TL;DR
A touchscreen ticket machine at Granja station in Portugal stopped responding after a Windows 2000 service ran into a memory-related error. The machine, photographed with corroded surrounds, appears to be halted by software rather than showing a full system crash.
What happened
A reader of The Register reported a malfunctioning ticket kiosk at Granja station on Portugal's coast. Photographs show a corroded machine whose touchscreen has frozen while the underlying PC appears to be running Windows 2000. The visible error stems from a Windows service that accessed memory it shouldn't have, bringing the terminal to a halt without triggering a Blue Screen of Death. The on-screen problem coincides with the aged, salty exterior of the unit, though the article notes the physical wear is likely environmental rather than the direct cause of the failure. The reader suggested this fault might explain why card payments on that terminal were marked as unavailable, but the report stops short of a definitive diagnosis. The piece reprises earlier observations that some of Portugal's ticket machines still rely on legacy Microsoft software behind the facade.
Why it matters
- Public-facing systems running very old operating systems can fail in ways that disrupt services such as ticketing and payments.
- Legacy software issues may be harder to patch or diagnose, increasing maintenance burdens for transport operators.
- Visible corrosion from coastal environments highlights the combined hardware and software challenges of fielded kiosks.
- Unclear fault causes can leave passengers without reliable payment options and complicate incident response.
Key facts
- The incident involves an automated ticket kiosk at Granja station in Portugal.
- A Register reader photographed the frozen touchscreen and rusty case.
- The machine is reported to be running Windows 2000 behind the scenes.
- The visible fault was related to a Windows service accessing memory it shouldn't have.
- No Blue Screen of Death was displayed on the terminal during the observed failure.
- A reader speculated the fault could be linked to card payments being listed as out of service.
- The article frames the failure as probably caused by misbehaving software rather than an immediate hardware fault.
- The story appears in The Register's 'Offbeat' column and references previous coverage of similar kiosks.
- Article published on 2026-01-14 and written by Richard Speed.
What to watch next
- Whether Comboios de Portugal will confirm the root cause and publish a repair or replacement plan — not confirmed in the source.
- If card-payment functionality on affected machines is restored and when that occurs — not confirmed in the source.
- Any wider inventory review or migration away from legacy operating systems across the operator's kiosks — not confirmed in the source.
Quick glossary
- Windows 2000: A Microsoft desktop/server operating system released in 2000; widely considered legacy and superseded by many subsequent Windows releases.
- Ticket kiosk: A public terminal that sells tickets and often accepts card payments, typically running embedded or PC-based software.
- Blue Screen of Death (BSOD): Windows' stop error screen shown when the operating system encounters a critical fault from which it cannot safely recover.
- Memory error: A type of fault where software attempts to read or write memory locations it should not access, which can cause crashes or hangs.
Reader FAQ
Is the kiosk completely offline?
Not confirmed in the source; the report describes the touchscreen as halted but does not state the machine's full operational status.
Did the operator provide an explanation or timeline for repairs?
Not confirmed in the source.
Were card payments actually failing because of this error?
A reader suggested that card payments may have been flagged as out of service, but the article does not confirm this as a verified cause.
Is this an isolated incident or part of a wider problem?
Not confirmed in the source.
OFFBEAT Windows 2000 rusts in peace by the sea When salty coastal air meets memory errors in one of Portugal's rail ticket machines Richard Speed Wed 14 Jan 2026 // 09:30 UTC BORK!BORK!BORK! It's…
Sources
- Windows 2000 rusts in peace by the sea
- Windows 2000 running a rail ticket machine in Portugal
- 2024 CrowdStrike-related IT outages
- The Babe | Garrison Keillor
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