Another glitch in the troubled rollout of the myki smart card in the Australian State of Victoria: Last week The Sydney Morning Herald reported that three lucky commuters had $167,000 inadvertently credited to their card accounts. While local politicians likened the process to winning the lottery, a spokesman for Kamco, the company reponsible for the myki software, blamed a programming error and said the problematic cards have been disabled: “The error relates to an unusual set of circumstances and can affect the fare calculation process, which results in the amount being credited to the card incorrectly.” Link to full story in The Sydney Morning Herald.
The New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Metro-North Railroad will show commuters how to use its Train Time application, which was launched last month. Customer service agents are scheduled to demonstrate the application at three stations this month. Train Time provides train status and schedule information at 67 stations so far; more stations will be added this spring. Link to MTA press release.
The AeroTrain debuted at Dulles International Airport (VA) last month, replacing the mobile lounge system. The Washington Post describes the familiar experience, destined to be a memory for most Dulles travelers:
With the clock ticking toward takeoff, the mobile lounge — it looks like an extra-wide bus on accordion stilts, or a robotic insect from a bad 1960s sci-fi flick — seemed to plunge the traveler into a vat of molasses, from the painfully slow hydraulic lowering of the 102-passenger vehicle from gate level to ground level, to the slow backing away from the dock.
The new automated system, in contrast, “provides impatient fliers with the zippy momentum they crave,” writes Steve Hendrix. Link to full story in The Washington Post.
The Jakarta Transportation Agency (Indonesia) plans to introduce the contactless JakCard for busway and train passengers. The system is still in development, and officials hope to launch the first phase later this month. “The most important challenge for us is familiarizing passengers with the new system,” said rail operator PT KAI Commuter Jabodetabek corporate secretary Makmur Syaheran. “This will take time.” Link to full story in The Jakarta Post.
Some of the hydrogen buses intended to provide transportation during the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver (BC) have been stalling out, and software problems appear to be the cause. “It comes down to very technical issues,” said BC Transit spokeswoman Joanna Morton. “We have a number of systems that are operating this bus and the engineers have been working on synchronizing the software.” Link to full story in The Gazette.
The Toronto Transit Commission (ON) launched a beta version of its new trip planner and is seeking user feedback. According to CTV Toronto, the application still has some bugs to work out:
Users posted messages online expressing frustration with a number of problems, with one person calling the tool “erratic” and “mediocre,” because it does not recognize some basic destinations like TTC stations…Other users said the planner provides unnecessary surface routes when subway routes will take them to their destination without the extra transfers.
According to the TTC website, modifications are under way and the agency plans to make its data publicly available when the application is finalized. Link to full story in CTV Toronto.
After being snubbed by the US Department of Transportation, the California-Nevada Super Speed Train Commission said that a Chinese bank is prepared to lend up to $7 billion to help build a magnetic levitation train between Las Vegas (NV) and Anaheim (CA). Project supporters announced that the Export-Import Bank of China agreed to provide a direct loan that would require the backing of the US government as well as cooperation with Chinese enterprises. According to the Las Vegas Sun, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the maglev project did not receive stimulus funding because Nevada did not submit a proposal and the commission was not eligible to apply. Link to full story in Las Vegas Sun.
Miami-Dade Transit (FL) is issuing a limited-edition EASY card to commemorate the upcoming Super Bowl. The smart cards will be available for $5 while supplies last. Customers will have to load value onto the cards before using them. Link to press release.
