Write On METRO : RideStore

RideStore Gets Mini-Makeover

Mary Sit — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 21:38:00 GMT

The next time you visit our RideStore at 1900 Main, you'll see new directional signs hanging from the ceiling. Designed to mimic signs at an airport, they are color-coded and have text in both Spanish and English.

We hope these signs will give our customers a more user-friendly experience and cut down on any confusion.

Red is for information on bus and rail; Lost & Found; and routes and information. Purple is METROLift. Orange is Police Records, including fare evasion ticket payment and purchasing accidental/incident reports. Blue is METRO Q® Fare Card Services, and green is METRO Q® Fare Card Assistance.

Most customers will need to pay attention to two lines: the green line for "assistance" and the blue line for "services."

The green "assistance" line handles: card conversion, defective METRO Money replacement, lost/stolen cards, non-working cards, and RideSponsor.

The blue "services" line handles: discount cards for seniors, students and the disabled; METRO Money for non-profits; METROLift tickets/passes; new cards; and reloads.

So the next time you come in, take a look around and queue up in the right line. Say good-bye to those frustrating moments when you arrive at the window, only to be told you're in the wrong line.

Click here for a list of retailers.

Come in to METRO at 1900 Main and exchange your card for a new one.

If you do come in, we know that lunch time is a busy time, so we've opened our express METRO Q® Fare Card Exchange Center on the second floor to help ease the crowd in the RideStore. We have a staff there exclusively dedicated to exchanging cards quickly to get you in and out.

Express exchange window hours are Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

You can also come into our RideStore and visit the Revenue Operations window, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

If you do have a full-fare card, just use up the value on your card, then get another from one of the dozens of retailers around town. "You don't have to come in and trade," explained Fernandez.

RideStore today were in for a treat - no tricks - from staffers donned in Halloween gear.

Friendly witches with bright smiles, a colorful clown and a devil walked around, answering questions. Death himself walked up to customers and tried to make them feel comfortable as riders loaded money on their METRO Q® Fare Cards.

Harrison Johnson, a native Houstonian and lifelong METRO rider, said he enjoyed being helped by the beautiful witch behind the window. He is pictured above in the green shirt.

"I love the way it's working now," he said of METRO."It's more convenient, it's more pleasant. Even though I have a car, I catch the bus."

The 59-year-old retired truck driver came to the RideStore to help a friend obtain a Q Card.

"Ya'll have made some big changes," Johnson said. "The drivers are just real nice and pleasant and helpful."

In addition to the RideStore, you'll find Treasury, the Lost & Found department and METROLift - all in one area. Hours are Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Happy Halloween, everyone. Stay safe this weekend and if you're driving, be extra careful around tiny ghosts and goblins in your neighborhood.

students must renew their METRO Q® Fare Card by Sept. 30.

To make it easier on students, we're opening our RideStore this Saturday, Sept. 18, from 9 to 1 p.m.

Students get a 50 percent discount off the regular fare.

When you come, it's important you bring the correct documents to prove you are a full-time student.

College students: You'll need to come in so we can take your photo. Bring a government-issued photo ID, plus a class schedule and receipt of tuition payment, or a letter on university letterhead verifying you are a full-time student.

K-12^th grade students: Parents or students can mail in a form or come in to the RideStore. A photo is not required. You'll need to bring one of the following: current school ID, class schedule, enrollment form or report card on school letterhead.

If you have not renewed your Q Card yet, it will expire in 16 days....so take advantage of our special Saturday hours and renew your Q.

Remodeling RideStore into One-Stop Shop

Mary Sit — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 21:29:00 GMT

If you visit our RideStore this month, you'll see construction and remodeling going on.

Today, we started redesigning our RideStore so we can consolidate three functions in one: the RideStore, Treasury and METROLift.

"The build-out is to better assist our customers. We're putting all our service in one place. It's a one-stop shop," said Danicel Whitaker, METRO's deputy director of revenue.

Treasury will now be known as Revenue Operations.

Business will be conducted as usual at the current locations (Revenue Operations on the second floor) during construction.
Hours at the RideStore and Revenue Operations (Treasury) will remain the same during construction:

RideStore 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Revenue Operations (Treasury) 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Once construction is completed, if you want to get a METRO Q® Fare Card or obtain a discounted Q Card (seniors, students and the disabled), you only need to come to one place - the RideStore.

The new RideStore will be the place to go if your Q Card is lost or stolen. If you had a registered Q Card, you'll be able to replace your Q Card, and we'll reload your balance.

And if you need METROLift services - for a discounted Q Card with a photo or for the interview process - you will only need to go to the remodeled RideStore.

The window for Revenue Operations will be along the wall where the brochures have been located. During construction, the schedules will be behind the counter by the RideStore staff, who will be happy to give you one upon request. Later, the schedules will be out in the open again.

We expect to complete the remodeling by Oct. 1. The newly consolidated RideStore will operate Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Answers to Your Q Card Questions

Mary Sit — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 23:22:00 GMT

The posting on the new Q Card generated a lot of questions from you, so today’s entry will try to answer those.

When you tap or flash the Q Card in front of a card reader, you’ll get an audible and visual signal that it has been read. You’ll hear a beep and see a green light flash.

If you keep the card against the card reader long enough, you’ll be able to see the balance on your card, how many trips you’ve accumulated, or how many free trips you have used.

“Every time they use the card, they’ll be able to see the balance to keep track,” said David McMaster, director of customer service and sales. “If they have an on-line account, they will be able to see their transactions and the balance.”

The Q Card will not come with carriers or wallet sleeves. It will be a contactless “smart” card and should not affect the magnetic stripe on other credit cards in your wallet if they are placed together. The Q Card will be similar to employee ID cards.

Do not punch a hole or you may damage the antenna and computer chip embedded in it. “The antenna tends to run in a rectangular spiral and extends throughout the card. You really can’t punch a hole anywhere and be safe and not damage it,” explained McMaster.

There are no plans to create mini Q cards or to issue mini keychain Q cards.

Lost and Stolen Cards

If you lose your card or it’s stolen, the balance on that card can be transferred to your new Q Card – but only if you have registered that card. Q Cards can only be registered by calling the Help Desk at 713/635.4000. You’ll be prompted to push a button for Q Card help.

“If you don’t register your card, it’s like losing a $50 bill. It’s not going to come back to you,” McMaster cautioned.

You’ll able to add value to your Q Card by linking it to a credit card and setting limits: how much you want to add and how often. There are three parameters you’ll be able to set: the refresh rate – which is the amount of money you want to add to your Q Card; the refresh threshold – the dollar amount at which you want to automatically add money; and the refresh period – the number of times you want to add money or refresh your Q Card.

For example, you’ll be able to add $50 once a month to your card automatically. Or you can set parameters that will automatically add, say $10, to your Q Card when the balance hits $2.

The maximum amount you can load onto your Q Card is $500.

Free trips

For every 50 trips you take, you’ll get five free trips. This will not be added as dollars to your Q Card account. It will simply be five free trips. Once you hit 50, the next five boardings – whether it is a commuter bus, a train, or a local bus – are free.

“If you want to take the local bus 50 times and then get on Zone 3, you can do it, and Zone 3 bus is free,” said McMaster. “You take 50 paid trips at whatever amount that is. Then you get the next five free trips at whatever amount that is.”

Transfers

All transfers must occur within two hours of the beginning of your trip. Most passengers complete their trips within a one-hour window – and unless there’s a bus breakdown or traffic delay – you should be able to finish your trip with transfers within two hours.

Would you get a transfer after two hours if your bus is late due to gridlock? That would be determined on a case-by-case basis.

“If a bus broke down, and METRO sends a second bus to pick riders up, we’re going to let them get on free,” said McMaster. “When they get to the transfer point, if it’s been more than two hours, there’s a chance they might get charged again because the new bus driver doesn’t know what happened before.”

Solution: Call the Help Desk at 713/636-4000 and request reimbursement, explaining the bus broke down or got stuck in horrific traffic. Or do it on-line at “Comments, Compliments and Complaints” on our Web site under “Contact Us.”

Roundtrip Train Fares

The $2 Day Pass that currently gives you unlimited train rides for a day will be gone. The fare is $1 per trip. Or use your Q Card and pay when you need it – flash it against the card reader on the platform going to your destination and again upon your return. If you use your Q Card to pay your fare, you’ll earn an automatic free transfer if you’re traveling in the same direction.

Universities and Q Cards

Is METRO offering any incentives to universities and colleges? Yes.

“The incentive to the student is that every full-time university student can now have access to the student fare, which is a 50 percent discount. Before, it was limited to a handful of institutions that were willing to supply discounted passes to their students,” said McMaster. “We were treating one group of students different. Now we have something that benefits all students equally and puts them on the same program as middle school and high school.”

About 10 percent of Houston’s students were using the U-Pass, which will be eliminated.

But the good news: If you have a valid U-Pass, it will be extended until August 2007. So if you’re a student at UH-Downtown, you should have access now to a renewed U-Pass good until the end of the academic year.

Disabled and annual pass

Keep using your disabled pass until it expires. When it’s time to renew, come into the Ride Store at 1900 Main St. and renew it. If the Q Card is about to launch, you will be able to pick up one then and load money on it.

The Q Card is expected to fully be operational by summertime. Once we announce the date when the Q cards will be available, you’ll have 30 days from that date to turn in your pass for a Q Card.

You can read more about the Q card here. Or you can call 713/635.4000 for more details. Press 5 to bypass the message and get to a live operator on the Q Card.