Bus Éireann to reduce services

chewed

From Irish Times - Jan 4

Bus Éireann confirmed today it was planning to reduce the frequency of its services on a number of routes across the country due to a sharp fall-off in demand.
The company, which saw a 10 per cent drop in passenger numbers last year, said it was conducting a review of routes with “poor levels of customer support”.

Spokesman Andrew McLinden said the company was facing significant potential losses unless cuts were made to bring services back in line with demand.

The majority of the changes would be to frequency and routing, he said on RTÉ's Morning Ireland programme.

Dublin Bus, which has seen a similar reduction in demand for its services, is also set to announce a major restructuring of services.

The Government allocated €920 million for public transport in the last budget.
CIÉ, which operates Bus Éireann, Dublin Bus and Iarnród Éireann, will receive direct subvention of €276 million. This is a reduction of €27 million (8.8 per cent) on last year.

Does anyone know what routes might be affected?

KC61

I imagine that the Bus Eireann cutbacks will be in line with the Dublin Bus cutbacks last year, where uneconmic routes were either withdrawn, merged with other routes or had their frequency cut back.

There is no information on the specifics yet, but I'd imagine it'll start in the next month or so. Anything anyone might offer at the moment is pure speculation and (similarly to last year as was offered in advance of the Dublin Bus cutbacks) could be a complete red herring.

Best to wait until Bus Eireann announce their plans.

Baboushka

If they are bringing services in line with demand, as they claim, then we should finally see them serving Knock Airport, as was promised 4 years or more ago.

However, this is just likely to see cuts and so will have nothing to do with providing the best service.

KC61

There is already a bus service linking Knock Airport with Charlestown to connect in with the Expressway network.

http://www.buseireann.ie/pdf/1246548407-449A.pdf

koHd

I've been expecting this one. Thats why I was delighted everytime my bus was packed. Kilcock should be safe.

chewed

I get the Trim-Dublin bus every morning. The earlier buses are probably around a 3rd full, so I'm concerned they may cancel or combine these with the later service. Otherwise I wonder if changing the bus to a single decker is an option? Or will that save any money?

KC61

As I say, we will have to wait until Bus Eireann announce the detail of the changes. I would think however its more likely to affect routes that have lower patronage in general than the commuter routes, but there may be some reduction in frequency,

Really, at the moment anything that could be posted here is pure speculation, and unfortunately we will just all have to wait and see what is announced.

Baboushka

KC61 wrote: »

There is already a bus service linking Knock Airport with Charlestown to connect in with the Expressway network.

http://www.buseireann.ie/pdf/1246548407-449A.pdf

We both know that that is not what was promised. The Galway-Sligo service goes right by the airport and passengers (in the case of those coming from the Galway direction) are then expected to pass the airport in order to change service and come back again. If the Galway-Sligo service stopped at the airport then there would be no need for the additonal service from Charlestown, thus saving money. But God forbid that any public transport service in Ireland would serve the people before it serves itself.

KC61

Baboushka wrote: »

We both know that that is not what was promised. The Galway-Sligo service goes right by the airport and passengers (in the case of those coming from the Galway direction) are then expected to pass the airport in order to change service and come back again. If the Galway-Sligo service stopped at the airport then there would be no need for the additonal service from Charlestown, thus saving money. But God forbid that any public transport service in Ireland would serve the people before it serves itself.

I actually don't know what was apparently promised.

All I know is that there is that connecting service.

Vic_08

Baboushka wrote: »

We both know that that is not what was promised. The Galway-Sligo service goes right by the airport and passengers (in the case of those coming from the Galway direction) are then expected to pass the airport in order to change service and come back again. If the Galway-Sligo service stopped at the airport then there would be no need for the additonal service from Charlestown, thus saving money. But God forbid that any public transport service in Ireland would serve the people before it serves itself.

It is my understanding that a licence has recently been granted by the DOT to increase the frequency of the 64 Galway-Sligo service including serving Knock Airport, this is after the (now obligatory) lengthy delay waiting for DOT approval.

How soon the changes are brought in will depend on the wider changes across the region.

dowlingm

KC61 wrote: »

As I say, we will have to wait until Bus Eireann announce the detail of the changes. I would think however its more likely to affect routes that have lower patronage in general than the commuter routes, but there may be some reduction in frequency,

Really, at the moment anything that could be posted here is pure speculation, and unfortunately we will just all have to wait and see what is announced.

Is BE's PSO money linked to keeping some of the lighter routes open?

Mrs OBumble

Vic_08 wrote: »

It is my understanding that a licence has recently been granted by the DOT to increase the frequency of the 64 Galway-Sligo service including serving Knock Airport, this is after the (now obligatory) lengthy delay waiting for DOT approval.

Google alerts recently pointed me towards an article in a Sligo paper (Sligo Leader?) saying that the Charlestown shuttle was being axe as uneconomic, and that the Galway-Sligo buses would stop at Knock airport instead.

The article didn't give an implemetation date, but it souned as though it was meant to be "soon"

Run_to_da_hills

Why can't they use something smaller like the 18 seater Sprinter for the space routes. Dublin Bus had the IMPs for a number of years, last I saw of them was in Tralee.

I'd also like to see some Galway-Dublin services(the local serving ones, not the non-stop) come via Carnmore and Galway Airport. It'd open that place right up.

KC61

dowlingm wrote: »

Is BE's PSO money linked to keeping some of the lighter routes open?

The PSO grant is now related to specific services.

However, if they are still loss-making then what do BE do? I suspect what we will see is (similar to Dublin Bus) where possible other services may merge with these routes to try and keep a service operating but at lower cost.

Mrs OBumble

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Why can't they use something smaller like the 18 seater Sprinter for the space routes. Dublin Bus had the IMPs for a number of years, last I saw of them was in Tralee.

I believe, though can't quote any sources, that the major cost of running a bus service is driver wages. If that's true, then the cost of running an 18 seater would be almost as much as a larger vehicle, and they offer less flexibility for times when there are more passengers.

antoinolachtnai

That is basically true in pratice. However, the exact workings are a bit more subtle than that. Depreciation (i.e., the cost of the vehicle amortized over the lifetime), the cost of land and buildings and the cost of administration is also a significant cost. But the problem is that Bus Eireann can't just sell the fleet and buy a fleet of smaller ones, or older ones. It has to keep running what it already has.

So in practice, the only thing you can do (once you've decided that it is impossible to increase passenger numbers and revenue) is to reduce the number of services that run.

The problem with this is you end up leaving a load of buses sitting there, idle. The only way out of the funk, really, is to redesign the route network and reorientate the company towards the market as it actually is.

Colm R

I know we don't know all the details yet, but this is what I have heard from a reliable source and to be honest it makes sense.

The 104 is to be scrapped and to be replaced by an extended 105.

The 105 currently goes from Dublin to Ratoath via Fairyhouse. When the changes come in, a certain number of the 105 buses will continue from Ratoath to Ashbourne.

For routes that start and end in Ashbourne, they will also travel via the Blanchardstown Shopping center.

Pros:
It will finally get rid of the flat fare policy that the 104 had and you pay for the distance. The 104 was a flat fare of €3, each way, even if you were only going between Ashbourne and Ratoath.

Cons.
No Cons for people in Ashbourne really. It might get more customers, as the 104 had a very poor take up.
However anyone who currently uses the 105 will have to put up with extra stops in the Blanchardstown Bottleneck.

Vic_08

Colm R wrote: »

I know we don't know all the details yet, but this is what I have heard from a reliable source and to be honest it makes sense.

The 104 is to be scrapped and to be replaced by an extended 105.

The 105 currently goes from Dublin to Ratoath via Fairyhouse. When the changes come in, a certain number of the 105 buses will continue from Ratoath to Ashbourne.

For routes that start and end in Ashbourne, they will also travel via the Blanchardstown Shopping center.

Pros:
It will finally get rid of the flat fare policy that the 104 had and you pay for the distance. The 104 was a flat fare of €3, each way, even if you were only going between Ashbourne and Ratoath.

Cons.
No Cons for people in Ashbourne really. It might get more customers, as the 104 had a very poor take up.
However anyone who currently uses the 105 will have to put up with extra stops in the Blanchardstown Bottleneck.

The 105 is by far the worst performing route in Broadstone, apart from 1 or 2 peak time journeys most buses have single-figure loadings. The plan to combine both routes has been going round for a long time at this stage, when it will happen is unclear.

On another positive for Ashbourne, the 109A Navan-Dublin Airport-DCU route is due to have 2 extra services, one starting an hour earlier from Navan and one an hour later than the current last bus with all services operating via Ashbourne.