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Old 09-06-2014, 09:06 AM
 
2,299 posts, read 6,157,132 times
Reputation: 1744

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Ventra cards are prone to stop working without notice, and customer service is nonexistent. So, if your card goes out, you'll be delayed significantly if you need to find exact change for the bus. You're out $5 for a replacement card, even though Ventra is at fault. If you have a pass on your card, you won't be able to use it for one to two weeks while waiting for a new card to arrive, and you won't be getting a refund.

I used to love spending weekends traveling around the city, and now I dread it because I don't know when my Ventra card will stop working again. Has the Ventra nightmare got anyone thinking it's time to buy a car?
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Old 09-06-2014, 09:46 AM
 
Location: Wicker Park/East Village area
2,474 posts, read 4,141,430 times
Reputation: 1939
Ventra has worked out the kinks, I have no issues with Ventra and I use it every day all year long.
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Old 09-06-2014, 10:01 AM
 
Location: Maryland
4,671 posts, read 7,351,454 times
Reputation: 5330
Absolutely not. Ventra has worked fine for me.
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Old 09-06-2014, 10:14 AM
 
Location: Chicago, IL
255 posts, read 579,967 times
Reputation: 244
My husband uses Ventra almost daily, and I use mine perhaps twice a month. Haven't had any issues since the first couple of weeks after the rollout.
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Old 09-06-2014, 10:18 AM
 
14,800 posts, read 17,577,898 times
Reputation: 9244
Not at all. Never had a problem. I have a monthly pass, maybe that makes a difference.

Edit: wife has never had a problem either with her card. She just adds money as needed.

Last edited by Vlajos; 09-06-2014 at 10:26 AM.. Reason: additional info
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Old 09-06-2014, 10:54 AM
 
1,089 posts, read 1,850,189 times
Reputation: 1151
It works except that you usually have to tap it several times to get it to take on the bus.
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Old 09-06-2014, 11:02 AM
 
Location: Lincoln Park, Chicago
498 posts, read 719,624 times
Reputation: 777
I've never had a problem with it. I think most people who experience 'problems' with it just don't know how to tap correctly
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Old 09-06-2014, 12:21 PM
 
1,817 posts, read 4,909,582 times
Reputation: 640
In the beginning it was borderline unusable. I have not had issues with it recently except for the occassional need to tap twice.
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Old 09-06-2014, 01:00 PM
 
Location: Upper West Side, Manhattan, NYC
15,331 posts, read 23,784,409 times
Reputation: 7419
I've almost never had a problem with Ventra. WTF are you talking about? Ventra making Chicago unlivable without a car? Excuse me while I clean up the milk I spit out laughing.
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Old 09-06-2014, 01:00 PM
 
Location: Humboldt Park, Chicago
3,486 posts, read 3,107,455 times
Reputation: 2569
Quote:
Originally Posted by prairiestate View Post
Ventra cards are prone to stop working without notice, and customer service is nonexistent. So, if your card goes out, you'll be delayed significantly if you need to find exact change for the bus. You're out $5 for a replacement card, even though Ventra is at fault. If you have a pass on your card, you won't be able to use it for one to two weeks while waiting for a new card to arrive, and you won't be getting a refund.

I used to love spending weekends traveling around the city, and now I dread it because I don't know when my Ventra card will stop working again. Has the Ventra nightmare got anyone thinking it's time to buy a car?
When I saw how much trouble other's were having with it during the rollout, I put off making the transition until the last possible date. After the transition I only had one issue with Ventra saying my credit card info wasn't up to date (after several months of working fine) but have had no issues since.

Also worth noting, I have seen people having problems with their cards and every single time, the bus drivers were incredibly helpful and accommodating, letting them ride even if their card wouldn't work. There were definitely hassles with the transition, but it could definitely been worse, and things seem to be running pretty smoothly now.
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