Defective gatelines

[crablab]

Has anyone else noticed an increase in the number of defective gates in the last year or so?

Picture is from Paddington this evening. These have been like this for several months, from memory and there's defective gates on several gatelines.

It's actually quite bad when you consider that losing 2/8 gates represents a 25% reduction in capacity at a busy terminal station.

Spare parts issue? Or just a lack of budget? Either way, it seems poor.

 

[Vexed]

Covers over the odd magstripe don't concern me much for gatelines like the GWR platforms pictured where a majority of people use eTickets - it's better than a non-working magstripe that has no easy way to identify it untill you put your ticket in, that gets on my nerves. It's not that different to when eTicket readers were only fitted to some gates during their rollout. Magstripe readers require frequent maintence to clean them and are quite delicate so the cost isn't worth it so much these days.

I haven't seen a full gate out of use though for more than a few days, that's not acceptable.

 

[Recessio]

Some of the London Underground stations are getting pretty bad for this, especially those with the old Westinghouse gates. Often at least one out at Waterloo.

The old gates I can understand parts might be an issue, but the more modern gates I really feel shouldn't be left out of service for more than a day.

 

[crablab]

Paddington this evening. So that's one totally impassable, and two defective.

I don't make a habit of recording gateline availability, but I think it's been like this for a while. Other gatelines are similar.

Is this Cubic being slow/poor, or Network Rail scrimping on calling them out?

 

[Chriso]

The Paddington gatelines are always bad. So intensively used I guess