12-17-2019, 08:16 PM
(12-17-2019, 05:21 PM)ac3r Wrote: From the CBC:
Quote:The region will have workers checking every ION fare machine to make sure it's working properly after many reports from riders of problems with the system.
[...]
If the fare machines aren't working, Zinck suggested riders could have also have an alternate method of payment, such as cash if the debit or credit card machine doesn't work. He also noted people can load fare cards online, although there is a bit of lag time between doing that and the money showing up on the card.
Half a year later and they're only now deciding to have some staff members check whether or not the machines are working. For one, they should have been able to determine that the technology is totally messed up before launching, considering the stations were built about a year prior to the opening. Secondly, they surely knew things were not working correctly the moment the free period was over and thousands of people started to attempt to pay for things and use the products they did manage to purchase. Would it have been that hard to have the fare inspectors - as they sit at the station waiting for the next train - to get into the habit of taping some sort of testing card to determine whether a station was having issues?
They managed to built and get trains running just fine, but having something function as reliable as an Interac machine at Zehrs is somehow a challenge.
In this case, 'they' is not the Region or GrandLinq but the contractor for the validation and ticket machines. The staff finally being sent to check on usability are from the Region; it seems the vendor was left to self-maintain the units but that's been determined to no longer be viable.
As for the OS, I believe that's a (usually) stable field version of Windows called Embedded Compact (formerly CE).