Train commuters,what you going to do? (Merged with Commuter Hell thread)

regula1

dcr22B wrote: »

The 33X that I got from Rush & Lusk station at 7.20am was half full and still had seats on it as we left Lusk.

Darn! If only i'd waited a little longer. I got the 33 regular at 7.05(ish)

I'll give it another go tomorrow getting a later one at 7.45ish (I assume we still have to pay the car parking charge at rush & lusk?)

Where does it stop in Lusk btw? All stops or just the one on the main street after the roundabout?

Peckham

regula1 wrote: »

Where does it stop in Lusk btw? All stops or just the one on the main street after the roundabout?

Stops at all the stops up until it joins the M1 (where obviously there are no stops!)

Jonathan

As I got down to Malahide DART station I saw a Dublin Bus marked DART Shuttle arrive from Donabate Station.

liamh22

Moonbeam, did you notice the discrepencies in departure times

Dublin BusShuttle Service from Donabate Station to Malahide Station
07:00, 07:20, 07:40, 08:00,
08:05, 08:20, 08:40, 09:05.

Shuttle Service from Malahide Station to Donabate Station
16:00, 16:20, 16:40, 17:00,
17:05, 17:20, 17:40, 18:05


Indo

Donabate: an enhanced Dublin Bus service will operate from Donabate Station to Malahide Station, to connect to DART services. This replaces the earlier advised Donabate to city centre service. Peak time service: from Donabate: 07.00, 07.30, 08.00, 08.30, 09.00; from Malahide: 17.00, 17.30, 18.00, 18.30, 19.00

ixoy

I expected the DART to be a lot busier with not just the Donabaters, but also those from other affected stations. I still even got a seat! Wonder how long this will keep up for though.

shaungil

Re cycling

I go main road Skerries-Lusk-Blakes Cross- Swords-Santry-Drumcondra-city centre.

Dodgy parts are Lusk to start of dual carraigeway then there's hard shoulders most of the way. Roads are quiet this route but a few hairy bits at coachmans getting across the lane. Town cycling is town cycling so go on the Cycling forum for guys with a bit more experience than me.

Going from Rush I'd go down the dump road and across to miss some of the road to Blakes cross. Wear bright clothes and have lights if you think you're going to be late. Is bright at six-ish and gets dark now about half eight. I did see someone I know on a mountain bike leaving Skerries at half six and would say it was going to take him about 1hr 40 at the speed he was going.

liamh22

Posted in other thread too

Living in Donabate & drove OH to Malahide this morning to connect with the 7.13 Dart, while driving through the village saw the bus 33B turning at Supervalu, obviously now after reading earlier post this must have been the 7.00 in the Irish rail website

Theres no way that bus would have made this Dart so anyone who normally got the 7.20train from Donabate & has decided to avail of this 7.00 bus will have to get the later Dart from Malahide with all the attendant problems (crowding etc..)

Seems to me there needs to be an earlier bus from Donbate to Malahide, 6.45 or thereabouts

---

Notice the discrepencies in departure times

Dublin Bus Website
Shuttle Service from Donabate Station to Malahide Station
07:00, 07:20, 07:40, 08:00,
08:05, 08:20, 08:40, 09:05.

Shuttle Service from Malahide Station to Donabate Station
16:00, 16:20, 16:40, 17:00,
17:05, 17:20, 17:40, 18:05


Indo this morning

Donabate: an enhanced Dublin Bus service will operate from Donabate Station to Malahide Station, to connect to DART services. This replaces the earlier advised Donabate to city centre service. Peak time service: from Donabate: 07.00, 07.30, 08.00, 08.30, 09.00; from Malahide: 17.00, 17.30, 18.00, 18.30, 19.00

drjenbren

did anyone get the feeder bus from Donabate to Malahide today? Just wondering how it worked out?

dubmick

Spotted this photo on flickr today

Moonbeam

Oh wow,great pic.
Looking at it makes me nervous!!

Hauk

I must commend you guys cycling in every morning from Skerries. The speed you guys go at rips up the road.

I might wave tomorrow..

billyhead

I cycle from Rush at least 3 days a week and as you said the scariest part is coming onTo the R132. I cycle on a racing bike and tbh the Road surface on the R132 hard shoulder is not great. I have had a couple of burst tyres before so if anyone is planning on cycling I would advise you get puncture proof tyres fitted. The ones I use are called Dutch puncture resistant tyres and can be got in most bike retailers. Takes roughly a 45mins to an hour on the bike to get to work in the morning.
.

shaungil wrote: »

Re cycling

I go main road Skerries-Lusk-Blakes Cross- Swords-Santry-Drumcondra-city centre.

Dodgy parts are Lusk to start of dual carraigeway then there's hard shoulders most of the way. Roads are quiet this route but a few hairy bits at coachmans getting across the lane. Town cycling is town cycling so go on the Cycling forum for guys with a bit more experience than me.

Going from Rush I'd go down the dump road and across to miss some of the road to Blakes cross. Wear bright clothes and have lights if you think you're going to be late. Is bright at six-ish and gets dark now about half eight. I did see someone I know on a mountain bike leaving Skerries at half six and would say it was going to take him about 1hr 40 at the speed he was going.

The Hill Billy

drjenbren wrote: »

did anyone get the feeder bus from Donabate to Malahide today? Just wondering how it worked out?

See this post in the Commuting Hell... thread.

midonogh

I cycled in from Skerries this morning. Took about 1.40 to get to Harcourt Street. It was a beautiful morning for cycling. I am sure that it will not be that good again.

Can anyone tell me where in Skerries the 33x starts from and whereabouts on the Green it starts from in the evenings

halenger

I took the 08:40 101 from Balbriggan. It was quiet and uneventful. Unsurprisingly didn't accept my ticket but there's no way I'd even consider taking a 2 hour trip around Dublin North with Dublin Bus over the 1-hour trip with Bus Eireann on the 101.

Certainly a shame about the ticket but have to make do --- once they refund the <x> months of the outage or come to some arrangement with Bus Eireann.

dcr22B

halenger wrote: »

I took the 08:40 101 from Balbriggan. It was quiet and uneventful. Unsurprisingly didn't accept my ticket but there's no way I'd even consider taking a 2 hour trip around Dublin North with Dublin Bus over the 1-hour trip with Bus Eireann on the 101.

Certainly a shame about the ticket but have to make do --- once they refund the <x> months of the outage or come to some arrangement with Bus Eireann.

I can't believe Bus Eireann will not honour these tickets!

Gillo

I saw that happen a while ago for something else can't remember what it was, there's obviously some twat high up in Bus Eireann who had a petty squabble with someone in Irish Rail (chances are he lost the CIE golf tournament in '97 to some bus driver).

The only thing you can do is get onto local politicians and those high up in CIE, unfortunately the drivers can only do what they are told.

shaungil

Hauk wrote: »

I must commend you guys cycling in every morning from Skerries. The speed you guys go at rips up the road.

I might wave tomorrow..

Waves are nice I will wave back however I'd prefer if you just passed me slowly giving me plenty of room and then give me a draft to Blakes Cross. with a draft we'll get 40km an hour and you won't lose any time really cos you're going to get caught at the motorway anyway.

tatli_lokma

ogt up this morning with every intention of leaving earlier, but other things conspired against me and I ended up leaving LATER than normal.

Left Balbriggan at 8.15, arrived at work (D.8) at 9.05. That is fairly standard for me - about 45 mins when schools are out, and about 1hr -1 hr 15 mins when schools open. The M1 was no worse than normal, but I assume that when the schools start back up things will be different!

Can't understand why the 101 takes so long - have done it a couple of times out of necessity, but when a car, which cannot avail of bus lanes can do it in an hour, why does the bus take 1 hr 10 mins to get to Dorset St?

I am expecting the worst and hoping for the best regarding traffic next week!

Mehh

aniascor wrote: »

How full was the 101? And did it still make the usual stops in swords and at the airport?

The 101 @ 07:00 was fine, there were plenty of empty seats. Yeah it made all the usual stops, went for a lovely little spin around the airport :rolleyes:

meath commuter

Just spoke to station manager in Connolly about their 'solution' to bus people to Drogheda or get them to use 33.

He said this was just their first plan devised over the weekend and they'd amend it as soon as they got some idea of the numbers involved that need to be bussed home!

A number of us suggested that there should be direct coaches at least to take us home - this isn't rocket science - coaches in Connolly could be set aside for Rush/Lusk & Skerries only and for Balbriggan/Gormanston only and could leave Connolly at specified times (16.30, 17.00, 17.30 etc) and travel through Port Tunnel.

THe current plans for people to get coaches to Drogheda could leave them having to wait up to 2 hours for a train back to their home station - acknowledged in Connolly as not ideal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THe manager said that the current plans would undoubtedly change in the next couple of days and that the best thing commuters could do is e-mail info@irishrail.ie with descriptions of how long journeys are taking, queues etc.

He acknowledged that e-mails would unlikely be replied to but said that all information received would be used to improve the service.

I'd urge everyone to e-mail Irish rail, but try sending messages to paul.slowey@irishrail.ie He's the customer relations manager for the North-East.

dcr22B

meath commuter wrote: »

A number of us suggested that there should be direct coaches at least to take us home - this isn't rocket science - coaches in Connolly could be set aside for Rush/Lusk & Skerries only and for Balbriggan/Gormanston only and could leave Connolly at specified times (16.30, 17.00, 17.30 etc) and travel through Port Tunnel.

We already have our "enhanced" bus service, the 33X which serves Skerries, Rush and Lusk.

They should direct buses going from Drogheda, Laytown, Balbriggan and leave the 33X service for those in Skerries, Rush and Lusk.

Simple, you would think?

darraghjm

midonogh wrote: »

Can anyone tell me where in Skerries the 33x starts from and whereabouts on the Green it starts from in the evenings

Does anyone know where abouts this goes from?

dcr22B

darraghjm wrote: »

Does anyone know where abouts this goes from?

As far as I know, there is only one regular 33X that leaves St Stephens Green at 17:35.

The "enhanced" 33X service will be leaving from Lower Abbey Street.

darraghjm

dcr22B wrote: »

As far as I know, there is only one regular 33X that leaves St Stephens Green at 17:35.

The "enhanced" 33X service will be leaving from Lower Abbey Street.

yeah i seen it leaves at 17.35 on the dublin bus website, i was just wondering where abouts on stephens green it leaves from, the green is quite close to my office, so i think this could be the bus for me

dcr22B

darraghjm wrote: »

yeah i seen it leaves at 17.35 on the dublin bus website, i was just wondering where abouts on stephens green it leaves from, the green is quite close to my office, so i think this could be the bus for me

I think it goes from up near the Shelbourne but as I work in the IFSC, I'm not 100% sure although my wife has got it before and I think that is where it departs from.

meath commuter

dcr22B wrote: »

We already have our "enhanced" bus service, the 33X which serves Skerries, Rush and Lusk.

quote]

Yeah, makes sense to me - although I heard some people complaining about the roundabout way that the 33 takes to get to Dublin. If the 33X is a direct route, through the Port Tunnel, then yes, there shouldn't be a problem, provided everyone can get on a bus!

So all that is required is an enhanced service serving Balbriggan, Gormanston & Laytown! Drogheda passengers can get the direct service to Drogheda station.

Again, this isn't exactly tough to work out....but I wonder how long it'll take?

Unshelved

What might also be helpful would be for Fingal CC to set aside some space in Malahide Castle as a park and ride facility.

As for the 33X - is it just the 17.35 one that leaves from Stephen's Green the "enhanced" buses will leave from Abbey St?

dcr22B

Unshelved wrote: »

As for the 33X - is it just the 17.35 one that leaves from Stephen's Green the "enhanced" buses will leave from Abbey St?

Correct.

ixoy

Unshelved wrote: »

What might also be helpful would be for Fingal CC to set aside some space in Malahide Castle as a park and ride facility.

Perhaps, but for most of the year the DART is at maximum capacity as is. Where are you supposed to put these extra passengers in? You'd need to increase the number of trains on the route.