Why can't BART replace a demagged ticket at face value?
I ride BART almost every day. I usually use a Muni fastpass, but I'd left my wallet at home--with my fastpass in it, so I had to use my back-up BART ticket. But, as I tried to enter the BART ticket gate, i got the red "SEE AGENT" message--my $8.60 ticket had demagnetized. Now, I'm a seasoned BART rider, I keep my BART tickets in a little cardboard sheath, made specifically by BART for this purpose, neatly tucked away in a special pocket in my bag. There are no magnets in my bag, no magnetic closures, no pictures of magnets, nada.
And, yet, my ticket demagnetizes on occasion. It happens. I'm philosophical about it, mostly. I usually just buy a new ticket and go on with my life. But, this ticket had over $8 on it. More money than I wanted to donate to BART. Plus, since I'd left my wallet at home, I had no money to buy a new ticket.
I followed the station agent's instructions and went to the BART ticket seller to get a new ticket. When I got there, I was told that BART only exchanges disfunctional tickets for ones valued at $5, $10, $20 etc. So, I could exchange my $8.60 for a $10 ticket--and I'd have to cough up the additional $1.40 in cash. No thanks, I said, I don't have any cash on me, I'd just like you to replace my $8.60 ticket. But, this was impossible, said the cashier--I could either come up with the $1.40 or settle for a $5.00 ticket! Since I didn't have the cash--although I seriously considered aggressively panhandling for it right in front of the agent's booth--and, since I would have no way to get home from work tonight without a ticket--I had to take the $5 ticket! And BART walks away with my $3.60! This is so, so, so wrong. So wrong.
BART is rewarded for creating ridiculously fragile tickets that seemingly demagnetize when you merely walk by someone who is thinking about magnets--and, then either you are forced to invest more money in BART's lousy tickets--which will probably demagnetize as you leave the counter-- or they take your money and give you nothing in return.
Today, I hate BART. I want to spit.
Agents can write out a pass
Agents can write out a pass for you if you ask. They can send your bad ticket to the treasury office and you'll get a check in the mail in about three weeks minus the cost of your trip. You have to fill out a claim form so they know who and where to send it.
Fragile tickets? They are made of vinyl now, just try to tear one!
The Magnetic strip can be zapped by a cell phone if it's close enough. If you put your bag on a counter in a store where they have Magnetic pads to disable their anti theft devices at the time of purchase can also do damage to the information.
BART has an official Customer service window and there is also a vendor service that is a sub contractor and from what I have seen they have been known to be very rude to customers. As an agent I actually wrote a complaint to management because of what I witnessed. My guess is they haven't really improved much.
Last time I checked (It's been a while) the official BART Customer service window can do "Full Service" with defective tickets and they are much more friendly.
Those ticket exchange stores
Those ticket exchange stores are not run by BART. They are owned and operated by an independent contractor who sets the rules and regulations on how the tickets will be redeemed. BART doesn't make any money but the person who owns the "franchise" does.
Here's another solution for you and others who don't have cash and of course do not want to lose any ticket value: ask the agent to write you a ride voucher, deduct that amount from the balance on your ticket, stamp the ticket so you can exhcange it at another time when you do have cash to make up the difference. OR: ask the agent to write you ride vouchers for the balance of your ticket. If you don't mind waiting a few extra minutes while the paper work is done, you can usually get the full value of your ticket that way.
And here's a little extra info for you....those cardboard holders do NOT prevent the tickets from becoming demagnatized. They only prevent the tickets from getting bent. Anything with a battery will demag your ticket...CELL PHONES, PDA, CD players, iPods, building access cards.......
I had a demagnitized ticket
I had a demagnitized ticket once. This was the first (and only, so far) time this has happened to me since I started riding BART every day a year-and-a-half ago. I was on my way to work and I got the SEE AGENT message. I was very confused, and I went to the agent. After asking me my destination, they not only gave me a voucher for my trip TO work, but also one for my trip home FROM work. I exchanged my demagnitized ticket at the exchange window that day. It definitely sounds like you got screwed, but it doesn't always have to be that way. BART came out of pocket (not a significant amount, but a round-trip fare) for me and I was very grateful.