IE Services to be Decimated in New Timetable

Nostradamus

Oh it's bad. Very bad.

But never mind the Ennis-Athnery switchback is opening to save the network...

invincibleirish

You going to share anything with us? otherwise whats the point of this thread?.

G_R

have you got a link to said bad timetable or will we just take your word for how bad it is??

Sponge Bob

Nostradamus wrote his predictions in syllabic Quatrains but that was a crap Haiku instead so he must be tired

karlr42

For the benefit of those lacking mind-reading powers, i quote from IRN

Unproven rumours wrote:

Total withdrawl of services on on 17½ miles of the existing network.

Halving of services on a further 53 miles of the existing network

Storage of 4 MK4 push/pull sets.

Cancellation of many of the existing direct services between Limerick and Dublin and v.v.

Most (if not all) Dublin/Cork services to stop at Limerick Junction.

Zoney

What an *amazing* job the Green party are doing prioritising public transport eh?

Judgement Day

You really have to laugh don't you? On the same boards that the decimation of IE services are being discussed this thread is also ongoing [Article] Irish Sea Tunnel

Hungerford

For further clarity, the 17.5 miles is rumoured to be Waterford-Rosslare east of Wellington Bridge. The 53 miles is Limerick Jnc-Waterford.

I can't see how they will be able to get away with the changes rumoured above. Politically, it would be suicidal to be mothballing MK4 sets bought at huge expense only a few years ago.

Colm R

For a person who knows nothing about trains except that they have wheels - is the MK4 the ones used on the Cork Line.

And when you say mothball, do you mean the locomotives and carriages.

Judgement Day

Yes the Mk IVs are the carriages used on the Dublin/Cork line and one assumes if CIE/IE proceed in their usual manner the carriages will at first be modified to improve their riding before being mothballed and eventually scrapped. So much for Craig Doyle's expensive advertising campaign! :mad:

Nostradamus

Judgement Day wrote: »

Yes the Mk IVs are the carriages used on the Dublin/Cork line and one assumes if CIE/IE proceed in their usual manner the carriages will at first be modified to improve their riding before being mothballed and eventually scrapped. So much for Craig Doyle's expensive advertising campaign! :mad:

They are going back to Spain for some reason. So CIE might actually be telling something akin to the truth with this one.

Say you are sorry for doubting my sources. I still have contacts in the belly of the beast you know...

Nostradamus

invincibleirish wrote: »

You going to share anything with us? otherwise whats the point of this thread?.

I was just told "bedlam!" and he gave no details.

Nostradamus

Zoney wrote: »

What an *amazing* job the Green party are doing prioritising public transport eh?

The Green Movement in all countries is just the same poltical establishment under a false name which was put out there to raise taxation to bail out Western economies after Globalisation failed. The whole Global Warming/C02 was a scam invented to tax us to offset the decline in stamp duty/VAT etc. The Green movement was the strawman to deliver the taxes for something which is not a problem.

The real problem is banks and financial instutitons and not Co2. Why do you think Wall Street and The City of London are licking their lips and financing the Green movement.

Do you honestly think they care about public transport and sustainable societies...

dowlingm

Closing Rosslare-Wellington Bridge? Hope maintenance is going to be done otherwise mega red faces on the scale of the trapped 29000s in Drogheda next time Bray Head decides to drop a few lumps on the alignment (or a big storm erodes a bite out of the cliff below)

Also - as pointed out elsewhere retaining the bridge and the service seems to retain most of the costs.

highlydebased

Another nail in the coffin for IE. Backwards they are going. It would be worth them putting some 3x set 22000's on the quieter Dublin-Cork services, agreed they wouldnt have Citygold or a Bar, but at least it would be more economical than running a 7 car MK4 with a handful onboard.

Nostradamus

dowlingm wrote: »

Closing Rosslare-Wellington Bridge? Hope maintenance is going to be done otherwise mega red faces on the scale of the trapped 29000s in Drogheda next time Bray Head decides to drop a few lumps on the alignment (or a big storm erodes a bite out of the cliff below)

Also - as pointed out elsewhere retaining the bridge and the service seems to retain most of the costs.

If they had any fecking imagination they would run or at least try a Dublin-Clonmel direct service via Rosslare and give it a chance.

The problem is that you have likes of WoT and the trainspotters and the Guckians who see Lim-Rosslare are some Tran-Lemon Curd Sandwich Express between Rosslare and Sligo. Diluting the entire potential on the line into one big jaunt rather than micro-managing various aspects of it.

Max Power1

invincibleirish wrote: »

You going to share anything with us? otherwise whats the point of this thread?.

we should just trust him tbh, he has gotten a lot of things right in the past 500 years :P

shamwari

Interesting that they haven't mentioned anything about Dublin-Belfast. I would have thought that the recent shenanigans with the bridge in Malahide coulpled with badly padded timetabling would mean that a lot of pax will travel by bus instead. Which means reduction in frequency and / or one set being withdrawn there.

So much for the propsoed hourly service to Belfast being touted only a little more than 18 months ago....

DWCommuter

Is it not true that last year as the economic toilet was flushing away, Noel Dempsey instructed IE to put on hold any expansion of the timetable to save money? Yes it is true. Many posters said it here and it was bypassed in favour of a few arguments about how great IE actually are or rather ignored in favour of languishing in a fantasy world of railcars zipping hourly and two hourly across the country.

All the best laid plans are in the ****ter now. They were based on the economic falsehood that was Ireland Inc. Maybe IE should follow the lead of the banks and look for a NAMA all of their own. Dump inter city into the "bad" railway and keep the Dublin Commuter services in IE hands. Either way, with this Government, economy and CIE, its all ****ed.:D

Judgement Day

shamwari wrote: »

Interesting that they haven't mentioned anything about Dublin-Belfast. I would have thought that the recent shenanigans with the bridge in Malahide coulpled with badly padded timetabling would mean that a lot of pax will travel by bus instead. Which means reduction in frequency and / or one set being withdrawn there.

So much for the propsoed hourly service to Belfast being touted only a little more than 18 months ago....

What a pax?

shamwari

Judgement Day wrote: »

What a pax?

Pax = passengers !

L1011

Closing East of Wellington Bridge only raises the question - are there enough commuters in to Waterford from WB, Campile, etc to justify keeping *it* open?

Judgement Day

MYOB wrote: »

Closing East of Wellington Bridge only raises the question - are there enough commuters in to Waterford from WB, Campile, etc to justify keeping *it* open?

If you have ever used the line you would know that the only remaining traffic is the handful of commuters from Wellington Bridge and Campile. That, of course, is due to the diabolical timetable, rolling stock, marketing etc.etc.etc.etc................

Judgement Day

shamwari wrote: »

Pax = passengers !

Yes - I was only being mischievous as I hate the use of the term. Passengers is the correct description, always was, always will be. Just as rail passengers from say Cork to Dublin are passengers NOT commuters. Railway stations are railway stations NOT train stations - we don't live in the US! Sorry for being pedantic!

I had the misfortune to work in a Zombie hotel in County Wexford where guests were referred to as Pax and hence got to detest the term.

L1011

Judgement Day wrote: »

If you have ever used the line you would know that the only remaining traffic is the handful of commuters from Wellington Bridge and Campile. That, of course, is due to the diabolical timetable, rolling stock, marketing etc.etc.etc.etc................

I've only ever used Dub-Rosslare, Dub-Sligo, Dub-Belfast and Dub-Kildare (and Belfast->Derry and Coleraine->Portrush...) I think I've used a higher % of the GB rail network actually!

DWCommuter

MYOB wrote: »

I've only ever used Dub-Rosslare, Dub-Sligo, Dub-Belfast and Dub-Kildare (and Belfast->Derry and Coleraine->Portrush...) I think I've used a higher % of the GB rail network actually!

Still doesn't exclude you from expressing an opinion which has merit, despite the woeful operation of the Rosslare - Waterford line.

Understanding the network doesn't mean you must have travelled over all of it.;)

Judgement Day

You really should give it a try before it's too late. The Twilight Zone it really is....until quite recently Ballycullane didn't even have a nameboard! CIE/IE have excelled themselves on the Russian/German WWII 'scorched earth' policy and have systematically destroyed the line by removing loops, signal cabins, buildings and, of course, services over the last thirty years. For a real feel for the line you should watch the movie "Six Shooter" starring Brendan Gleeson which perfectly captures the surreal nature of the rail service!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8-t-Ynl1ic

Do look it is fcuking priceless...one of the best short movies of all time and I bet the producers didn't even realise the irony of the location! Oh, and I forgot to mention for dribblers, it features Cravens carriages and steam heating and a board's servant manning the tea trolley/poison truck that captures everything you want to forget.

DWCommuter

MYOB wrote: »

Closing East of Wellington Bridge only raises the question - are there enough commuters in to Waterford from WB, Campile, etc to justify keeping *it* open?

And I was referring to this particular quote. These passengers are all that is left and they are loyal. They have had no investment whatsoever. It could be built upon.

But I bet it won't be.....:rolleyes:

Judgement Day

Well Derek I tried to get our wonderful local newspaper to raise the issue of possible closure and deliberate run-down of services, supplied them with photocopied info, letters to IE, everything and the article that appeared referrred to Korean "locomotives" and much else besides ....where do you go? Here in the Soggy South East we have some of the most useless politicians in the country and that is saying something...Paul Kehoe FG Chief Whip aka The Invisible Man, John Browne a demoted FF junior minister and an idiot from Labour (Howlin) who is Leas Ceann Comhairle.....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! After 32 years of ranting about railways I'm better off sticking to Guinness and rugby.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqsKkuv6EGM&feature=related

I just found this Six Shooter clip make sure you see it before you die!!!

Judgement Day

.....and this last clip from "Six Shooter" filmed near Broombridge Station with local input.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78umGCn5iJA&feature=related

DWCommuter

Judgement Day wrote: »

.....and this last clip from "Six Shooter" filmed near Broombridge Station with local input.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78umGCn5iJA&feature=related

Ah yes, Six Shooter. A filmmaking lesson in how to choose the quietest, most neglected railway that IE will allow you to "take over" for the duration of a film shoot. This film sums up the IE attitude to the line. Why they don't just hand it over to the RPSI and ITG I don't know. A working "preserved" line without the TLC that goes with preservation.:D

Shameful really. But its been said before.

lord lucan

An 071 and a rake of cravens!!! Great days,i'd take that over a railcar any day!

Zoney

DWCommuter wrote: »

All the best laid plans are in the ****ter now. They were based on the economic falsehood that was Ireland Inc. Maybe IE should follow the lead of the banks and look for a NAMA all of their own. Dump inter city into the "bad" railway and keep the Dublin Commuter services in IE hands. Either way, with this Government, economy and CIE, its all ****ed.:D

I don't see why you're grinning about it.

DWCommuter

Zoney wrote: »

I don't see why you're grinning about it.

Because I find it all so funny how history repeats itself. Ive just been reading some documents from 1975 on how CIE proposed closure of the Limerick junct.-Rosslare line and conversion of the Barrow bridge to a tolled road bridge! They were stopped then. In 2002 they once again proposed closure and were stopped. Throughout all this they defiantly ran the line into the ground as if acting like a cranky baby not getting its own way.

Successive Governments thought it was enough to prevent closure, but it never was. Add to this the laughable situation whereby miles of track on the WRC are rebuilt with modern stations, while an operational railway is systematically run into the ground. You can add Ballybrophy - Killonan into that mix aswell.

Not that is not funny. Its positively hilarious.:D (and another one for luck!)

dowlingm

Nostradamus wrote: »

If they had any fecking imagination they would run or at least try a Dublin-Clonmel direct service via Rosslare and give it a chance.

Erm - "direct"?

Max Power1

dowlingm wrote: »

Erm - "direct"?

epic fail

T Corolla

Sell cheap seats take on the ryanair philosphy. There is scope for improvment with IR. They should start booking seats ahead of time like the airlines for breakeven prices on all services Even if they get an extra 1000 euros per service it is better than nothing.The introduction of the 10 euros off peak fair on the commuter belts has dramitically enhanced the number of people using the train. I regularly(weekly) use the Sligo train and you will be lucky to get a seat in Mullingar any day of the week and I am sure it is repeated on all services using the fair. I do hope that the reduction in services is moderate as I find the trains commuter and intercity fine.

dowlingm

The problem with comparing the railways to the airlines is that the airlines operate in a point to point market, whereas IE Intercity still has a lot of "commuter/hop on hop off" about it. That and a shockingly poor service where seat reservations are not enforced by on-train staff...

Judgement Day

There's a damn sight more wrong with CIE/IE's rail services than non-enforcement of seat reservations and no amount of tinkering with things will make any difference to the overall mess. CIE/IE must be got rid of if things are to be turned round. As for closing yet more stations to speed up trains.....:rolleyes: this was tried in the 1970s and precious little difference it made. With the disappearance of slam doors the time spent at stations 'should' have been reduced but ........

Heisenberg1

Judgement Day wrote: »

There's a damn sight more wrong with CIE/IE's rail services than non-enforcement of seat reservations and no amount of tinkering with things will make any difference to the overall mess. CIE/IE must be got rid of if things are to be turned round. As for closing yet more stations to speed up trains.....:rolleyes: this was tried in the 1970s and precious little difference it made. With the disappearance of slam doors the time spent at stations 'should' have been reduced but ........

Man you have it BAD for them.

Nostradamus

Max Power1 wrote: »

epic fail

Compared to having orgasms in a Craven Coach toilet while going over Cahir Viaduct after it was replaced as the fragrance of Lemon Curd and jotter mildew fills the air, I can live with this.