What To Do About Trains

[Peachykeen2007]

I honestly don't see why anything needs to change, seriously I have never conducted a train where I got ANY of the stamps that were the boarding pass (3-4P stamps) - reason being this

1. One or more rider's envelope's are heavier than the others (samples, extra coupons etc)

2. Replacement for mistakes, if there is someone that messed up a envie and I don't have the replacement coupon to cover it than a stamp goes in that persons bundle! Why should I replace the mistake with my own stamp, it is replaced by that rider's extra stamp from their BP

3. A Rider chooses to send something other for the BP than stamps

[nat77]

I personally don't think there should be "a cap" per se. I choose to set my BP as 3 p stamps, because I think that's fair, but others may want to charge more or less. If someone wants to charge 7 p stamps then I think they should have the right to do so.... I probably won't be joining that particular train
Why put a cap on it? If you don't like the BP, then don't join.

As for leaving negative feedback to the riders who make mistakes---We ALL make mistakes. I can't even think of a rider off of the top of my head who hasn't put an incorrect coupon in someone's bundle on one of my trains at one point or another. Should I give the veteran couponer a negative or neutral rating because they sent an unstackable coupon to one of their fellow riders once back in May 2011?.... Nahhh, I think I'll let that one slide. What about the rider who has made mistake on three of my trains in a row?...Well, I think that depend too. Are they new to couponing? Is there are particular area that they are confused about? We're here to help each other out--That's why this is called a couponing community. I'd rather give a newer couponer (not a necessarily a newbie, but someone lacking experience) a few extra chances and a bit more advice and council than a big fat negative.

Just my opinion...

[FallenPixels]

Something needs to change because I am sick of people PMing me saying a conductor "stole" their stamps and in general, a lot of people do not want to ride trains anymore.

Sure there is a small group of people who ride together all the time with few issues but outside of those, there are missing trains, conductors complaining and passengers training

[nat77]

Something needs to change because I am sick of people PMing me saying a conductor "stole" their stamps and in general, a lot of people do not want to ride trains anymore.

Sure there is a small group of people who ride together all the time with few issues but outside of those, there are missing trains, conductors complaining and passengers training

Hmmm... I didn't know that. That might be a good thing for me to write when I post a train and list the Boarding Pass options... "Boarding pass includes return postage as well as boarding payment for conductor for hosting" (Or something similar... I am going to have to tweak that a bit

[pumpkin9211]

Something needs to change because I am sick of people PMing me saying a conductor "stole" their stamps and in general, a lot of people do not want to ride trains anymore.

Sure there is a small group of people who ride together all the time with few issues but outside of those, there are missing trains, conductors complaining and passengers training

We can all make our boarding pass options VERY clear in the future - that should cut down on the number of pm's you're receiving about that issue. If people don't want to ride any longer - that's their choice. There are ALWAYS a variety of trains running and maybe this will encourage past "riders" to try their hand at "conducting".

As for the complaining - I think someone always will. But, with that said - if they don't like a certain train idea, boarding pass, or rules, they can just pass - I personally don't think there is a reason to pm a mod because you don't like someone's idea's.

The group I ride with most often - we are always open to new riders and we often ride with a new conductor too. We all started as new.

Missing trains suck - I'm assuming you're referring to traditional trains - because if an envie doesn't show up on a VWT - that rider doesn't get an envie back. (and I have had envies go missing - ones I have sent & ones I have been waiting to receive)

And for those who feel it's too expensive - I don't know what to say - my budget for "entertainment" includes stamps and like Nat said - If someone is asking for too much(In my opinion) - I will just pass on that train.

[CouponLadybird]

I personally don't think there should be "a cap" per se. I choose to set my BP as 3 p stamps, because I think that's fair, but others may want to charge more or less. If someone wants to charge 7 p stamps then I think they should have the right to do so.... I probably won't be joining that particular train
Why put a cap on it? If you don't like the BP, then don't join.

As for leaving negative feedback to the riders who make mistakes---We ALL make mistakes. I can't even think of a rider off of the top of my head who hasn't put an incorrect coupon in someone's bundle on one of my trains at one point or another. Should I give the veteran couponer a negative or neutral rating because they sent an unstackable coupon to one of their fellow riders once back in May 2011?.... Nahhh, I think I'll let that one slide. What about the rider who has made mistake on three of my trains in a row?...Well, I think that depend too. Are they new to couponing? Is there are particular area that they are confused about? We're here to help each other out--That's why this is called a couponing community. I'd rather give a newer couponer (not a necessarily a newbie, but someone lacking experience) a few extra chances and a bit more advice and council than a big fat negative.

Just my opinion...

my thoughts exactly. We can all choose to join or not join. To me anyways it is pretty simple -don't like the BP don't join.

I am certainly not in favor of leaving negatives for mistakes made, I would rather PM the rider and try to work out where/why they made the mistakes (misunderstanding etc) and help them fix it (and have them reimburse me if necessary). If it becomes a constant issue, I will (and have in the past) PM and suggest they may either want to skip trains, or seek out some extra help to ensure there are fewer errors. I am more than willing to help someone who is struggling -trains can be a lot of fun, minus all this drama.

Hmmm... I didn't know that. That might be a good thing for me to write when I post a train and list the Boarding Pass options... "Boarding pass includes return postage as well as boarding payment for conductor for hosting" (Or something similar... I am going to have to tweak that a bit

can I borrow this? I have a similar statement on my train outline -like yours better

[ErinsMom]

I agree with my gals above...I guess we weren't clear about BP vs stamps to mail envies home. I also wasn't aware riders were complaining about that.
It's something we can easily fix with clearer explanations in the train rules.

I just always assumed when I conducted & rode someone's train that the BP's included the cost to mail my envie home & anything left over was for the conductor's time & effort to host. I think you'll find most riders understood that.

[nat77]

I'm just going to put this out there for any of the riders who have ridden my trains and may have complained to a mod about me "keeping" their stamps.

As stated in the first post of any my train threads, if you make 3 more more errors I will return your envie to you because mistakes are costly to the conductor..... HOWEVER.... if you make less then three errors OR if you are new or if you are generous to me as a conductor or if there are some other extenuating circumstances and you make 3 or 4 errors, I will gladly fix those for you.

The veteran riders don't usually make mistakes (...although, it's been known to happen on occasion ), but on any given train, there is at least one rider who is newer or not one of the regulars who will make between 2 and 4 errors. As a conductor, I will then have to sub in either 4 coupons or 4 stamps----potentially $4 worth of stamps/coupons. I don't necessarily let you know because, honestly, writing you a pm with the wrong coupon details and then the correct coupon details and then the possible substitutes AND THEN wait for your reply is quite time consuming. The other riders, however, know that the mistakes are made as I will write "incorrect coupon---subbed in such and such" on the bundle, as I think many conductors do. (I also leave the wrong coupon in the bundle too, so everything is on the up and up).

So, maybe the answer is to have better communication between the conductors and riders. Yes, I'm keeping your extra stamp (or extra fraction of stamp), but I'm paying between $2 to $4 to fix your mistakes and now I'll tell you when you are being careless and making mistakes (For heaven's sake people!! Take the 2013 expiries OUT of your binders!!!)

CLB had a great idea a while back to list the number of errors each train has and I started doing that too. On some of our trains we had between 12 and 15 errors (with 10 riders). Kind of scary. I'm not trying to single any one out, but CLB and I usually get a lot of the same riders and usually it's NOT riders like Pumpkin or Erinsmom or Bluz or Coyote making the mistakes it's the riders who don't ride as much and, while I love to have them on my trains (mistakes and all) I get a little defensive when clearly mistakes are being made and then complaints are being made about something as silly as 1 stamp.

Okay, end of rant. I clearly need some coffee

[FallenPixels]

CLB had a great idea a while back to list the number of errors each train has and I started doing that too. On some of our trains we had between 12 and 15 errors (with 10 riders). Kind of scary. I'm not trying to single any one out, but CLB and I usually get a lot of the same riders and usually it's NOT riders like Pumpkin or Erinsmom or Bluz or Coyote making the mistakes it's the riders who don't ride as much and, while I love to have them on my trains (mistakes and all) I get a little defensive when clearly mistakes are being made and then complaints are being made about something as silly as 1 stamp.

Oh complaints are being made about this too, but when a newer rider joins a train that says "send 4 stamps for postage" and they get it back with 2-3 - it does state postage so I can see where the confusion lies. On the particular train there was complaints about, the riders were also sending additional coupons for the conductor for hosting (3 for each rider, 4 for conductor but only getting 3 back from conductor).

We do have a rule in place about the amount of postage allowed for any train before it becomes a package train too, so separating the boarding pass from that will help with confusion there too

A lot of the issue is that, like you say, the people who are making the mistakes (conductors and riders) are not necessarily reading/replying to this thread. So many of the people do not get the issue.

For the record, I found a 2013 expiry in my binder today (stuck to a 2014 one) good thing I noticed before I gave it to the cashier lol

----

A good example is
Conductor A is hosting a train
Person signs up say third but conductor does not want them to ride because of past experiences (wrong coupons, claims the envie was lost and replacements are sent which happens regularly with this rider) but because no neutrals have been left - the "rider" is complaining that the conductor is being unfair.
My answer was it is up to the host who rides, but it does get sticky when the conductor says they are accepting 8 riders, so you don't join another train because you think you are on that one because you are one of the first 8 ppl etc

10-12 mistakes per train, especially if it is the same people who are doing it because they are getting away with it, is an issue and the reason people like Lola (sorry to pick on you, but you posted publicly so...) don't want to host

[FallenPixels]

And for those who feel it's too expensive - I don't know what to say - my budget for "entertainment" includes stamps and like Nat said - If someone is asking for too much(In my opinion) - I will just pass on that train.

Expensive as in people are still asking for 4 stamps when just a few weeks back, 4 stamps were worth a lot less

[Anna Michele]

i must say i think just about every train running or boarding has been very very reasonable with boarding passes and coupons/surprises for the conductor 1 stamp + x or no stamps at all.
not sure if there are still complaints but our regular conductors are being accepting a variety of boarding passes.
i for one have not been riding many at the moment not because of boarding passes or wishlists but because i have done so many fantastic one on one trades that there isnt much need to ride. now if a really awesome game train started boarding i would be hard pressed not to join lol

Sent from my GT-S7560M using Tapatalk

[angel_2011]

i must say i think just about every train running or boarding has been very very reasonable with boarding passes and coupons/surprises for the conductor 1 stamp + x or no stamps at all.
not sure if there are still complaints but our regular conductors are being accepting a variety of boarding passes.
i for one have not been riding many at the moment not because of boarding passes or wishlists but because i have done so many fantastic one on one trades that there isnt much need to ride. now if a really awesome game train started boarding i would be hard pressed not to join lol

Sent from my GT-S7560M using Tapatalk

*cough* Ven... family feud *cough*

[bargain_hunter_lola]

10-12 mistakes per train, especially if it is the same people who are doing it because they are getting away with it, is an issue and the reason people like Lola (sorry to pick on you, but you posted publicly so...) don't want to host

No worries at all.

Although I'd like to say there's not just one reason why I don't want to host any-more, it's quite the variety.

Yes, mistakes happen fairly frequently lately but I haven't experienced the high volume that some conductors have reported. On average I'd say I've experienced more like 3-4 errors on the average train but even that adds up when you're dipping into your own stash to cover the mistakes. I can totally see both sides of the fb issue though. I have never left a neutral for wrong coupons on a VWT - simply because there are so many variables (again I've never experienced a huge number from 1 rider), although I do understand how it could help future issues. I do however send the offender a PM to explain the mistakes and I make note on the bundles so that the person receiving is also aware.

My take on the whole BP discussion is this: A boarding pass is the riders cost to board the train in all that entails (stamps to mail back, extra for the conductor, etc). When I pay for a bus ride, I pay the posted rate, not how much gas costs since there's a lot of hidden costs involved. The rate was set before I got on and I agreed to that rate. Maybe that's a bad analogy. lol. But it's how I've always thought of it.

The ONLY time I might be a little miffed about a BP would be if the conductor flat out stated something along the lines of: "4 stamps to return your envelope home. Any extra postage will be return to you." If your envelope only took 2 stamps to return home, then of course you would expect your other 2 stamps returned. But that's only because it was specifically written, otherwise I feel the boarding pass covers all aspects of riding a train - what you see (as in postage to mail) and what you don't see (as in the cost of an envelope, the conductors time, fixing errors, etc). JMHO on how I've always viewed things of course.

Personally I don't see having a cap for BPs as an issue. We can all choose to ride or not. Again JMHO. I do understand the comment of 4 stamps being "too expensive" but I blame that on Canada Post, not the conductors.

If we take a 3 stamp train as an example at the previous $0.63 and it took $1.34 to mail back (in my experience that was the typical amount) then the conductor received $0.55 for hosting. Now that the postage has increased that same 3 stamp train would now cost $1.80 to mail home so the conductor would be receiving $0.75 overage (again assuming a 3 stamp BP costing less than 100g to mail home). Not a huge jump, especially if you factor in the possibility the envelope weighs more than the typical 100g. If it weighs more the conductor could potentially be out $0.40 of their own money just for return postage, not including time, effort, fixing mistakes, envelopes, etc. I'll agree it's rare to go over the 100g but it does happen from time to time, especially with samples, extras or multiple heavy cardboard coupons.

[pumpkin9211]

Expensive as in people are still asking for 4 stamps when just a few weeks back, 4 stamps were worth a lot less

I understand the "idea" behind the complaint - but I have to agree with Lola - it wasn't the conductors who raised the price. None of us can change that fact.

So, lets think....
If a conductor asks for 3 stamps that is $2.55

If a conductor asks for a FPC - I think its fair to assume it would be around the $2.00 price point (Egg creations/gum/tic tacs) ***as examples - I don't think anyone would send a Kelloggs FPC as a BP*** <- JMHO!

If a conductor asks for 1 stamp + stickers - I'm thinking a package from the Dollar Store - $1.13 +.85 = 1.98

In the end - I think we are talking about .60.

I think many of the conductors are offering different options and if someone is asking a crazy amount for a BP - I think if everyone just passed on the train - the person *should* get the hint that it isn't working.

I really think if we made the "Boarding Pass section" SEPARATE from the "to get your envie home" that would stop most of the confusion.
Or if you don't want to separate them - to clearly indicate with something like: TO RIDE THIS TRAIN AND RECEIVE YOUR ENVIE HOME - IT WILL BE ______ X .85 STAMPS - EXTRA POSTAGE WILL NOT BE RETURNED.

If the person requested 8 x .85 I'm willing to bet nobody would join. However, if they request 3 OR 4 x .85 - I think the train would fill.

I'm still okay with a 3 stamp postage cap - I just don't think its necessary.

[FallenPixels]

We already have a 4 stamp postage cap (and samples will bump some envies up to that) so I think I will just leave that one as is