Tim Hortons’ new kiosks success still undetermined

By Lina Chung

Two new kiosks installed to improve wait times at Langara’s Tim Hortons, have left some waiting.

Chartwells Canada, the company that manages the food services at Langara, worked with the college to install two Tim Horton’s self-serve kiosks in an attempt to alleviate long line-ups. The units became functional at the end of August.

Langara student Nabi Akhtar, who frequents the kiosks, said one has often been out of service and is semi-satisfied with wait times.

“There could be some improvements, especially if they fixed the other kiosk,” Akhtar said.

Out of service, out of patience

Rizwan Bandali, Chartwells’ Food Services Director, said they have keys to open the kiosk and do a reboot. If a reboot doesn’t correct the error, the next step is to contact SyCom Technologies, a third-party tech support company, to troubleshoot.

“Last time, it was a long process. It took us a couple of hours,” Bandali said.

Anh Nguyen, an accounting student, who for the past two weeks has exclusively used the kiosks, said she is happy overall with the shortened wait time.

In regards to lining up for the counter, “I don’t want to waste my time,” Nguyen said.

Eva Hartkopf, a women studies student, said she believes many customers don’t use them because they simply don’t know about them.

A hidden gem

According to Mark Adams, director of ancillary services at Langara, two locations were considered for the kiosks. They chose the current location due to cable and network connections and avoiding potential hallways congestion issues.

In regards to wait times at the Tim Hortons, Adams said, “We’ve kind of become victims of our own success.” 

For customers not wanting to use the kiosks or stand in line to order from the counter, there is another option. Tim Hortons launched their own App for mobile purchasing in July 2017, which can also be used for pickup orders at the Langara location.

Reporter Lina Chung tests out the new Tim Hortons self serve kiosks