Wouldn't Accept Payment
Once I actually managed to get into the app to select a locker I couldn't even add funds because it kept giving me a "Card Details" pop up. Presumably it meant the card details were somehow wrong (they weren't) and I couldn't do anything about it.
If this is some sort of ploy to discourage people from biking and using public transit, it definitely is working.
The sign up flow is horrible
App doesn’t work
App works great
Crashes on every launch
Awful
Locker
Terrible design
works as intended!
Crashes
app setup too painful
I’d rather pay each time than have to load value into my account, because I worry about being able to get unused funds back. It’s also super unclear why the boxes where I commute have Clipper payments but it doesn’t work.
Maybe I’ll try one day when I have several extra minutes to try to set up my account and fiddle with payment setup - which is unlikely.
Wish it worked
App wording concerns
Bug
Called customer service to ask if this was a known issue and they told me to push the button on my locker which made me feel like they had no idea what my issue was? How will this fix auto-reload with my credit card on the app? Thanks for listening.
Something wrong with app?
All lockers stuck on “Looking”
Bring back 15 hour default rental
But recently a change was made to the default rental time. Rentals used to default to 15 hours, now they default to 0, meaning you get charged more than 2x for your rental. If you miss selecting the duration before starting your rental, there’s no way to add more time without ending your rental and starting again. This takes a lot of extra time when parking at BART and trying to catch a train. Please bring back the 15 hour default!
Response from developer
We’re sorry for the BART stress! A bug in v0.21.0 reset durations to 0, but we quickly pushed the fix in v0.21.1 and have proactively refunded all affected rentals we identified. Please email support@bikelink.org if you don't see yours yet. The 15hr default is still here! Our app uses sticky defaults, if you manually set your duration to 15 hours once, the app will remember that as your preference for every future rental. Since you only pay for the time you actually use, we suggest setting it longer than you need for total peace of mind. We are also excited to be rolling out an "Add Time" feature (no need to be at the locker!) across our system. Keep an eye out for it at BART’s new lockers soon. We hope this gets your commute back on track. Let us know if you have any other feedback, we'd love to hear from you!
Great utility, predatory app design
Response from developer
We are truly sorry your experience felt deceptive. Hearing that is a major red flag for us, as our goal is simply to provide low-cost, secure bike parking, not to trick our users. We are reviewing the screens you mentioned, determining exactly how these accidental charges are happening, and have already begun working to address the issues. Our intention behind putting the account balance on the receipt screen (and linking it to the add value screen) was to let you know your current balance right after rental charges, making it easy to add value if needed so you are ready to go the next time you're rushing to catch a train. However, it appears it is simply too easy to tap by mistake and accidentally trigger the add value screen. To fix this, we are evaluating a 'Slide to Add Value' mechanic (similar to how you start/end a rental) to prevent accidental taps. We are also introducing a "cool-down" timer to prevent unintended multiple charges. Please reach out to support@bikelink.org. We will refund any accidental charges if we haven't already, and we'd love to add extra credit to your account to thank you for this feedback. We appreciate you helping us make the app better for everyone.
