Bus service tagged for faulty ticket machines
THOUSANDS of Rea Vaya commuters are being inconvenienced and losing money because of broken ticket machines on the buses.
And despite the fact that it is not their fault that the machines aren’t working, they are subjected to verbal abuse and rudeness from staff when they ask for help, they say.
Jennifer Johnson experiences problems every day.
She catches the C4 bus that runs from town to Windsor and she uses it only for the outbound journey.
“From Melville, there are no stations – only street bus stops. I tag in at the Rissik Street station, but cannot tag out on the bus as the machine does not work.
“The following afternoon, when I board at the Rissik Street station, I ask the Rea Vaya attendant to tag me in and I then tag out to pay for my previous afternoon’s trip. I then tag in to get back into the station,” she says.
The attendant is usually co-operative and tags her in, she says, but, on Friday, August 7, the attendant said she would tag her in that time, but wouldn’t do it again.
“This would mean that if I tag in this afternoon, I will incur a penalty daily. I cannot go every day to the Carlton Centre customer care centre to claim it back by filling in a form.
“Also, the balance on my card will be depleted within two weeks,” Johnson said.
Another time, “the attendant told me to get off at the UJ station and tag out there, but that would mean getting off the bus and then waiting for the next C4 bus”.
“Another attendant at the Rissik Street station told me that after I tag in and get in to the station, I must tag out immediately, but if I were to do this and the machine on the C4 bus is working and I tag out again on the bus, I will incur a penalty charge,” she said.
Johnson wrote to Rea Vaya about the problem and received the reply that they were aware of it and were attending to it.
That was in May, she said, and the machines are still not working.
Bhekikhaya Mabaso commutes from the Orlando police station to the Chancellor House station in the CBD.
Because the machines are broken and he is unable to tap out, he faces daily penalties.
He constantly logs calls and gets reference numbers, but he is now owed about R150, which he wants back.
Sumayya Samsoodien, who travels from Newlands to Rissik Street, said some of the machines hadn’t worked since the bus rapid system started.
“Every time I am unable to tag in or out, I get penalised.
“I have complained many times and they tell me to log a call and that they will call me back.
“I am still waiting,” she said.
Rea Vaya’s director of service promotions confirmed that there were technical glitches at the Rea Vaya system and customer service issues.
“I spoke to Ms Johnson and I have informed her that we are working on the system and that it will be fully operational and efficient within the next two months.
“We are addressing issues of customer service first with the two stations where she informed us that she has been treated unfairly.
“We acknowledge and value her contribution (communication) as it will assist us to improve the service for passengers and residents of the City of Joburg.
“We apologise for the inconvenience,” he said.