Steve Says

Bottom line?

The airline industry needs to find new ways to generate additional revenue- and this one is my favorite BY FAR!

Why?  Because after a seemingly endless cycle of nickel and diming customers, the latest idea looks like it might benefit consumers at no cost to the traveling public... let's hope.

All of the major players in the airline industry (American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, United and US Air) have joined forces to bring you, what are essentially,  boarding-pass advertisements.

The new ads come courtesy of an independently owned company called Sojern Inc and are being billed as valuable information and offers for airline passengers to use when they get to their destination.  Everything from the weather report to info on area shows and attractions and yes, coupons- all custom tailored to feature the city you are traveling to.

Sounds pretty good so far- it's the equivalent of finding that every time you travel the free magazine in the seat-back pocket has a cover story on your destination.   Let's just hope it's not TOO successful.. otherwise I foresee these ads, info and offers becoming the paper equivalent of an in-flight movie "available for a nominal fee". UGGG! 

Delta is the first to launch the service (earlier this month) for passengers traveling to Las Vegas and will roll out the service for passengers to all of its domestic destinations shortly.  The other partnering airlines will roll out service later this year.

This might mean more money for the struggling airline industry and one more reason to hold onto your boarding pass.

Want to see a demo? Click here. 

First off, I'm a tollway driver.

I wasn't for quite a while when I first moved to Dallas- there was just something about paying a toll to use a road that my tax dollars were also paying for- but I'll admit, these days, I take the tollway.

I understand the convenience, I understand the draw but what I don't understand is this:

There are days when the Wycliff exit/entrance is so congested with drivers that it backs up traffic all the way down the tollway in BOTH directions.

It doesn't seem (in my unscientific opinion) that the problem is too many drivers on the road, it's the back up caused by drivers having to stop and pay the toll.

Drivers will be backed up in a HUGE line because they don't have toll tags and they're waiting to go through the toll plaza. This backs up even drivers that DO have toll tags but still have to sit in traffic because of all of the drivers that are waiting to get down to 2 lanes to go through the plaza and pay the toll.

It's not the fault of these motorists that they don't have toll tags- maybe some of them don't use the tollway very often. But it IS the fault of those who decide the rules of the road that the toll plaza stays open.

Look, traffic is bad enough as it is with all of the construction at Wycliff, so why do we insist that we back up traffic MAJORLY in BOTH directions just to collect the... what... 45... maybe 75 cents from each passing car?

How about we forget about charging the toll for now... go ahead.. leave the toll tag lane active... charge me... I've got a tag. For my fellows who don't have one, how about we just let it go in the interest of the greater good.

Is the revenue THAT essential, THAT vital- that we cause unnecessary traffic congestion? My patience is wearing thin. Every day I see people nearly slam into one another as they try and maneuver so they can stop and be law abiding citizens and pay that toll.

Hey tollway people... you'll get their money at Mockingbird... or at another exit. For now...

STOP CHARGING THE TOLL AT WYCLIFF.
DO IT TO EASE TRAFFIC CONJESTION.
DO IT FOR THE GREATER GOOD.
DO IT BECAUSE WE'RE ALREADY BEING INCONVENIENCED.

WHY DO YOU INSIST ON MAKING IT WORSE?