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Vancouver general sightings and notes


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On 5/29/2020 at 12:04 PM, Phillip said:

18404 has the TAG farebox and transfer cutter.

Hold on, I missed something here... Vancouver is using transfers again? I mean, when I was in high school in the late 2000s, they already had their time-dependent magnetic tickets going... why the step backward?

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1 minute ago, InfiNorth said:

Hold on, I missed something here... Vancouver is using transfers again? I mean, when I was in high school in the late 2000s, they already had their time-dependent magnetic tickets going... why the step backward?

The company that made our fare boxes no longer makes them, so we’ve gone back to paper transfers on all shuttles, in order to free up those fare boxes for the 18/19xxx’s. We seem to have run out of fare boxes for conventionals.

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8 hours ago, Translink69 said:

The company that made our fare boxes no longer makes them, so we’ve gone back to paper transfers on all shuttles, in order to free up those fare boxes for the 18/19xxx’s. We seem to have run out of fare boxes for conventionals.

Those fareboxes are also used by the NYCTA and they too are in the process of ditching them

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Kind of sad that the only option is moving backwards in time. I personally think it might be time to switch to card / phone only. So then, people would be able to pay with credit card, mobile payment or compass card.

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Technology costs money.  Technology breaks down, frequently. Technology costs lots of money to fix. While I agree that in 2020, fareboxes should be giving up cards that work for both bus and Skytrain and more importantly, change, but sometimes, simple is best and more cost effective.

If you buy yourself a smartwatch today, in 10 years, it'll be unusable, a simple automatic watch will last you a lifetime.

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2 hours ago, Translink69 said:

Would be cool if we could snipe theirs. I’d imagine they have a lot more than we do.

Why?  They're garbage, which is why they're being ditched.

For the small percentage of cash fares being used, the maintenance costs on these units is ridiculous.

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18 minutes ago, GORDOOM said:

Just stop accepting cash fares on board buses, and put a few more CVMs at suburban bus loops and community centres. Problem solved.

Doesn't solve the problem for patrons boarding at a regular bus stop. Fine, if you are planning a trip and can purchase a compass pass ahead of time, but say suddenly your car doesn't start and you need to get to work / school so you board the bus near your place of residence and just have cash. Unexpected / unplanned trips happen a lot.

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On 6/4/2020 at 11:00 AM, Zortan said:

Kind of sad that the only option is moving backwards in time. I personally think it might be time to switch to card / phone only. So then, people would be able to pay with credit card, mobile payment or compass card.

Eh. With the increase in people using electronic payments, moving way back in time might just make the most sense. 

For instance, back when cash was still popular a manual fare box is unusable, and would suck up a lot of operator time. But now, since most will pay with cards, the minority few that still use cash are a lot less of a burden to serve with manual fare boxes. For instance, it would be a pain in the ass if you had a hundred passengers a day using cash, but if you only have a handful its not a big deal to count change and rip a transfer a dozen times a day. Plus, you don't have the maintenance costs of an electronic fare box to deal with. And for now, ditching cash altogether is untenable. There are still people who only carry cash, and many of these are the ones who rely on transit.

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Passed by the Cullen in Port Kells today and noticed 4 completely white (no fleet numbers, decals, nothing) buses. From the rear lights, length, and the (battery?) pack on the roof, I'd say it's either a group of 35' BYD electrics or 35' Gillig electrics. Does anyone have a better idea or guess at what these buses are and who they're for? Really sorry I couldn't get a picture, I was on the highway.

 

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23 minutes ago, FlyingPig said:

Passed by the Cullen in Port Kells today and noticed 4 completely white (no fleet numbers, decals, nothing) buses. From the rear lights, length, and the (battery?) pack on the roof, I'd say it's either a group of 35' BYD electrics or 35' Gillig electrics. Does anyone have a better idea or guess at what these buses are and who they're for? Really sorry I couldn't get a picture, I was on the highway.

 

My guess would maybe be the Grande West Vicinity CNG’s for BC Transit?

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1 hour ago, Rd320 said:

My guess would maybe be the Grande West Vicinity CNG’s for BC Transit?

Possibly but probably not. There's no paint, and the windows aren't black like most Vicinity units. The roof units are large, tall, and in front - not a Vicinity.

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