refund to all customers within a certain time frame (say two weeks maximum) because it is ridiculous for wait 2 - 3 months for a refund and then you have to give them more of your money while they still have the money you already gave them.

 

You have millions of riders using the system, so just imagine how many folks get jipped that either don't bother to file a claim or don't bother trying to get their full bonus off of those cards. They should show the numbers for how much they make off of that, including the interest...

 

 

....except that he probably purchased it with cash and not a credit card.....

 

As for not using the bonus, well that's not the MTA's fault if you can't be bothered to combine cards or whatever to squeeze out the full bonus. In any case, they make something like $52 million off of that.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Actually it is the 's fault because you shouldn't have to go to a token booth clerk to put an odd amount of your card that can be used. They give you a bonus with an odd amount on it but then you can't add odd amounts to the card using the Metrocard vending machine to get everything that is left on the card. The advantage of the Metrocard vending machine is that should you pay with a credit card and lose your Metrocard or it is stolen you can be refunded. With cash however you cannot be refunded for a lost or stolen Metrocard and you obviously cannot pay with a credit card at a token booth so they know very well what they're doing. In short most people would rather lose the leftover bonus than lose their refilled Metrocard and not be refunded. The knows very well what they're doing...

[checkmatechamp13]

Actually it is the 's fault because you shouldn't have to go to a token booth clerk to put an odd amount of your card that can be used. They give you a bonus with an odd amount on it but then you can't add odd amounts to the card using the Metrocard vending machine to get everything that is left on the card. The advantage of the Metrocard vending machine is that should you pay with a credit card and lose your Metrocard or it is stolen you can be refunded. With cash however you cannot be refunded for a lost or stolen Metrocard and you obviously cannot pay with a credit card at a token booth so they know very well what they're doing. In short most people would rather lose the leftover bonus than lose their refilled Metrocard and not be refunded. The knows very well what they're doing...

 

 

Eh, I usually prefer the token booth clerk anyway. At least that way if something goes wrong, they can (most likely) do something about it.

 

I mean, me personally, my family just buys a bunch of PPR MetroCards and then when the balance gets too low on the MetroCard, we just combine it with another MetroCard (At the booth because we never figured out how to do it at the machine and like I said, it makes it easier in case there's a problem). Eventually, it ends up working out.

 

I mean, when the MTA says "odd amounts", I think they just mean you can't add money in less than $0.05 increments, so if worse comes to worse, you lose $0.04 if you do it at the machine. (But you still came out ahead because you got the bonus). But yeah, they should find a way to program it to accept the $0.01 increments. Maybe it's like the farebox on the buses where they're worried about it filling up too quickly if people keep using pennies.

[Turbo19]

I really don't understand why folks even bother with the . You can simply dispute the charge with your credit card company and get the money back quicker that way. I get my money back in a few days when I have a problem rather than a few months. I refuse to give the more of my money while they sit there and take their sweet time getting it back to me and earn interest on top of it. Disgusting. This whole Metrocard set up has allowed them to nickle and dime us to death and that's one reason why they should just get rid of the stupid bonus since they get money from the odd amounts that they leave on people's cards from them if they don't use them. They should also be required to issue a refund to all customers within a certain time frame (say two weeks maximum) because it is ridiculous for wait 2 - 3 months for a refund and then you have to give them more of your money while they still have the money you already gave them.

 

You have millions of riders using the system, so just imagine how many folks get jipped that either don't bother to file a claim or don't bother trying to get their full bonus off of those cards. They should show the numbers for how much they make off of that, including the interest...

 

The lesson here is, link your Metrocards to an account of some sort. That allows a faster return of funds.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Eh, I usually prefer the token booth clerk anyway. At least that way if something goes wrong, they can (most likely) do something about it.

 

I mean, me personally, my family just buys a bunch of PPR MetroCards and then when the balance gets too low on the MetroCard, we just combine it with another MetroCard (At the booth because we never figured out how to do it at the machine and like I said, it makes it easier in case there's a problem). Eventually, it ends up working out.

 

I mean, when the MTA says "odd amounts", I think they just mean you can't add money in less than $0.05 increments, so if worse comes to worse, you lose $0.04 if you do it at the machine. (But you still came out ahead because you got the bonus). But yeah, they should find a way to program it to accept the $0.01 increments. Maybe it's like the farebox on the buses where they're worried about it filling up too quickly if people keep using pennies.

 

 

Yeah but that wouldn't even be an issue since most folks use credit cards anyway. That's what also irks me because they know how many folks prefer using credit cards over cash (I'm referring to your every day commuters in particular), plus they encourage people to use the MVM so then there's really only one real reason that I can see for them doing this... That would also explain why Lhota questions giving the bonus in the first place and to be honest I would agree with him. Better off just not offering it.

 

The lesson here is, link your Metrocards to an account of some sort. That allows a faster return of funds.

 

lol... Learned that the hard way... I will NEVER use a debit card or cash for a Metrocard...

[AndrewJC]

Since the members of the forum have been posting this information, I started to watch each and every time i transferred from bus to subway or vice versa and bus to bus transfer as well to see if the fare was being deducted twice instead of once on the first line

 

Today, I took one bus in Brooklyn and the money was deducted and when I boarded the second bus, it was deducted again. I bought it to the attention to the wonderful bus driver who e.xplained to me what to do. As soon as I arrived home, I called 511 where I explained my problem and she gave me a claim number for the extra $2.25 which will be sent sometime in the future.

 

Thanks again.

 

 

I've had bus fareboxes claim to deduct a second fare, but then when I've checked my balance, it turns out that only one fare was deducted. Before calling it in, have you checked that you were actually charged two fares?

 

This whole Metrocard set up has allowed them to nickle and dime us to death and that's one reason why they should just get rid of the stupid bonus since they get money from the odd amounts that they leave on people's cards from them if they don't use them.

 

 

Yeah, this MetroCard thing is terrible! Let's go back to the old way, where there were no unlimiteds and where free transfers were only bus-to-bus!

[paulrivera]

I've actually filed some claims right there at Stone Street and it still took a few months. That's why I don't bother anymore.

 

If the people at Stone Street don't put the claim through the computer on the spot (i.e: someone else inputs the claim info in another department later in the day) I can see why.

 

....except that he probably purchased it with cash and not a credit card.....

 

Debit card most of the time... Same as cash...

[paulrivera]

Yeah, this MetroCard thing is terrible! Let's go back to the old way, where there were no unlimiteds and where free transfers were only bus-to-bus!

 

Oh yeah, let's do things the SEPTA way: Tokens and paper transfers that can also be used in the subway.

 

Good grief, their fare system is horrible, especially if you need to ride between subway and bus.

[Via Garibaldi 8]

Yeah, this MetroCard thing is terrible! Let's go back to the old way, where there were no unlimiteds and where free transfers were only bus-to-bus!

 

Don't get it confused. It isn't the MetroCard thing as you call it. It's the way in which the riggs the MetroCard system that's the problem.

 

Debit card most of the time... Same as cash...

 

Not quite, but that's another issue.