SoCal's Metrolink Monthly Pass Doesn't Work The Way You Probably Think
Dillon is in college, and he tried to save money by buying a monthly pass on the Metrolink transit system in Southern California. The problem is that Metrolink does a terrible job of explaining how the monthly pass works, and their own staff gives out incorrect information to customers buying the pass for the first time. Now Dillon faces a $250 citation for fare evasion because it turns out he could only use his pass for the upcoming month.
This is what Metrolink displays on their website under the Monthly Pass section:
Valid for unlimited travel between the station where purchased and selected destination during the calendar month printed on the pass. Monthly passes are sold from the 15th of the current month to the 14th of the new month.
There's no other info, or—what would really help—examples. After considering it, we think that means you can buy a monthly pass up to two weeks before the month in question begins, but it's not worded very clearly; the second sentence could mean something else entirely when taken on its own. That's what confused Dillon:
As a first-time pass purchaser, I couldn't understand exactly what was [meant by] the statement "Monthly passes are sold from the 15th of the current month to the 14th of the new month," and took it to mean that one purchased a monthly pass on the 15th of a month to last through the 14th of the next month.
It's also why he asked in person before buying the pass, hoping they'd clear it up. When they said he was good to go, he believed them.
Even the Metrolink security agent who cited him let him use the pass for 4 days before doing anything:
I asked Metrolink staff at Union Station for clarification and to double-check when I was purchasing the pass (which wasn't cheap for a college student - $203.50) and they nodded a "go-ahead." I began using the pass immediately on January 15, but it wasn't until January 20, that a Metrolink security staff representative - the same representative who had been checking my pass for the previous rides - pulled me aside and issued me a citation for fare evasion.
Dillon's court date is coming up and he's hoping the judge will agree with him that he acted in good faith (and was partially misled) and shouldn't have to pay the fine. In the meantime, hey Metrolink! Why don't you fix that section? Here's just one way you can rewrite it—take it, it's a free gift from us. Our version might not be perfect, but by splitting up the two middle-of-the month sections, you can avoid giving the impression that they're describing the duration of the pass.
Monthly Pass
Valid for unlimited travel between the station where purchased and selected destination during the calendar month printed on the pass. Passes for the coming month are sold starting on the 15th of the current month.
Please note, you cannot buy a monthly pass for the current month after the 14th.
Update: I left out a detail, which is that the OP deliberately bought his pass on the 15th of January in a mistaken attempt to get a full month of use out of it beginning on that date.
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Comments:
I don't blame the OP at all. I got the exact same meaning he got from reading what was posted on Metrolink's website.
The Toronto Transit Authority doesn't do much right, but they have the metropass done right. The go on sale a couple weeks before the new month, and the have, in big letters, what month they are for. Cant get much simpler.
I'm still confused... I can't use it to get to any station? and its some weird time thing where the planets have to be aligned correctly?
I find myself loving NYC's transit system a little more after visiting a few cities in the past years.
This is a sad case of the website still stating clearly "Valid for unlimited travel between the station where purchased and selected destination during the calendar month printed on the pass" but the following sentence totally confusing that. Metrolink could argue that the language indeed is truthful, but I really hope Dillon wins this one--and that Metrolink rewrites that explanation. He can't have been the first person to make that mistake.
Talk about ambiguous wording. It seems like they're setting a trap to be able to collect fines. How about including an example like: "you can purchase a pass for valid for April trips beginning March 15 through April 14th. Passes purchased after April 14th are not valid for the month of April and may be used beginning in May." For $200 bucks I'd be a bit p'offed as well. I hope he wins.
@dlynch: thanks -- I've edited the quote to avoid confusion.
@newdeepdan: the state of public transportation in southern california is a mess; can't say the freeways are much better. trying to get anywhere that's beyond city limits is usually a minor inconvenience at best, a major hassle at worst. it makes me wonder how well the high speed rail project (prop 1A) will be handled; the fact that it's est. completion time is 2030 (!!!) is ridiculous.
i remember coming back from new york and desperately missing the subway system. I don't see why we'll try to connect two ends of the state when we can't even connect two ends of the county in an efficient manner.
The website is right, but not clear. Dillon shouldn't have to pay the fine because Metrolink should be clear - after all, it is their job to communicate their message, guidelines and rules properly to the public.
It would help if there was a photo of the Metrolink card so we could see for ourselves how the text is laid out on it. The text from the website clearly says the month the pass is valid is printed on the card - but what it isn't clear on is whether you can use it for a whole month from when you buy it, or only the remainder of the month printed on the pass. I mean, they should clarify that if you are buying it for the first time and it's in the middle of the month, you're not getting your full value.
I don't blame the OP for the confusion. Metrolink needs to be clearer, and give examples.
"...Valid for unlimited travel between the station where purchased and selected destination during the calendar month printed on the pass."
If he purchased it after January 15, and it had the imprint of the number '2' or 'FEB' on the card, then that means that the card is valid for the month of February, not the 17 remaining days of January and all of February.
It clearly says, "Valid...DURING THE CALENDAR MONTH PRINTED ON THE PASS"
Yes, I am blaming the Dillon on this one for not reading the month printed on the pass. He should have bought a pass for January if that is the month that he wanted to use it in. And no, I have never been on the Metrolink, but I can read. Perhaps Dillon can take some additional reading comprehension classes while in college.
Valid ... during the calendar month printed on the pass.
I'm still confused. f you buy a monthly pass that says "January" after January 14th, it's not valid for travel in January?
Otherwise, if his pass said "February" and he was using it in January, well, that seems obvious that it's not valid.
I'll agree it could be worded better but...
"Valid for unlimited travel between the station where purchased and selected destination during the calendar month printed on the pass."
...sounds like the main point. So for example a ticket bought today would have "April" printed on it and I wouldn't expect that ticket to be good for March.
Where I came from they print dates on the monthly and weekly tickets when you either get them from the machine, ticket agent or get them in the mail.
@newdeepdan: was atlanta one of those cities? worst. transit. system. ever.
i once had to get from dunwoody (north side) to ATL (last stop on the south side). it's supposed to be about 40 minutes. i had 3 hours to make a flight - thought that was plenty of time.
i got 4 stops down the line (midtown) before everyone was let off the train b/c it went out of service. ok. no problem. trains run 20 minutes apart...still had plenty of time. next train shows up & also goes out of service. another 20 minutes. THIRD train shows up & goes out of service. now i'm starting to get nervous & rightfully so...the FOURTH train was 10 minutes late & also went out of service. WTF??!?
i hoped a cab & made it with about 40 minutes to get thru security & everything - i made it to the gate just as they were calling final boarding. all in all, it took me almost as long to go 28 miles on marta as it took to fly the 1,000 miles from atlanta to hartford.
never again.
Am I missing something in that I don't think the OP clarified when he bought the pass? I say this because milrtime83 said what if the pass said February, it obvously wouldn't be valid in January.
My problem is, when did the OP purchase the pass? I was led to believe from his letter that he bought it in January and it was invaid during that time. The problem is, how is it unclear that if the pass says a month other than January, he can't use it until then?
All this time, I was thinking the pass itself said January, he was using it properly, but now it doesn't seem very clear at all.
Did Dillon buy a pass on (let's say for example) January 15 and despite it saying February, thought he could use it for one month regardless of the month printed on the pass? If this is the case, then yes, he is at fault because the pass would clearly state a month other than January. Why would you think you could use a February pass in January?
Anyone else understand what's going on here?
it amkes sense to me, but i can certainly see how the OP got confused & the inconsistencies of the employees doesn't help at all.
you know what i think would really help? how about a sign that says:
ON SALE NOW:
(MONTH)
PASSES.
PASSES ONLY VALID DURING MONTH PRINTED ON PASS.
remember, KISS.
I was also cited for fare evasion this summer when I was taking classes at 2 separate community colleges in LA. The bus (which has its own street that only buses can drive on) would occasionally leave my starting point over 5 minutes early. Since I was making a tight connection and chose not to buy a monthly pass (since it was cheaper not to--I used the bus 4 times a week for 4 weeks) I ran onto the bus without paying the fare from the machines at the bus stop. Sadly, you could not pay for fare on these pseudo-trains. As a result, I was fined one day when an officer was on board. I called up MTA and complained about the buses leaving early and my inability to purchase a ticket but I still had to go to court.
The court system in LA County asks about 150 traffic violators per hour for their plea with the judge taking advantage of most of the defendants' lack of judicial knowledge and pressures them into pleading guilty. If you you plead innocent you are taken to a second room where your trial date is set. If you plead guilty the judge sets the amount you will have to pay. I chose a 3rd option and pleaded "guilty with explanation" and the judge gave me one minute to make my case. He ended up issuing me a $20 "court fee" rather than a citation fee. I'm still not sure why I was charged $20 but it's a lot better than the $250 I could have faced. It was also better than coming back a second day. With all the waiting I was there for 4 hours. Not a great day.
@pecan 3.14159265: I think you've got it right--his pass probably said "February", and he was indeed in the wrong, legally. The mitigating factor is that he explicitly asked if he was right, and was told that he was.
(The fact that it took the agent 4 days to notice before he was cited is an interesting sidenote, but in my opinion doesn't say anything for his defense.)
I read this and my mind was hurting. I feel that the OP tried to do everything right and was confused. If I was the judge I would make him pay for the 5 rides but not $250. The public transit near me has a good for x number of rides card and that makes sense to me. This was so confusing and if the transit workers don't know what is going on then how can an outsider?
I tried in vain to find a pic of one of these passes. Anyone got one? Just curious.
Yeah - I don't understand this either. Did it say "February" on the pass and he was using it in January despite that it had "February" printed on the pass?
It's totally not worth the exorbitant fine though.
Re: "f you buy a monthly pass that says "January" after January 14th, it's not valid for travel in January?"
I'm going to assume that they stopped selling January passes after the 14th. It isn't really in your best financial interest to buy a pass that late in the month. From what I gather, February passes became available on the 15th of January and January passes were no longer available on that date.
Is it really that hard to say either "Pass valid for month of March" or "Pass valid for 30 days starting on the day of purchase"?
Personally, this is how I think it should read:
Passes purchased between the 1st and the 14th of the current month will have the current month printed on the pass.
Passes purchased between the 15th and the last day of the current month will have the coming month printed on the pass.
Passes are valid for unlimited travel between the station where purchased and selected destination during the month printed on the pass.
"Valid for unlimited travel between the station where purchased and selected destination during the calendar month printed on the pass"
That's blatantly obvious to me. Monthly passes on other transit systems display the month (ie MAR) in blatant big bold letters. I'd like to see a pix of the Metrolink pass but suspect that it is just as obvious.
Wow. That sucks. In San Antonio, college students can ride the whole semester on any line, as often as you like, all month for a grand total of $35. And that's after they raised the price recently. It used to be $25 a couple of years ago.
The second sentence doesn't say anything meaningful. It doesn't say what it was intended to say, and it doesn't say what Dillon thought it said. The first sentence is perfectly clear though.
Also consider that in a conversation involving two people, there are two people who could be responsible for a miscommunication. The incorrect answer could have been because of a poorly worded question just as easily as it could have been because of a poorly trained employee.
I do hope Dillon gets out of his ticket, because it sounds like he wasn't trying to do anything wrong.
I'm an admirer of subways and have rode on almost every subway/light rail system in North America. To this day, I don't understand why all public transit systems can't issue 30-Day Passes valid beginning on the day it's purchased (or initially used). Chicago, NYC, Cleveland, Boston (all scan cards), and Montreal (scratch pass) follow this format and when your 30 days have passed, the card is no longer valid. Simple concept.
It also doesn't make much sense that Metrolink would sell passes for the following month with 15 days to spare in the current month. What's the point of that?
As for fare evasion: why would the OP have purchased a pass for the following month if he was trying to evade paying fare? The ambiguous wording of how the pass is to be used and the fact that he didn't pull out an expired pass when issued the citation, I see no reason why he would be issued a fine in the first place.
I've ridden metrolink for 8 years.
The pass is only good for the month it has printed on the ticket.
It's not like a 30 Day kind of thing. And February is priced the same as the months with 31 days. All the conductor is looking for is whether your pass matches the current month.
The OP also left out the fact Metrolink sells short term passes on a 10 trip basis.... that 's what most people do when they buy at the middle of the month.
The OP should have been suspicious when his pass says in big block letters "VALID FOR FEBRUARY 09"
when he got cited in JANUARY 20.
Normally, the conductor usually are pretty cool with it. But he did ride it for 4 days and the engineers are pretty anal about details when they are looking from pass to pass. And it was the SAME engineer day by day if the OP was riding the same route. The conductor normally would give you a lecture about it on the first discovery.
When a conductor is walking through the car, all he or she is looking for is the month. The minute you flash a pass without the right month, they go into enforcement mode.
Nevertheless, you can take it up with the judge about the vague warning. You have a good defense with the ambiguity. But if the conductor shows up and says a different recollection and you were verbally warned...good luck.
@ironchef: And maybe the pass could be better worded to say Valid ONLY in FEBRUARY 09.
That might help in your defense.
Ticket fraud is a huge problem and everyone who parades in front of the judge claims innocence.
Dillon, you screwed up. The rules are plain enough to avoid the fine. But cheer up. Present your case to the judge and make it clear that this is your first offense (it better be!). Don't try and go into the website wording, because it clearly says you can only use it for the month printed on the pass, but tell them what the Metrolink staff told you and why that confused you.
Chances are good they'll let it slide completely if you swallow your pride, admit the error on your part, and let them know you learned your lesson. You did learn from this, right?
By the way, the fine ($250) is only $50 more than the price of the pass. If, by some silly chance, you end up paying the fine, then just imagine you bought the pass one day earlier (the 14th) and are really only out $50 (and 10 days of riding, I know, but work with me here...).
What's wrong with these public transportation people, anyway? They can't make passes for whatever time frame people want to pay for? And why this refusal to even sell the passes for the time frame that begins with "today", if people want to have that?
The really sad thing is that this kind of management stupidity, which sure smells like the kinds of things credit cards do trying to entrap people into making mistakes that produce more fees, but in this case fines to be collected, is practice in many other places in the country.
So you are staying in a given city from the 20th of month 1 to the 20th of month 2. They are going to force you to buy TWO months of passes for the convenience? That's gouging that needs to be made illegal with criminal charges and jail time for managers who perpetrate this kind of taking advantage of people.
Erm... when last I checked, our Metrolink operates on the honor system... so.. no need to really buy a ticket, ya know?
Dillon, I dunno about your school, but my LA-area school offers discounted TAP passes that are valid for the entire semester on both the Metrolink and the Metro buses. You might want to check your student center to see if you have a similar deal.
I am totally guessing here that you go to USC (because it's pretty much the only college that connects to the Metrolink), but: [transnet.usc.edu]
@Ghettoshark:
Yeah that wording on their site is odd. As is the way the passes are sold. I've lived in San Francisco for a bit, working in the city but commuting from the suburbs. While the metro here in So Cal is interesting, the Bart system is SOOOO much better in terms of how it works.
Cali's system is kind of random. Like stated, the OP rode the trains without any problem for a few days before he got a ticket. Anyone can just hop on a metro train and ride it. I've ridden it dozens of times and only seen police on it 2 times, and only been asked to see my ticket once. You cant get on the bart without a ticket and it tracks that ticket from entrance to exit. The So Cal Metro system is flawed, but a great idea.
@Dragonis: Korea has a T-Pass. You can load it up, and near as I can tell, there is no monthly expiration.
$200/month for a bus fare? I'd really want to do the math to see if a car might be cheaper....I bet for a beater, it probably would be. Especially with the fines due to bad policy...
I've been riding LA transit for more than a year now and the system is very confusing. And while I haven't ridden Metrolink at all, their wording is the same as what the LA subway/bus system uses to explain their monthly passes. Someone should write a dictionary or wiki for LA transit.
@ [consumerist.com] Michael:
You cannot buy a January pass after january 14. If you buy a January pass on before January 14, you only get ~ 16 days use out of it, not 30.
He bought a Feb pass, and tried using it before. Legally, Technically, he was fare evading. Circumstances, especially with him asking, do mean he was trying to do the right thing. Most likely, the citation gets thrown out and he gets charged the court fee (~35 in NJ)
Oh taking public transport in LA.
I ride the Metro and the dash buses frequently. I saw ads for the TAP cards and thought, great!
I take the train from Hollywood and don't like getting to the station and having to wait for 5,000 tourists to figure out how to buy a ticket. I can get a TAP and just refill it...like a METROCARD.
I go to the metro store and ask if I can get a $20 card. The worker then tells me I can only buy a monthly pass, then asks where I'm from...
I don't understand WHY in a city where nearly everyone has a car they don't allow you to buy a refillable card. I use public transport AND drive. A monthly pass is not economical when you can choose to drive or take the train.
Also, why can't ALL the transport in LA be under 1 umbrella? Why is the dash separate?
Don't even get me started on the stupid bus schedules, trying to get to the train via bus and the train stopping running at 12:30am!!!
Grr.
The Metrolink clearly states the month it is valid for.
From the Metrolink website:
GUIDELINES
Monthly Pass: Valid for unlimited travel between the
selected origin and destination stations during the
calendar month indicated on the pass.
Jan 20th is not in the month of February.
If a college student can not understand that then it is a sad commentary on our education system.
Yet simply one more reason I don't use Mass Transit.
Alright, I live here in LA, and I WOULD be the first person to stick up for consumers here but this is a BAD consumer.
Why you ask?
Well, as I don't have a car for myself here, I use the public transit system, and when I moved here with my fiancee, we heard about the metrolink. Seemed like a good idea, as it took me straight to my job in the heart of LA. The price was a bit high, but it worked. Why am I telling you this story? For one reason entirely.
1. Metrolink staff and customer support was VERY helpful with me the first time I talked to them in Union Station. It was, as I believe, about half-way through the month, but it was right before the cut off for the month. Still, the rep was persistant that I would be wasting money if I bought the monthly pass this late into the month, as it is only good for the calendar month that is on the pass. I was told about 10-trip tickets which were quite a bit cheaper for the remainder of the month, and was told to get a pass the next month ON the 1st. I opted for this choice, and was thankful I saved money for that month, rather than wasting it on a half-useless monthly pass.
Let me give this to ALL of you straight:
This guy is a total schmuck. The MONTH is printed LARGELY and clearly in the middle of the pass. for instance this month it would say "MAR 09" in huge letters in the center. The ink and the dinky card are crap and tbh, I think they shouldve been laminated, but they were, but that's just life. What I'm trying to say is this fool was trying to game the system.
Should he have to pay the fine? Yes. I honestly think he should. I have seen so many people try to game the system set up in LA where they think they can board without a pass, and sure enough, the law catches up with them, and I scoff at them for trying to beat the system, because you just can't all the time. Should it be run differently? Probably, but that's not the point. The point is losers like this PRETENDING to be oblivious to get an extra month and a half out of his ticket because he doesn't like paying that much.
Well, he'll certainly be paying for this, and I hope that he doesn't get away with this joke of an explanation.
Joe
P.S. Even me, not being the smartest person in the world didn't misunderstand what the text said on the webpage. He KNEW what it meant, but just felt like gaming the system. Game, set, match.
@Dragonis: NJ Transit is the same way. I know I have a bunch of them floating around here somewhere, but they say your destination station, the month in larger letters, then your originating station.
I have to say the system here in Germany would be a much better fix. You can buy the pass whenever you want, and it just expires one month from that date. There's no confusion about which month it's good for.
Also, if you do get a ticket, it's only 10 euro per day that it's been expired.
@pecan 3.14159265: From what I have found online:
I think this is a California one, as the site is for someone in LA.
My reading of this is:
You can purchase a pass for a given month at any time from the 15th of the preceeding month to the 14th of the month in question. For example, on February 15th, the pass you would purchase would be good from March 1st to March 31st, inclusive. Had you bought the pass on February 14th, however, it would be good until the end of February.
How much is the regular fare? $205 seems a steep price for a one-month pass, but I am used to paying $36 for a monthly pass that covers a $6 daily round-trip fare.
@synergy: When I was in college in Minneapolis, our university had a similar deal with the local transportation authority. $50 a semester got you a pass you can use on any bus. Since the city has added a light-rail system, I think they are included in the deal as well.
infer ≠ imply.