The merits of paper versus contactless payment

[js1000]

Moderator note - split from:

Metrolink Penalty Charge

Hello, just made an account for this after finding this forum through Reddit. My partner and I and two friends were charged £60 today for allegedly failing a ticket inspection on Saturday. All four of us had used the contactless tap and go before. We initially realised that something was off...

www.railforums.co.uk

There are loads or reasons I don't use the tap in tap out on Metrolink versus paper tickets. Your case demonstrates why and I just don't see the attraction in them.

- Busier times or stations often a queue to tap out
- Exit checks by staff mean it's easy to forget to tap out which you still need to do
- Do I really want a stranger scanning my phone and card?

I notice a lot people still prefer to use paper tickets.

 

[duffield]

There are loads or reasons I don't use the tap in tap out on Metrolink versus paper tickets. Your case demonstrates why and I just don't see the attraction in them.

- Busier times or stations often a queue to tap out
- Exit checks by staff mean it's easy to forget to tap out which you still need to do
- Do I really want a stranger scanning my phone and card?

I notice a lot people still prefer to use paper tickets.

I was determined to stick to paper tickets, but last time I travelled on Metrolink there was no queue to tap in, the tram was at the stop and I would have missed it - and my connecting train - if I'd bought a paper ticket. And predictably I wasn't sure if I'd tapped out successfully later in the day. I did check my bank statement and i had actually been charged correctly but coming from Nottingham where tapping out is unnecessary it is hard to remember.

 

[Paul AC]

- Do I really want a stranger scanning my phone and card?

So use Google Pay (or Apple Pay if you are that way inclined) on your phone or other device. Card details are anonymised and encrypted, the merchant or ticket checking system never sees your own card details.

 

[Haywain]

There are loads or reasons I don't use the tap in tap out on Metrolink versus paper tickets. Your case demonstrates why and I just don't see the attraction in them.

- Busier times or stations often a queue to tap out
- Exit checks by staff mean it's easy to forget to tap out which you still need to do
- Do I really want a stranger scanning my phone and card?

I notice a lot people still prefer to use paper tickets.

Ultimately, that's your choice. Meanwhile the rest of us can carry on as we feel is appropriate for us.

 

[Southern Beau]

Ultimately, that's your choice. Meanwhile the rest of us can carry on as we feel is appropriate for us.

As a long time resident in Manchester, I still use paper tickets.
I’ve had so many times when I have tapped in/tapped out and been shown as an incomplete journey.
Lengthy calls to helpdesk and sometimes it gets resolved and sometimes it doesn’t.

 

[WesternLancer]

but coming from Nottingham where tapping out is unnecessary it is hard to remember.

At risk of going off topic i think Nottingham tram has recently introduced tapping out for the ‘short hop’ fare. I don’t think this fare was previously available on contactless.

 

[Par]

I’m still with paper tickets, not because I’m against tapping in / out per se, just that I think it’s easy to forget to do it on unbarriered stops.

the one day Travelcard via the app was my preferred ticket type, but that was canned a few years ago now and has actually made some journeys more expensive.

 

[Mcr Warrior]

...the one day Travelcard via the app was my preferred ticket type, but that was canned a few years ago now and has actually made some journeys more expensive.

How's it now more expensive? Be right in saying that certain 'in app' purchases were discontinued by Metrolink due to too many folk buying tickets just as inspectors were about to board a tram.

 

[Par]

How's it now more expensive? Be right in saying that certain 'in app' purchases were discontinued by Metrolink due to too many folk buying tickets just as inspectors were about to board a tram.

The problem has gone away for us now because she has changed jobs, but at the time the One Day Travelcard was available via the “Get Me There” app, Mrs Par used to buy a weekly Zone 4 ticket for work.

On those occasions (weekends etc..) when venturing into the city, it was possible to buy a Zones 1-3 One Day Travelcard via the app to supplement the weekly ticket.

After the One Day Travelcard was no longer an option via the app (dropped for the reasons you state) it became necessary to purchase a Zones 1-4 Day ticket for journeys to the city because TVMs in Zone 4 wouldn’t offer the Z1-3 ticket.

The alternative was the ludicrous scenario of disembarking at the Z3/4 border stop and tapping in and re-boarding.

I don’t know if the situation has now changed and Z4 TVMs will sell the ticket, but if not this farcical situation remains.

 

[NCT]

One can try to moralise and rationalise however much one wants to, at the end of the day people will vote with their feet and the population will produce the most reliable statistics on social preferences.

 

[AndrewE]

One can try to moralise and rationalise however much one wants to, at the end of the day people will vote with their feet and the population will produce the most reliable statistics on social preferences.

that depends how badly skewed the "answers" are by gross differences in the fares paid by different methods...

 

[NCT]

that depends how badly skewed the "answers" are by gross differences in the fares paid by different methods...

Experience from TfL land suggests the end justifies the means.

 

[317 forever]

I’m still with paper tickets, not because I’m against tapping in / out per se, just that I think it’s easy to forget to do it on unbarriered stops.

the one day Travelcard via the app was my preferred ticket type, but that was canned a few years ago now and has actually made some journeys more expensive.

A couple of weeks ago I was travelling to Sale and Trafford Centre on the same round trip from East Didsbury. I knew I needed a zone 2-3 Travelcard. I chose paper as I needed only to tap my debit card once, not a multitude of times. As I had my ticket inspected 3 times it saved any trouble if I had forgotten to tap out at any stage.