Arrived back in Auckland tonight after spending the last few months working for TransLink in Brisbane.
I walked out of the terminal intending to catch the AirBus but – much to my amazement – could not find a ticket machine. I never carry cash and the ticket booth was closed at the time, so I had to get a shuttle home instead. On the drive home I realised that the electronic ticket machine that I had previously used to pay by credit card was located at the old stop location, which is at the eastern end of the terminal. Has the stop moved, but the ticket machine stayed put?
I know the AirBus stop had been moved to the western end (which is more convenient for arrivals) prior to the Rugby World Cup. I would have thought that a ticket machine was useful for managing queues of people trying to buy tickets (if the booth was even open). And surely the additional cost of moving the ticket machine would have been minimal, especially compared to the revenue they must lose from potential passengers like me.
Am I missing something? Can someone at AC/AT/Johnsons explain why the ticket machine has been allowed to go AWOL at the other end of the international terminal? Maybe I’m the only one who uses the ticket machine, in which case I accept that it would not be worth the cost. I fear, however, that the outcome is not the product of a deliberate and considered decision, but instead the consequence of poorformance.
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Last time I saw, the buses had snapper readers with the covers on, so might be the fact that the Buses will soon be converted? Still poses the question if we will be relying on the booth to serve tourists rather than having a machine, or if they are preparing a new card vending machine with the smart card roll out?
The overseas arrivals is a big factor. You can’t expect people arriving from the other side of the world to have a HOP card. Most civilised countries have machines which take cards to purchase a single trip or daily/weekly/monthly ticket for visitors to the country.
I recommend catching the 380 to Papatoetoe, or the 375 to Middlemore. Then get on a train, less than half the price, and trip prob only slightly longer. On Wednesday evening caught the 5.26 from Britomart, got on 380 at middlemore after only a couple of mins, and got to the Airport by 6.15.
Yes I’ve made that trip and I agree it’s the best option, unfortunately the low frequency of trains at night (I arrived at 11pm) is a problem.
Um – it’s Johnsons not Pavlovich!
Thanks Chris! I have corrected the post, apologies to Pavlovich.
…and what’s wrong with an ATM in the terminal?
You will not be able to use HOP cards on Airbus. Snapper doesnt have the capability provide the range of products currently offered by Airbus (e.g. return trip). Hence the only option is paper ticket and the readers will remain under the cover for many more months!
The sooner we get a rail line out there the better! That will take the HOP card by the time it is built 🙂