Leftover Metrocard Change Infuriates Some
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The sad truth for the MTA: People are less than thrilled for the discounted holiday Metrocards, buying less than the projected 250,000 cards the MTA set aside. Does this mean that the whatever discount the MTA doesn't have to pay down gets to stay with the MTA? And does this mean that a crappy ad campaign and an insignificant gesture from the MTA means very little to the average subway rider? Some people point to the fact that the discounted cards can only be purchased with cash as a problem, while some others say that the cards didn't represent that great a deal to riders. And then there's Assemblyman Richard Brodsky from Westchester who contends the discounts are illegal, since there were never any public hearings.
The holiday Metrocards would have given riders a few extra days of ridership. Of course, many people who tend to buy Metrocards cards might go out of time during the holidays, so why bother? And of course, Gothamist went out to get a holiday Metrocard, but that's because we're gullible. Did you buy one?
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No, I did not give into the MTA's PR gimmick/waste of $50 million. The main reason they did it is so they can say, "Pay no attention to your crumbling subway station, we are giving you a discount that will make everything OK." Just think what $50 million would do to fix [insert name of the worst subway station you know of].
Who remembers to have $76 in cash on them?
i was going to do the promotion, but the cash-only stipulation put me off (i definitely use my 2 "lost cards" per year), and they weren't available at many stations (i'm lazy).
I didn't buy one, because of the whole cash thing. What a pain. Plus, I don't think they explained it very well- I didn't realize that the one you buy for cash has up to 10 extra days; I thought it had 4, which is apparently how many extra days the one I bought from the machine has. I'm usually very on top of that sort of thing, which means I'm guessing most people are totally lost.
Those of us who use eTrac/TransitChek are ineligible. Which is really lame.
Through an employer program I pay for metrocards via a credit card to get a pre-tax benefit so I'd save more money by not spending cash.
has anyone used the walk-in center at the Times Square station? It seems to have temporarily displaced the scientologists.
I was interested in the deal as well, but the 'cash only' thing is a really bizarre choice. I don't think I understand the logic. Close down token booths. Encourage people to use the machines. Yet when it comes to this supposed 'gift' we need to go out and find an open token booth that has these cards and buy it directly from them. Huh?
And frankly, Toby is 100% right. All this effort being made to 'soften' riders while leaving stations in disrepair. And not just the ones that are crumbling. But the MTA still can't figure out how to clean up the newer stations like Times Square, Union Square and Atlantic Avenue.
I didn't get one because I use TransitCheck (or whatever the hell they're calling it these days), so I only get a card once a year. Many of the system's most regular users don't get the discount -- nice, MTA. Although I'd rather they spent the surplus on fixing up some of the nastier stations anyway.
I just wish they would have used the money to make a little safer since they are going to raise fares on us soon anyway.
Seriously, couldn't they have at least spent the money to fix up the sludge that covers the Canal St. platforms? Or make the Smith St. F/G a little safer with more cameras and other safety measures?
Sheesh
the reason it was cash only is because, token booths take only cash. and there was no way to program all the metrocard machines to spit out an additional 10 days on a card.
and seriously...freaking ny'ers...(or are all of you transplants?) can't even appreciate a nice fare break. i for one like it. and bought my holiday metrocard the day it was on sale.
My monthly card expires 12/21, at that time, I'll consider buying a weekly discount card, since you have to fork over $$$ at the booth.
www.forgotten-ny.com
Let's face it, the whole Metrocard discount effort was pretty lame. I didn't even get a chance to attempt to take advantage of it just because I had to buy my monthly Metrocard shortly before the promotion took effect. Now I have to buy another one next week and because of the diminishing added value it's not even worth it for to bother anymore. Leave it to the MTA to come up with such a lame attempt at feel-good politics,
I do TranstChek and figured I was out of luck, but then yesterday I got a $10 metrocard with some bonus rides on it. Since I get the 30 day Unlimited card automatically, I have no use for my present from the MTA, but at least I'll be able to pass it along to someone.
MT, you could have bought a pay per ride, or a weekly, for the few days you leading up to the purchase of the holiday card...I guess you didn't think of that
i'm totally loving the holiday unlimited card because my previous 30-day ended on the 22nd, which means i got the entire 41 days for 76 bucks.
so, yes, it was a way-lame attempt at good pr by the mta, in both concept and execution, but it worked out pretty ok for me.
K - Real New Yorkers realize when they are getting scammed, especially by the MTA. Do now do you trust those "We will be moving shortly. . ." announcements?
how are we being scammed? maybe real new yorkers need to be less cynical.
How are you being scammed?
As the other posters have commented, this "promotion" costed $50 million. That money could have gone to closing down their huge debt or station/track maintenance. This is really just a distraction from their main problems.
I woudln't call giving back to the commuters (in form of cheaper rides) a scam even if the costs are station/track repairs. im sure that stuff is budgeted for already. and distraction or not, but a lot of people can benefit from saving a couple of bucks here and there. i know i can.
I think it is a scam because they just rasied the fare and they are probably going to have to raise it again. The MTA's finances are a joke and all you hear them do is complain about $$$. It was just some PR BS meant to get some sympathy right before they went into contract negotiations (and threaten to strike). I'm glad it is saving some people $$$, but I think in the long run it is going to be a wash because they are going to raise the fare. If King Bloomberg is reading this, can you please build some more bike racks and bike lanes. That would be a good place to spend $50 million!
It's a scam because those of us who are the heaviest users of the system (those who commute daily via the MTA and get pre-tax TransitChek benefits) don't see ANY benefits of this $50 million "surprise" surplus that could have been put toward any number of long-term service and/or infrastructure improvements.
Like, say, adding more service on the F line so I don't have to wait 20 minutes for a train during rush hour like I did this morning.
The Mayor had nothing to do with the $50mm fare giveback because the MTA is a state authority, not a city agency. Therefore the city could not have used the money to build bike lanes on the city's streets.
K,
If your landlord decided to charge half rent for December, you'd be happy, right?
But I bet you wouldn't be so happy if paint was peeling from the walls, rats were running around your kitchen, appliances needed replacing 20 years ago AND he was going to raise the rent in 6 months.
The money you're saving now is chump change compared to the real cost of MTA's inefficiency.
I happen to use Transitchecks to purchase my monthly cards, and *was* able to purchase the Holiday Discount Montly Metrocard, so I'm not sure why others were being denied....
Come to Prospect Heights to the B/Q station @ 7th Avenue, the lady there is quite nice and will help you out most graciously (that is, if she's had her coffee)
K-it's a scam because if your metrocard runs out a few days before the promotion begins, and you buy pay-per-ride cards to make up the difference, you end up spending more per ride than if you bought a regular price monthly metrocard.
Gary K, what does the strike have to do with anything? the mta authorized the holiday fares, the union was dead set against it. I'd still side with the MTA anyways, regardless of the holiday fare.
as for my sister's gay bf, if my landlord gave me discounted rent, and raised it 6 months later, i woudln't have a problem...isn't it pretty much understood that rent goes up every year?
and as for a, maybe you waited 20 minutes for a train because some dumba$$ was holding the doors and delaying every train behind it? i can't believe you people who complain so much...the system is going to have its off days, but for the most part its pretty efficient.
as for the cleanliness of the place, blame the people who throw their sh!t all over the place.
Here is a bit of history:
The fare has always been a hot button political issue. Political involvement of keeping the 5 cent fare for almost 40 years drove the IRT and BMT into city control. There were of course safety issues and aging cars which the lack of revenue from the artificially low fare caused.
K,
I suppose you're right. If people didn't litter so much, columns wouldn't be crumbling and there wouldn't be any water damage to the walls. There's nothing MTA can do about that.
And way to miss the point on the landlord analogy. We're talking about a surplus that could be spent on making necessary repairs or holding off future fare hikes. You'd rather take marginal savings now even if it means paying more later? And as the infrastructure continues to deteriorate? Seriously?
The landlord analogy was lost because frankly, those were not necessary repairs.
As for the repairs for the train station, sure, they could take the 50 mill and save it, or put it towards repairs or whatever, but the surplus was something like 100 or 150 million wasn't it? and the other 100 some odd million was/is going towards that. which is great. this is a little something extra, which im very grateful for.
and about the fare hike, does no one remeber a time when there were no bussubway transfers? the amount of time that passed between teh 1.50 -> 2 dollar hike was huuge. and even when the fare was $1.25, getting somewhere still would have cost you 2.50 if you had to take a bus AND a train. and there were no metrocard discounts AT ALL. we need more state/city money...and we need this nice gesture from the mta...
I know the Duke of New York (he's A number 1) can't control the mta budget, but he has to negotiate with them from time to time. I really wish he would make the city more bike friendly. Then we would not have to be so dependent on the MTA, the TWU or the taxi mafia. All of these knuckleheads play power politics at our expense, they all want to appear that they are acting in the best interest of the citizen when in fact they are just trying to make a few extra bucks for themselves, and oh yeah, stop the terrorists.