Electronically printed seat checks

[BCL]

Haven't ridden in about a month and I'm way behind on making Select. Decided to make a lot of mini runs, including some with bus segments.

However, today I looked up and saw a printout from a handheld printer. It had the date, destination, train number, and reservation number. It had a PDF417 matrix code and my code reading app indicates it's just the res # and res date. There's also some alphanumeric text above the code that I can't figure out. Is this new? I figure they could also use the printer for other stuff like receipts for tickets bought on the train.

Addendum: I noticed the printed seat checks also included the origin station, although that was in smaller print than the destination.

 

[berlin]

It would be nice if Amtrak could join the 20th Century, and (like many European trains) use an electronic display for this purpose, saving paper, eliminating confusion, etc...

 

[BCL]

I'm on a second segment right now, and all I see are the traditional seat checks.

As for a display....

Seating isn't reserved on many trains. They want something where the passenger can move to another seat. Each train has two conductors, who might not have worked with each other much and might not know each other's shorthand or handwriting.

 

[PRR 60]

They are beta testing printed seat checks on (I believe) the Capitol Corridor. It eventually will be rolled-out system-wide.

 

[roadman3313]

A select number of conductors use them on the Capitol Corridor. Most still are using traditional seat checks. The system is supposed to help with accounting of passengers and streamline the ticket pulling process, however the main purpose is to reduce fraud.

There were printed seat checks for a little while during an initial test on the Capitol Corridor. As PRR60 stated, this is once again a beta test started by the CCJPA to see how it works. So far so good if you ask me, but I haven't seen anyone have a printer jam or run of out receipt tape yet!

 

[gmushial]

A select number of conductors use them on the Capitol Corridor. Most still are using traditional seat checks. The system is supposed to help with accounting of passengers and streamline the ticket pulling process, however the main purpose is to reduce fraud.

There were printed seat checks for a little while during an initial test on the Capitol Corridor. As PRR60 stated, this is once again a beta test started by the CCJPA to see how it works. So far so good if you ask me, but I haven't seen anyone have a printer jam or run of out receipt tape yet!

??

 

[BCL]

A select number of conductors use them on the Capitol Corridor. Most still are using traditional seat checks. The system is supposed to help with accounting of passengers and streamline the ticket pulling process, however the main purpose is to reduce fraud.

There were printed seat checks for a little while during an initial test on the Capitol Corridor. As PRR60 stated, this is once again a beta test started by the CCJPA to see how it works. So far so good if you ask me, but I haven't seen anyone have a printer jam or run of out receipt tape yet!

??

I think the old seat checks were incredibly easy to copy. I think anyone could just lift one and make photocopies on card stock. A few times I've ridden to the end of the line on Capitol Corridor, nothing was written on them, and I think they could have even been reused. Some might pocket them and figure out what the shorthand is from the conductor. A lot of the ones I've seen are fuzzy and look like 3rd generation photocopies or badly done offset printing.

I remember riding the Keystone and noticing that they used a route specific seat check complete with places to stamp the origin/destination and date of travel.

These new printed seat checks are complete with the date/ train number and can be traced back to the passenger via the reservation number. It would be pretty difficult to try and alter them, since they're thermal print paper. I don't think photocopying one is going to fool a conductor, although perhaps someone might be able to make a more convincing fake with a copier that uses thermal paper. A haven't seen one in over 15 years, but I think they exist.

 

[gmushial]

Thanks... I guess I had never considered such or if such was even possible... maybe NH farm upbringing: I buy a ticket, I present that ticket, they put a seat check over my seat, period. I guess in my limited thinking: there probably was some check sum generated somewhere, ie, if there were more seats assigned than tickets for, then that should be pretty easy to find out/figure out (don't they have a bar code read for each pax?). ... guess I have always been "too" caught-up in enjoying the ride to think about such. Oh well... I'll continue to enjoy my LD rides, and leave the running of the RR to others paid to do such - seems they do a pretty fine job of doing such anyway. ;-)

 

[rickycourtney]

If I read that small print correctly Amtrak hasn't changed the design of the seat check since January 1986 (1/86).

I've seen pictures of these new electronic seat checks before... they're quite nice. If I remember correctly the printer is very small and attaches to the conductors belt. When they scan a ticket with their iPhone it spits out the correct seat check.

 

[BCL]

Someone obviously took the seat check as a souvenir. I also found a bunch of Amtra stuff being sold in eBay including a couple of different types of seat checks:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amtrak-Memoribillia-various-from-the-70s-80s-and-early-90s-/281185624287?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4177f820df&nma=true&si=HNNTkS0LCS6nqIQON4WDNR0mIsY%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

I have several Seat Checks of various colors I have acquired over the years, some used and some not used. Of course the new ones do not have the Pointless Arrow or Wave; they are "clean." They all stay in my Amtrak Memorabilia Display.

 

[railbuck]

I'm used to seeing just a blank paper with the handwritten station code, as in this photo:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/chuckandaliceriecks/4796801301/

The amount and type of fraud probably varies by route, but it has crossed my mind that it would sometimes be possible, for example, to board the LSL in Chicago with a ticket to TOL and have the ticket scanned by the conductor at the boarding gate, then tell the coach attendant you are going to CLE. I assume they have a count of the pax scheduled to leave the train at each station, so they might catch on that something was wrong, but short of rechecking tickets, it would be difficult to identify the specific person(s) involved.

 

[roadman3313]

The Capitol Corridor is an unreserved train with a certain amount of people who board without a ticket at the unstaffed stops. Conductors will often leave seat checks blank, instead orienting the seat check a certain way to indicate the stop. A vertical blank check on the side with no text may mean Sacramento while a vertical blank on the side with the text placed upside down may mean Davis, a horizontal blank with text to the left may mean Suisun/Fairfield, and so on and so forth.

Often times conductors will come through before the stop and collect the seat check and reuse it for someone else since nothing has been written on it. What this also means is the passenger can take the blank seat check before their stop and keep it. If the next conductor they see on another train uses letters (such as S for Sacramento, D for Davis, etc) on the seat check then the passenger can just pull out their check (of the appropriate color) and write the letter on with a sharpie. That check can then be reused any time they have a conductor that uses that method. I'd say the majority of the conductors do not write the station code on the check (for example O would be Oakland-Jack London instead of OKJ and OC would be Oakland Coliseum instead of OAC).

While this would generally would not work on LD trains, on non-reserved intercity (commuter like) trains with multiple stops and passengers boarding and alighting frequently there is a much higher potential for fraud. Also, conductors often times do not lift tickets after every stop as well so it is possible to get on and off the train without ever having a ticket lifted (thus riding for free and uncounted). I once rode from Emeryville to Davis without a conductor coming through the car to lift tickets at all (extreme, but true example). Usually they will come through at least every 2-3 stops at minimum to lift tickets.

It should also be noted that the printers are intended to also be used to print tickets purchased on board and receipts in the future to allow the sale of multi-ride tickets and the ability to validate tickets in the upcoming year. It is still in a testing phase.

While I hardly encourage any of those practices, working in transit the unfortunate truth is that fraud is more common than we would like or think. There are those out there who slice bar codes off transit tickets and place them on other ones to sell them to unsuspecting tourists on BART or who try to reprogram tickets to get unlimited rides. Printed seat checks are trying to keep people on their best behavior while also standardizing the format of each seat check used on the route.

 

[gmushial]

The Capitol Corridor is an unreserved train with a certain amount of people who board without a ticket at the unstaffed stops. Conductors will often leave seat checks blank, instead orienting the seat check a certain way to indicate the stop. A vertical blank check on the side with no text may mean Sacramento while a vertical blank on the side with the text placed upside down may mean Davis, a horizontal blank with text to the left may mean Suisun/Fairfield, and so on and so forth.

Often times conductors will come through before the stop and collect the seat check and reuse it for someone else since nothing has been written on it. What this also means is the passenger can take the blank seat check before their stop and keep it. If the next conductor they see on another train uses letters (such as S for Sacramento, D for Davis, etc) on the seat check then the passenger can just pull out their check (of the appropriate color) and write the letter on with a sharpie. That check can then be reused any time they have a conductor that uses that method. I'd say the majority of the conductors do not write the station code on the check (for example O would be Oakland-Jack London instead of OKJ and OC would be Oakland Coliseum instead of OAC).

While this would generally would not work on LD trains, on non-reserved intercity (commuter like) trains with multiple stops and passengers boarding and alighting frequently there is a much higher potential for fraud. Also, conductors often times do not lift tickets after every stop as well so it is possible to get on and off the train without ever having a ticket lifted (thus riding for free and uncounted). I once rode from Emeryville to Davis without a conductor coming through the car to lift tickets at all (extreme, but true example). Usually they will come through at least every 2-3 stops at minimum to lift tickets.

It should also be noted that the printers are intended to also be used to print tickets purchased on board and receipts in the future to allow the sale of multi-ride tickets and the ability to validate tickets in the upcoming year. It is still in a testing phase.

While I hardly encourage any of those practices, working in transit the unfortunate truth is that fraud is more common than we would like or think. There are those out there who slice bar codes off transit tickets and place them on other ones to sell them to unsuspecting tourists on BART or who try to reprogram tickets to get unlimited rides. Printed seat checks are trying to keep people on their best behavior while also standardizing the format of each seat check used on the route.

On the CZ generally I've only seen blank strips with the station codes (hand) written on them... actually makes it kind of fun while walking to the dinner car etc to read the codes and see if one can translate them - a couple trips ago I couldn't figure out GBB ... but live and learn

 

[roadman3313]

Here is what one looks like for those have not seen them yet...

(From top to bottom)

Amtrak Logo

Date: 2013 - 12 - 14

Origin: OKJ

Destination: SJC

Train: 741

Day: SAT

Printer Tracking Info: A56C35 - 93/94

Barcode with Res Reference #

Res #: 456FA5

# of Travelers: 1 of 2 (2 of 2)

There are two print outs, one for each passenger (as indicated by the 1 of 2 and 2 of 2 on the bottom).

 

[BCL]

Over the weekend I had planned a points run (taking advantage of the 50% weekend advanced discount) to San Francisco and back, but my kid didn't get out of bed and I thought of catching the next RIC-EMY train via BART. Only BART had some track issues and I (with real time departure estimates) calculated that I would get there a couple minutes after the train left the station. So we just took BART into San Francisco.

Still took Amtrak (bus and train) on the way back, although earlier than the reserved time. No problem on the bus and no problem on the train. Also just got an eVoucher for the unused travel. However, the ride back was different. EMY-RIC is only one stop in between and we didn't get a seat check. I was hoping it could have been one of the new ones, and I might have even asked if I could keep it.

Amtrak Capitol Corridor was actually much nicer than BART. If I was going from Richmond, I think it would have been worth it for the additional $2 or so just so I can have a seat. BART was packed and had tracking issues. Richmond to the downtown stations is $4.30 on BART, although I was taking along a kid under 5 for free.

 

[SarahZ]

Here is what one looks like for those have not seen them yet...

I like those. I always enjoy being able to see where everyone is going when I walk up and down the aisle, so it's nice to see that the city code is nice and bold. I'm sure that's to help the conductor, not nosy passengers, but I still appreciate it.