stellargirl returns

why i'm done with PhillyCarShare

The truth is, I don't want to be done with PhillyCarShare. I don't have a car. I haven't had a car since high school when I drove a beat up rusted out 1984 Jeep Cherokee that my Uncle Bill passed down to me. The thing had vinyl seats, was in bad need of a paint job, and once almost killed me by doing a complete 180 on suburban black ice. I thanked my lucky stars aplenty that there were no other cars on the road. 

I really do wish I had a car, but I don't want to make the financial commitment and I also don't want to watch it get beat up by bad parallel parkers (of which I am one myself) or by the general wear and tear of city living. I've got a monthly transit pass that serves me very well, in addition to a large collection of comfortable shoes that I trek around the city on. 

My PhillyCarShare trips have been rare. They're usually tied to need as opposed to want. I need to go to Home Depot and buy X for my house, I need to buy a new X at IKEA, I need to haul something big that won't fit in my friend's trunk. It's unusual for me to sign out a car because I want to have a car for the day. Why? Because it's damn expensive!!!

When PhillyCarShare first started, they offered two plans. The Basic Freedom plan, which has no monthly fee, and the Advantage plan, which was $15 a month and recommended for those that regularly signed out cars (at least 2 trips a month).

I was content with my Basic Freedom plan, because I only signed out cars every few months, for those days when I would bundle a few necessary (i.e. need-based) trips in one day.  Without fail, each of these days was always stress-inducing because I'd try to reserve a certain amount of time and I'd typically cut it really close, to the point where I'd either have to extend my time in 15 minute increments or race back to the parking space as though I were running from the law.  It was not uncommon to return the car in the exact same minute it was due, leap out of the car and slap the fob onto the windshield with mere seconds to spare.

I might also mention that I was willing to pay a higher hourly rate on the Basic Freedom plan because my trips were infrequent, and being able to walk a few blocks in any direction and get a car was pretty darn convenient. 

Just a week ago, I took a car out for a want-based trip. I drove to the shore for the day and had a blast, it was nice to just get out of the city.  But it wouldn't be a typical PhillyCarShare trip without needing to extend the reservation, which I did at least once.  You might ask, why not just commit to more time up front? Well, if you decide to come back early, your money stays with PhillyCarShare as a credit towards your next reservation. That's not that big of a deal, but maybe you just want your money to be ... well, your money.

I am glad that my last PCS trip was a fun one, because unfortunately, I am now cancelling my membership. This past Friday at 5pm, all PhillyCarShare members received an email that the Basic Freedom plan was being discontinued and all members who normally pay 0$ a month, will be automatically bumped to a new plan (now the only plan), the Philadelphia Plan for $15 a month. Customers were given one week to cancel their membership.

Maybe $15 a month isn't all that much money, but if you're not making those two trips a month, it's not really worth it. Many months, I'd be paying $15 for nothing. The truth is, I need that $15 to go towards the cab fares I spend every month. 

Maybe I am just upset about PhillyCarShare's failure to make me feel like a valued customer. Clearly one can assume that they really need a stronger financial commitment from their customer base, but if you read anything on twitter, most of their customers feel pretty disappointed and let down right about now.

PhillyCarShare, we liked having you as an option. We liked the way you reached out to us for so long with your happy hours and movie nights.  We liked your little green men and your use of hybrid cars and the opportunity to test drive Mini Coopers and Audis.  I know $15 isn't a lot, but for some people it is, and you just took away our Basic Freedom.

This has been a post for @weeklyblogpost, topic: failure.

my current muse: UX Book Club

A few weeks ago, I attended the inaugural meeting of UX Book Club Philadelphia, organized by our very own Livia Labate. Our first book selection was Sketching User Experiences: Getting the Design Right and the Right Design by Bill Buxton.  I didn't finish the book in time for the meeting (and neither did anyone else) but that didn't stop us from having a lively discussion about what we had read so far.

Recently I have been trying to figure out exactly what User Experience means, how it fits into my career path, and how I can learn more about it.  As much as I'd love to drop everything and go to one of the great graduate programs out there (that sadly are not in Philadelphia), I'm also not really in a place where I want to hit the pause button on my life for two years to immerse myself in learning the discipline.  That's why events like UX Book Club, which are conversational and enriching, are extremely valuable.  My mind has been going a million miles a minute since we met, which definitely classifies it as MUSE territory.

Much like doing this whole @weeklyblogpost thing (forcing myself to blog!), UX Book Club got me to finally pick up a book I had been meaning to read, and to have the chance to exercise my brain a bit. I found myself waxing philosophical with my fellow book clubbers about education and urban planning, as well as positive (and negative) user experiences we've had.  Sitting at a table full of UX practioners and enthusiasts makes for engaging conversation, trust me!

I'm still plugging away on Bill Buxton's book, and very much looking forward to our next gathering.

From the UX Book Club website:

The UX Book Club idea was formed by Steve Baty and others on a couple of mailing lists late in 2008. The idea was that people could get together to talk about their favourite user experience books - and other books of interest to user experience people - and share their views, learning from one another.

Get more information about meetups in your city by checking out the UX Book Club wiki.

overthinking transit and change

The inspiration for writing about transit began when I made a point to notice this sign as I descended the stairs at the Tasker-Morris stop on the Broad Street Line last week: Exact fare only. The cashier has no change.

This is not a very friendly message. Since I have a monthly unlimited transpass, I can ignore that sign and keep moving. A few years ago, when I wasn't on the monthly plan, that sign used to anger me every day. Not only did this station require exact change, they did not have token machines either. Unless you're a seasoned rider, you would not know until you get to the cashier that the fare is $2. And if you had a $5 or a $20 bill, it didn't matter. $2 in bills or coins was all that would get you through that turnstile.

As I was pondering this frustration the other day, I realized (to SEPTA's credit) that in the years since I used to visit this stop regularly, they have gotten token machines! Yes, I have seen them many times, but it dawned on me that they did solve one part of the problem. Technically you don't need exact change anymore. If you have a $5 bill, you can put it in the machine and get a few tokens to be used for future trips.

But if you want to buy some tokens with all those quarters you've stashed for a rainy day, forget it! This machine does not accept coins.

Well SEPTA, you are trying.

I'm still holding out for NYC's MTA plan: MetroCards with declining balances that can be filled up at any station at any time, with cash or credit. Now that's convenient.

weekly blog topic kickoff! week 1: transit

I'm not sure about you, but I always mean to blog more than I actually do. Sometimes I draft posts, make mental notes, scribble things in my rhodia notebook, etc.  The actual conversion rate of idea to blog post can be very low. Perhaps this is a familiar scenario.

Let's change that today, starting right now.

I challenge you to participate in this experiment. One weekly topic, one blog post (or several) from you. I'll post the topic Sunday night, you have until the following Saturday to write your post.  Are you game?

Topic #1 (because I've got a doozy of a post in my head) is TRANSIT.

Write about whatever that means to you: Septa, cars, bikes, the nightclub, changing careers, inertia, movement, art. Enlighten us.

Please comment on this post when you've fulfilled the task.

Go!

(stay tuned to @weeklyblogpost for more info)