kevin_standlee (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
kevin_standlee) wrote2023-08-23 09:52 am
kevin_standlee) wrote2023-08-23 09:52 am
Entry tags:
Clip Joint
For getting around on light rail, Caltrain, and buses in the Bay Area, I have a Clipper Card, which is a stored-value card that auto-reloads from one of my credit cards when necessary. While I had not used it for a while, it worked just fine when I got here. So yesterday, I used it to right light rail to get some groceries, as there is very little within walking distance of my hotel.
This Grocery Outlet store is next to the Fair Oaks stop on the VTA light rail system. Of course, I'm limited to what I can carry. I got two 8-packs of lime seltzer, a gallon of milk, and a few other things that would fit into my tote bag. I got two packs because for balance reasons, it's easier to carry two packs than one.
After shopping, I walked back to the station and tagged back in for the ride back to the hotel.
When I got back to my hotel room, I reached for where I thought my Clipper card was. Nothing. I reckoned that I must have dropped the card while on the train. Trying to find it would be difficult. So I logged into the Clipper Card system online and reported the card lost. $3 fee to freeze the balance.
I unloaded my groceries. Guess what I found at the bottom of the bag? That's right, my Clipper card. I must have dropped it into the bag when I though I was putting it in the pocked of my shirt.
I logged back into Clipper, but could find no way to reactivate the card. I called Clipper customer service, and after wading through their menus, reached a human being who told me that once a card is deactivated, it can never be reactivated. (Too bad; I'd had that card for many years, and it's inadvertently traveled around the world with me.) However, they were able to stop the system from trying to mail me a new card back in Fernley, and said that if I got a new card, they could transfer the balance to it. Well, I could do that, as there are VTA fare vending machines that will sell you a Clipper card across the street in the light rail station.
Walking over to the station, I bought a new card ($3 fee), went back to the room, and called Clipper customer service again. They said that they could transfer the $70 balance for yet another $3 fee, and that it will take between 2 and 5 days for the balance to appear. I hope it's back on the card by Monday when I'm going to San Francisco! However, even if it is not, I can add money to the card at VTA fare machines.
So I'm more or less okay other than being out $9 in service charges, and it could have been worse, with an unusable card being sent back to Fernley. I wish I'd tried checking my bag before rushing to deactivate my card.
This Grocery Outlet store is next to the Fair Oaks stop on the VTA light rail system. Of course, I'm limited to what I can carry. I got two 8-packs of lime seltzer, a gallon of milk, and a few other things that would fit into my tote bag. I got two packs because for balance reasons, it's easier to carry two packs than one.
After shopping, I walked back to the station and tagged back in for the ride back to the hotel.
When I got back to my hotel room, I reached for where I thought my Clipper card was. Nothing. I reckoned that I must have dropped the card while on the train. Trying to find it would be difficult. So I logged into the Clipper Card system online and reported the card lost. $3 fee to freeze the balance.
I unloaded my groceries. Guess what I found at the bottom of the bag? That's right, my Clipper card. I must have dropped it into the bag when I though I was putting it in the pocked of my shirt.
I logged back into Clipper, but could find no way to reactivate the card. I called Clipper customer service, and after wading through their menus, reached a human being who told me that once a card is deactivated, it can never be reactivated. (Too bad; I'd had that card for many years, and it's inadvertently traveled around the world with me.) However, they were able to stop the system from trying to mail me a new card back in Fernley, and said that if I got a new card, they could transfer the balance to it. Well, I could do that, as there are VTA fare vending machines that will sell you a Clipper card across the street in the light rail station.
Walking over to the station, I bought a new card ($3 fee), went back to the room, and called Clipper customer service again. They said that they could transfer the $70 balance for yet another $3 fee, and that it will take between 2 and 5 days for the balance to appear. I hope it's back on the card by Monday when I'm going to San Francisco! However, even if it is not, I can add money to the card at VTA fare machines.
So I'm more or less okay other than being out $9 in service charges, and it could have been worse, with an unusable card being sent back to Fernley. I wish I'd tried checking my bag before rushing to deactivate my card.