Originally Posted by
guv1976
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I'm not sure why you think you are being ripped off. Electronic systems occasionally malfunction, and the AirTrain staff told you how you can get reimbursed. On the rare occasions when I was overcharged on my Metrocard (as, for example, when I was charged a second fare when transferring from subway to bus), I mailed my card in -- in a postpaid envelope -- and received a refund, and it did not take 6 to 8 weeks, either. If it's not worth your time and trouble to do so, that's one thing, but you're not being "ripped off" by anyone.
By the way, did you re-swipe your card at the same turnstile, or did you move to a different one?
I re-swiped at the same turnstile (which seems to work fine when I do it on the subway).
What postpaid envelope? None was offered to me. But yes, maybe I am a bit jaded in my old age, I would usually not handwrite a letter of explanation for $2.50 even if there was prepaid postage.
The best solution is to allow the employees at the scene to correct it or, if that was beyond the technical capability of the system(?), change the wording on the displayed message to "Do not swipe again, contact staff."
I agree that overall the Airtrain is nice and I will continue to use it. But it would be so easy to fix the signage and problems like the one I experienced, so my assumption is that they don't want to.