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Student Travel Card

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2

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    #32
    Steve Higginson
    Registered Users Posts: 88 ✭✭Steve Higginson


    fluorescence wrote: »
    I had my valid student i.d. with me and was turned away. Stop making assumptions of incompetence please.

    What exactly were you told when you presented your form and UCD Griffith student card?


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    #33
    Daire McNab
    Closed Accounts Posts: 17 ✭Daire McNab


    fluorescence wrote: »
    I had my valid student i.d. with me and was turned away. Stop making assumptions of incompetence please.

    The only assumptions of incompetence are being made by people accusing us of rejecting people because they do not attend Trinity. Did your Griffith card have an expiry date printed at the bottom? If it did not, we would have rejected it. We never reject an applicant without clearly explaining why we are doing so.


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    #34
    Fluorescence
    Moderators, Music Moderators Posts: 8,490 Mod ✭✭✭✭Fluorescence


    Steve Higginson wrote: »
    What exactly were you told when you presented your form and UCD Griffith student card?

    That I needed a valid TCD student card.
    Daire McNab wrote: »
    The only assumptions of incompetence are being made by people accusing us of rejecting people because they do not attend Trinity. Did your Griffith card have an expiry date printed at the bottom? If it did not, we would have rejected it. We never reject an applicant without clearly explaining why we are doing so.

    *checks* Yeah it has an expiry date for September 2012. I will admit that it looks terribly fake though. The picture looks like it was taken with a camera phone and the card doesn't even have my course on it :rolleyes:. *shrug* I ended up getting my travelcard in Rathmines so it's all gravy.


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    #35
    Daire McNab
    Closed Accounts Posts: 17 ✭Daire McNab


    Hmm. Occasionally non-Trinity people accidentally tick the Trinity box on the form when they are purchasing the card here, which then leads us to ask for Trinity ID cards. In a similar manner, a lot of people enter the current year as their year of birth. Not saying you necessarily did this at all, but it's the only situation we've had before in which non-TCD students have been asked for a TCD card.

    Otherwise, some wires must've gotten crossed somewhere along the way. Glad to hear you got your card in the end anyway.


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    #36
    Lawliet
    Registered Users Posts: 2,761 ✭✭✭Lawliet


    Steve Higginson wrote: »
    Are you sure your friend had their student card with them? Is it possible that they had forgotten it at the time and misinterpreted the reason they were refused as them being a UCD student rather than that they didn't have their ID with them at the time?
    No, I was there when it happened she had her student card. I was standing too far back to overhear the reason she was refused but she got the impression it was because she didn't go to Trinity rather than any problem with her card or form. Didn't think much of it at the time tbh, I figured it was just standard procedure.

    Edit: She was told she needed to have a Trinity student card
    Daire McNab wrote: »
    That is an entirely unsubstantiated claim. Unless you can categorically prove that someone was turned away for no other reason than they were a student of another institution, then you are merely repeating the same ridiculous, and baseless, assertion. I work there. I know everyone who does very well. We all know, and apply, the same rules. C.f. the 3 criteria above.
    We have at least two reports of people with valid student cards being refused, and considering this argument is about whether or not students from other colleges are occasionally turned away, I hardly think the assertion that they are is "ridiculous" or "baseless".
    Anyway I can't think of any proof I could provide to convince you this happened, and since you strike me as someone who can't comprehend the idea that they might be wrong, this argument is just going to go round in circles.


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    #37
    Daire McNab
    Closed Accounts Posts: 17 ✭Daire McNab


    Look, the facts are these-

    I've worked there for four and a half years. I have been personally involved in training in all staff since then. Well over 50% of our Travelcards are sold to non-Trinity students. No-one has ever been refused just because they attend another college; there has always been a genuine reason. It is entirely possible that a customer whose application has been rejected could misunderstand the reasons behind said rejection; we don't control the customers' interpretation of English words. There would occasionally be misunderstandings on both sides, which would lead to a valid application being rejected. But, to repeat, NO-ONE IS EVER REJECTED BECAUSE THEY DO NOT ATTEND TRINITY.

    I think the question which originated this thread has been well and truly answered, as has been acknowledged. It's all very well to say your friend got the impression she was rejected because she didn't attend Trinity. This does not prove anything- I'm getting certain impressions of you which are doubtlessly inaccurate. If I seem contrary, it's because this thread has been a succession of speculations and suppositions, when I know for a fact the rules and regulations which we apply, across the board, and which are personally overseen by me 100,000 times every year.

    Bye now.


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    #38
    BlueCam
    Registered Users Posts: 159 ✭✭BlueCam


    Daire McNab wrote: »
    Look, the facts are these-

    I've worked there for four and a half years. I have been personally involved in training in all staff since then. Well over 50% of our Travelcards are sold to non-Trinity students. No-one has ever been refused just because they attend another college; there has always been a genuine reason. It is entirely possible that a customer whose application has been rejected could misunderstand the reasons behind said rejection; we don't control the customers' interpretation of English words. There would occasionally be misunderstandings on both sides, which would lead to a valid application being rejected. But, to repeat, NO-ONE IS EVER REJECTED BECAUSE THEY DO NOT ATTEND TRINITY.

    I think the question which originated this thread has been well and truly answered, as has been acknowledged. It's all very well to say your friend got the impression she was rejected because she didn't attend Trinity. This does not prove anything- I'm getting certain impressions of you which are doubtlessly inaccurate. If I seem contrary, it's because this thread has been a succession of speculations and suppositions, when I know for a fact the rules and regulations which we apply, across the board, and which are personally overseen by me 100,000 times every year.

    Bye now.

    Oh for christ's sake mate would you ever cop on to yourself? Your comments on this thread have been nothing short of vitriolic. There are at least two instances here of people who were turned away because they did not attend Trinity. Clearly, there are a couple of your staff members (or just one maybe) who seem to think they must only accept Trinity student cards.

    You seem to be claiming to be some sort of manager of the shop - well here's a little management advice (trust me, I do BESS): instead of flying off the handle and telling your customers they're liars and can't understand English, maybe stick a flyer up in your shop to clarify with your employees that any student card can be accepted? That wasn't too hard now was it...


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    #39
    Daire McNab
    Closed Accounts Posts: 17 ✭Daire McNab


    BlueCam wrote: »
    Oh for christ's sake mate would you ever cop on to yourself? Your comments on this thread have been nothing short of vitriolic. There are at least two instances here of people who were turned away because they did not attend Trinity. Clearly, there are a couple of your staff members (or just one maybe) who seem to think they must only accept Trinity student cards.

    You seem to be claiming to be some sort of manager of the shop - well here's a little management advice (trust me, I do BESS): instead of flying off the handle and telling your customers they're liars and can't understand English, maybe stick a flyer up in your shop to clarify with your employees that any student card can be accepted? That wasn't too hard now was it...

    I refuse to dignify this with a reply.


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    #40
    bscm
    Registered Users Posts: 1,101 ✭✭✭bscm


    I do remember when I got mine done at the beginning of term, someone from UCD got turned away. The person said (and I remember this clearly, I was filling out the form beside them) "sorry, I'm not sure if we can serve you, you have to get it done at your own SU".

    They had a legit student card and their registration documents, and brought this to the attention of the person serving them, but still got told "sorry, you have to go to your own SU".


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    #41
    Daire McNab
    Closed Accounts Posts: 17 ✭Daire McNab


    bscm wrote: »
    I do remember when I got mine done at the beginning of term, someone from UCD got turned away. The person said (and I remember this clearly, I was filling out the form beside them) "sorry, I'm not sure if we can serve you, you have to get it done at your own SU".

    They had a legit student card and their registration documents, and brought this to the attention of the person serving them, but still got told "sorry, you have to go to your own SU".

    Well I'm not going to question what you heard, but all I can say is that it was not a staff member who said that. The most inexperienced of the 5 staff we had for Freshers' week first worked for us 2 years ago. Again, most of our business comes from other colleges. Anyone who works in the office for 5 minutes, even if they were not trained in, would be able to tell you that.


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    #42
    Daire McNab
    Closed Accounts Posts: 17 ✭Daire McNab


    Also, just to clarify, I am solely speaking about the Students' Union Front Office in House 6 of the College. The Student Travelcard pop-up area in the Arts block is run and staffed by the Travelcard company themselves, and has nothing to do with us.

    Over and out.


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    #43
    ilovemybrick
    Registered Users Posts: 676 ✭✭✭ilovemybrick


    BlueCam wrote: »
    well here's a little management advice (trust me, I do BESS)

    Snigger.


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    #44
    BlueCam
    Registered Users Posts: 159 ✭✭BlueCam


    ilovemybrick wrote: »
    Snigger.

    Tongue in cheek.


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    #45
    corridon69
    Registered Users Posts: 103 ✭✭corridon69


    Is Trinity Student Union open at the weekend? Is it easy to find in the college?


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    #46
    Ahoyhoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 182 ✭✭Ahoyhoy


    It's not open on the weekends but it is dead easy to find. When you come into Trinity via front arch turn left, go in the open door on the left and turn left inside that door and the office is facing you.

    Unsurprisingly, you have to go left to find TCDSU.

    I should point out I consider that a good thing, as long as it's not in the "give me back my taxes, burn the bondholders and then legalise it because you don't know what you're doing because my taxi driver said so" kind of way.


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    #47
    A Neurotic
    Registered Users Posts: 3,779 ✭✭✭A Neurotic


    On a different note, is anyone up for boycotting the Student Travelcard?

    I have so much resentment for having to pay to avail of student discounts. Such a racket.


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    #48
    Fluorescence
    Moderators, Music Moderators Posts: 8,490 Mod ✭✭✭✭Fluorescence


    A Neurotic wrote: »
    On a different note, is anyone up for boycotting the Student Travelcard?

    I have so much resentment for having to pay to avail of student discounts. Such a racket.

    Nah. You get your €15 back after buying a single 30 day rambler. Plus all the other discounts are very useful :p


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    #49
    Lawliet
    Registered Users Posts: 2,761 ✭✭✭Lawliet


    A Neurotic wrote: »
    On a different note, is anyone up for boycotting the Student Travelcard?

    I have so much resentment for having to pay to avail of student discounts. Such a racket.
    I would but I get checked for it all the time on the train. I suspect Iarnrod Eireann are the reason for many travelcard sales


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    #50
    languagenerd
    Registered Users Posts: 3,201 ✭✭✭languagenerd


    I make that €15 back in Boots and (used to) on CDwow, tis grand.

    I assume it's because all the colleges have such different student cards that it would be hard for the inspectors to figure out if an obscure card was real or not - so with the travel card, they're all the same and easily identified.


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    #51
    Extrasupervery
    Registered Users Posts: 2,029 ✭✭✭Extrasupervery


    I always buy a student travel card, it'd cost me something like a 60/70 quid for a return train ticket to Cork otherwise. The point of the card is to prove that I'm a student and therefore avail of corresponding benefits, no? Yet my TCD student card does just that.

    There's no reason for USIT (it is USIT, right?) to charge us 15 quid for this other waste of plastic. It's silleh.


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    #52
    Ahoyhoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 182 ✭✭Ahoyhoy


    I don't think it's USIT because they have their own card. The reason I know this is because I got one when I was in transition year for my bus ticket to school (in Cork) and then tried to use it going to Dublin (for the TCD open day in fact!) on the train and got told that I'd have to pay full price because they only use the travelcard. Which caused a huge delay for me because I'd only brought enough money for the student price and lunch. The staff in the station said the reason for this is because the other student cards are "easily forged". At this point I should point out that I have a travelcard for this year despite not being a student any more. I walked up to the stand in UCC during Freshers' week, told them I hadn't registered yet and they just gave me one. How one is supposed to forge a TCD student card I do not know.


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    #53
    thunderdog
    Registered Users Posts: 2,675 ✭✭✭thunderdog


    Just out of interest has anyone here ever been checked for their student card on a Dublin bus?

    Im finishing college this year and Im thinking of still getting the student weekly bus tickets as I have yet to be checked for a student travel card in my 8 years using it.

    Just wondering has anyone else ever been checked for one?


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    #54
    Fluorescence
    Moderators, Music Moderators Posts: 8,490 Mod ✭✭✭✭Fluorescence


    thunderdog wrote: »
    Just out of interest has anyone here ever been checked for their student card on a Dublin bus?

    Im finishing college this year and Im thinking of still getting the student weekly bus tickets as I have yet to be checked for a student travel card in my 8 years using it.

    Just wondering has anyone else ever been checked for one?

    3 times in the 2 and a half years I've had one. 2 of those were on the 17 and the other was the 10 going to UCD though. I can't imagine an inspector getting on the (RIP) 78a somehow :pac:


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    #55
    Jammyc
    Registered Users Posts: 1,979 ✭✭✭Jammyc


    I've been checked on the DART a good few times (>5 in the last year) for my Travel Card when I presented a student ticket.


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    #56
    thunderdog
    Registered Users Posts: 2,675 ✭✭✭thunderdog


    Yeah I've been checked out trains and bus eireann but never on a Dublin bus. Admittedly I only get the bus about once or twice a week


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    #57
    thunderdog
    Registered Users Posts: 2,675 ✭✭✭thunderdog


    fluorescence wrote: »
    3 times in the 2 and a half years I've had one. 2 of those were on the 17 and the other was the 10 going to UCD though. I can't imagine an inspector getting on the (RIP) 78a somehow :pac:

    And did they specifically ask for your student travel card??


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    #58
    Fluorescence
    Moderators, Music Moderators Posts: 8,490 Mod ✭✭✭✭Fluorescence


    thunderdog wrote: »
    And did they specifically ask for your student travel card??

    Yep. Showed them my Student Ramber ticket (which you have to write your travelcard number on) and they asked for the card to check it was the same. :) To be fair though, you'd probably get away with it.


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    #59
    Lawliet
    Registered Users Posts: 2,761 ✭✭✭Lawliet


    I was on a bus that got inspected last year, a girl beside me had a student ticket but no travelcard. The inspector was sound enough about it though; when he saw she had a college ID he just confiscated the ticket and told her she could get it back from the head office once she bought the travelcard


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    #60
    Ahoyhoy
    Closed Accounts Posts: 182 ✭✭Ahoyhoy


    Back when I was a fresher living in Griffith. A whole bunch of residents were queuing up the get the number 19 and the bus driver made every single one of us produce the travelcard when we got on. I hadn't written my travelcard number on the ticket (because I was a fresher and didn't know I had to) and he laid into me in front of everyone. I was completely humiliated (I'd been in Dublin like three days). The bastard.


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    #61
    anothernight
    Registered Users Posts: 2,541 ✭✭✭anothernight


    I've never been asked. When my friends were asked they always said that they'd forgotten it in a different handbag than the one they were using that day. Their ticket was never taken off them or anything.

    These days they're a lot stricter than they used to be.


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