What do you think of Dublin Bus?

bk

Vahevala wrote: »

Not everyone feels safe on the roads or not everyone is as fit as you may be and would rather get public transport or drive. For me, I would not be happy cycling or feel comfortable cycling a large distance, each to their own.

Cycling at 20km/h is a very average cycling speed, even an unfit person can do that pretty easily. Dun Laoghaire is about 15km out from the city center, yet that is only 40 minutes at a pretty slow cycling pace.

Vahevala wrote: »

Are you for real:

Most people in Dublin really don't live very far out.

Maybe not to you but I can vouch that I live a huge distance from where I work. How did you come up with the statement above??

Statistics. 500,000 people live In Dublin City, a place that is only 44 square miles.

Yes of course some people (like you) live way out and of course cycling all the way in isn't practical for them. However those further out could take public transport in and then cycle from there.

Amsterdam is an example of this, ever been to Amsterdam train station, there are literally tens of thousands of bike stands there. All used everyday by people who commute in by train and then complete their journey by bike:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFPVZIgqYsU

Again I repeat some actual facts, Amsterdam is significantly less dense Dublin and is just as spread out as Dublin, yet some how 60% of people manage to commute to work by bike.

carlmango11 wrote: »

Well if that's the case then maybe it is an attitude thing. I also had the impression that Irish weather was particularly bad but I've never been to any Scandinavian countries.

...

Hmm I don't know why but I still can't see most people ditching the bus/train/car to cycle even if it is faster. Maybe it is just an attitude issue. Even in my office people were talking about cycling but most didn't want to because they could arrive to working sweating or soaked.

It is an attitude thing. We are seeing exactly this attitude here, so far the excuses we have seen here are:

- It rains a lot here
- It is hilly here
- It is too far, Dublin is too spread out
- Cycling causes you to be sweetie

Yet after factual analysis we find that all these things are BS. That all are the same or worse in Amsterdam yet 60% of people manage to cycle to work everyday.

I gave Dublin Bikes as a similar example, before it started people said no way it would be successful, they said the streets of Dublin are too dangerous, it rains too much, people don't like cycling and that the bikes would be stolen and vandalised.

They were wrong, it turned out to be a massive success, the most successful scheme of it's type in Europe. Few bikes were vandalised or stolen and the so called dangerous roads and awful weather didn't stop people using them in record numbers.

I believe if we were to see a comprehensive change in attitude from the city council and to go all out to promote cycling, walking and public transport as much as the Dutch and Danes do, we could see just as many people cycling in Dublin as Amseterdam and Copenhagen. Dublin is perfectly suited to it.

SandyfordGuy

Leap Card + Real Time information are the responsibility of the NTA rather than any innovative development by Dublin Bus so I wouldn't give them a huge amount of credit for those, as they were not the driving force behind much of it apart from the fare regimes on leap card.

The Dublin Bus Fleet is generally pretty young and in good condition although the specification of such vehicles at present is below par from most European cities. Stops are tied too close together compared to other cities which is a big problem, you could shave quite a bit of time off some routes with better planning, for example some routes stop six times between Stephen's Green and Parnell Square - nonsense.

Cross city buses have worked in some cases for some people, but for others they have had a worse service so it's swings and roundabouts on that one depending on where you live really. Late buses and nitelink buses, with restricted pick ups and one direction only and the limited services offered are poor. Drivers are generally helpful in the most part but some routes do have problems with driver attitude whilst others the guys are true gents.

Single fares, despite their recent hike are still pretty good value compared to most European cities and the UK. However the daily and yearly tickets are very poor value and are much more expensive. Weekly and Monthly tickets are average value because they can be used on non consecutive days and the Travel 90 ticket is good value as is leap depending on your journey patterns.

LXFlyer

SandyfordGuy wrote: »

Leap Card + Real Time information are the responsibility of the NTA rather than any innovative development by Dublin Bus so I wouldn't give them a huge amount of credit for those, as they were not the driving force behind much of it apart from the fare regimes on leap card.

Eh the RTPI is based on the AVLC system that was developed by Dublin Bus. The predictive times come from schedules developed by Dublin Bus.

Sure, Dublin Bus had nothing to do with any of it.

The NTA are responsible for the on street displays - the system itself is a DB initiative.

Milan Cobian

In a city where it rains pretty much every day,

On the east coast it rains on average 150 days per year, according to Met Eireann. Stick to the facts, it makes for a stronger argument.

dfx-

I find that the idea of cycling puts me off cycling:D

But back to DB....

On the security issue, I find DB considerably safer than is their reputation. I don't think there's a lot to be bothered by the top deck of the 40 or 27 that gets mentioned frequently.

I find journeys populated by an army of schoolchildren or busload of students the most intrusive, people who should know better i.e. the 10/46A/13/145. I was on AV321 from the Silver Tassie all the way in and they drove me mad. I was on AX520 from DCU inbound and my eardrums were shattered into millions of pieces. That's not to say a fault of DB, just I find them more annoying top deck customers..

I would also say that one particular garage in the past two weeks has been on a go slow with their buses. Over different routes, different drivers at quiet times of the day and over different days, all coasting along. There are also some Ringsend buses that need to be cleaned upstairs..*cough* AV1, AV207 *cough* and a new display for dim AV205.

SandyfordGuy

The National Transport Authority is responsible for the Real Time Passenger Information service.

The RTPI service is delivered in co-operation with Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann, which is responsible for the roll out of the automatic vehicle location system and the real time arrival predictions for its buses. Dublin City Council provided technical expertise, managed the procurement of the signs and software system, and it is also co-ordinating the installation of the signs in the Greater Dublin Area.

National Transport Authority would like to acknowledge Dublin City Council, who has taken on the project, as part of its commitment to existing and new public transport users.

From the news release when the service launched. Dublin City Council on contract to the NTA do indeed manage the signs. But the whole software system that underpins the service centrally also comes under their remit and has no association with Dublin Bus or Bus Eireann whatsoever because the same system is used to power Bus Eireann services and shortly private operators.

Dublin Bus, as outlined above are responsible for the predictions and of course also of the on vehicle equipment. But the actual backend of the system is provided by Dublin City council and anyone suggesting otherwise is doing so for inpure reasons.

devnull

I have no time for cyclists in this city, if they want to be given better facilities, then how about they start learning the rules of the road first, such as what a traffic light is and what the various lights mean, as they clearly don't know at present.

On the debate of who is responsible for the RTPI, it's clear it was a collaboration between NTA, Dublin Bus and Dublin City Council so I honestly don't see why we are arguing about it, we should be happy that everyone worked together for once, rather than having a turf war or something.

LXFlyer

SandyfordGuy wrote: »

From the news release when the service launched. Dublin City Council on contract to the NTA do indeed manage the signs. But the whole software system that underpins the service centrally also comes under their remit and has no association with Dublin Bus or Bus Eireann whatsoever because the same system is used to power Bus Eireann services and shortly private operators.

Dublin Bus, as outlined above are responsible for the predictions and of course also of the on vehicle equipment. But the actual backend of the system is provided by Dublin City council and anyone suggesting otherwise is doing so for inpure reasons.

But that only relates to getting the information from the individual company sites onto the signs or the NTA site.

The information on the DB app, DB website and Bus Eireann website all come directly from the companies themselves.

Therefore it is very unfair to say that the companies had very little to do with it. They have everything to do with it as they provide all the data for the displays and did all of the work to produce the predictive times.

SandyfordGuy

lxflyer wrote: »

But that only relates to getting the information from the individual company sites onto the signs or the NTA site.

It's a little more substantial than that. There is a back-end system which is designed to collate all information from various companies systems, then output them to mediums such as the soon to be launched journey planner, multi-operator RTPI website. There are three systems at play here.

The information on the DB app, DB website and Bus Eireann website all come directly from the companies themselves.

Dublin Bus may well be taking their feed from their systems directly for their website and applications

Therefore it is very unfair to say that the companies had very little to do with it. They have everything to do with it as they provide all the data for the displays and did all of the work to produce the predictive times.

It is perhaps unfair to say they had little to do with it, but at the same time it is also unfair to say they had everything to do with it as it was a project with efforts from a number of bodies and if one or more of the bodies had not been comitted to it we'd have a half baked solution or perhaps none at all.

I do agree that they provide the data for the displays and the predictive times and schedules. That cannot be debated, neither can the fact that the on bus and depot equipment was procured by Dublin Bus. I have never argued that this was not the case.

As I said earlier, there is a back-end of the system that is managed by the NTA and DCC which is going to be used in the future to allow other operators to plug into the system. That was deliberately the case and is purely down to the NTA and DCC to allow others to plug into it, which can only be a good thing for people who see the bigger picture of public transport in this country.

LXFlyer

I don't disagree with your last post at all - it was original post that I had an issue with as it certainly suggested DB had little to do with the development of the RTPI system which is patently not the case.

Stripey Cat

Milan Cobian wrote: »

On the east coast it rains on average 150 days per year, according to Met Eireann. Stick to the facts, it makes for a stronger argument.

Okay. I guess it doesn't rain as much as it seems.

But I bet you always wear an anorak.

helimachoptor

I'm happy with it, though i live on the 46A route. I get on before Foxrock church so always get a seat and generally its 45 mins from home to office.
Also the fact that they have stopped the morning idling at donnybrook i'm very happy about.

Hilly Bill

How come the OP starts these threads but doesnt add to it afterwards?

dirtynosebeps

Hilly Bill wrote: »

How come the OP starts these threads but doesnt add to it afterwards?

more to the point count how many threads the o.p. has started with the words "what do you think of", yet they only have 30 posts. something fishy going on here if you ask me.:rolleyes: then throw in the odd thread of review ticket inspectors.
heres the stats 14 threads started 8 of which are in commuting. yet only 30 posts.

Hilly Bill

He is only a kid so that explains why he doesnt get involved and just asks questions so that he can sit back and watch the fall out.

The_Wrecker

helimachoptor wrote: »

I'm happy with it, though i live on the 46A route. I get on before Foxrock church so always get a seat and generally its 45 mins from home to office.
Also the fact that they have stopped the morning idling at donnybrook i'm very happy about.

About time someone noticed, theres no more changeovers at 0900,08,16. The first one kicks off now at 0921 and 0929.

boombang

I noticed people giving out about scumbags on the number 40 route, so I googled it to see where it served, this is what I got:

http://www.dublinbus.ie/en/News-Centre/General-News-Archive/Central-Control-212/

At least they're not taking any sh*t.

I think DB has a way to go. Only use it infrequently, but have too often been left waving my arms in futile frustration as a half empty bus has passed me by.

Not cheap.

Ticketing and dwell time a big problem.

Leaving a bus full of people waiting for 5 minutes for driver switch at Donnybrook is a pure joke. DB need to figure out what a service is.

As a cyclist I will give the drivers credit for being aware, as many others have done here.

AlekSmart

SandyfordGuy wrote: »

It is perhaps unfair to say they had little to do with it, but at the same time it is also unfair to say they had everything to do with it as it was a project with efforts from a number of bodies and if one or more of the bodies had not been comitted to it we'd have a half baked solution or perhaps none at all.

That cannot be debated, neither can the fact that the on bus and depot equipment was procured by Dublin Bus. I have never argued that this was not the case.

As I said earlier, there is a back-end of the system that is managed by the NTA and DCC which is going to be used in the future to allow other operators to plug into the system. That was deliberately the case and is purely down to the NTA and DCC to allow others to plug into it, which can only be a good thing for people who see the bigger picture of public transport in this country.

This is an interesting,if somewhat futile,debate.

By far and away the largest single input into RTPI has been from Dublin Bus,who were initially in charge of the entire package.

It was the Dept of Transport who,at some point developed a dose of the jitters concerning Dublin Bus's supposed "Market Dominance" which,the Dept (or some high functionary within it) felt might be used to frustrate the addition of "other operators" to the On Street Displays.

In spite of assurances from Dublin Bus Management,the Department decided,at a very late stage in the development of RTPI to subdivide the responsibilities,which,in the main,was responsible for the substantial delay in rolling out the final system.

Some pertinent info from a 2007 thread here....

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055191510

Dublin Bus is to get priority at traffic lights, similar to that provided for Luas, under a new programme to help its buses meet timetables.

As part of an estimated €15 million contract due to be signed, up-to-the minute passenger information will be provided at major bus stops. The system, which uses GPS, will tell passengers when the next bus is due.

The plan aims to overhaul how the fleet operates and to counter one of the biggest problems facing the company: increasing delays due to congestion and the resulting disruption to timetables for customers.

According to Dublin Bus, within two years its busiest bus stops will have screens showing exactly when the next bus on each route is due, based on a GPS system which will be installed in the entire fleet.

This information will also be made available to passengers online or on their phone. Updated information is provided by a computer system which will recalculate the position of the bus every 30 seconds using GPS.

This data is then compared with its scheduled location before an updated arrival time is sent to display units at bus stops along the route.

Donal Keating, operations support manager with Dublin Bus, said a preferred bidder for the contract has been identified from three shortlisted companies following a tender process. The Dublin Bus board is due to consider this recommendation before the end of the year.

"It became obvious that with the city slowing down due to congestion, this information was going to become more important and we were starting to lag behind what Irish Rail and Luas were doing," Mr Keating said.

Dublin Bus also expects the system to help its fleet counter delays caused by congestion.

"The system won't try to rig the lights for individual buses. But on major bus corridors it might hold the lights green for longer to keep the buses moving," Mr Keating said.

"However, the system will be flexible enough so that at certain times where there is only a bus on approach, a small transmitter will send a signal to the traffic lights and they will stay or come back to green," he said.

The new Dublin Bus technology is also going to be linked to the traffic management system (SCATS) used by Dublin City council.

"Dublin City council's system will know where our buses are at all times and this will allow us to respond to delays or log jams," Mr Keating said.

One requirement of the project is that the design will allow it to be easily extended to an outside, private operator.

"If another operator equips their fleet with transponders, they too can join the system. And it is being designed so that it would be possible for the Dublin Transport Authority to take over the real-time passenger element and perhaps link it with other public transport passenger information," Mr Keating said.

Dublin Bus expects that more than 1,000 of its busiest 5,000 bus stops will be fitted with the display screens. The contract is due to be signed in the coming weeks, with work on the project starting early next year.

"Hopefully by 2009 you will start to see this on the streets and it will be complete by 2010," Mr Keating said.

The company hopes that the new system will remove the uncertainty over when the next bus is due.

Many European cities now have similar systems for their bus fleets. Dublin Bus project officials visited Edinburgh, Munich and Brighton to examine passenger information systems in operation.

These cities each have a similar system operated by one of the short-listed bidders for the Dublin Bus contract. Dublin Bus has conducted trials of similar systems in recent years and does not expect any resistence from staff to the new technology.

I am curiously oft-reminded of the old adage about "Too many cooks spoiling the broth"

CIE

Andremac96 wrote: »

i get this quite often and am wondering what are you opinions comments complaints satisfaction and improvments that could be made open to all

You get what quite often?

BTW, what does everyone think of several threads whose titles start with the words "What do you think of..."? JMHO, but a good place to get everyone's thoughts on DB is in the Network Review thread.

Cookie_Monster

CIE wrote: »

BTW, what does everyone think of several threads whose titles start with the words....

I think that unless the next post is in the conflict of interest thread with some sort of explanation I'll take him as a vested interest and just ignore anything they post.

saa

The main thing is that they try and cover too many areas on some routes,

like the 75 where most of the people get on at the first six stops and then a few get off at nutgrove shopping centre then it goes all the way up to balinteer that takes an extra 15 mins plus and people rarely get on and off on that detour, then most of the people get off at dundrum and then there are the poor folk who got on at tallaght to get to Dun laoghaire are spending an extra hour on each journey. And don't start with the 75's that take 15 minutes to do a lap of the Sandyford industrial estate for one person to get off. There should be four 75's in each day that do a more direct route.

And then there is the issue of all the workers wanting to start work and finish at a reasonable time. unfortunately I'm in tallaght and absolutely hate how there are so many bus routes to town but they all start far too late for my partner to get in early enough for work.

doubletrouble?

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

I think that unless the next post is in the conflict of interest thread with some sort of explanation I'll take him as a vested interest and just ignore anything they post.

agreed, even better still i think a mod should check out their interests and intentions before they're allowed to start a new thread on " what do you think"

Andremac96

what's everyone problem i have a right to post anything i want relating to commuting and transport in the commuting and transport section. if i want to post another 50 thread beginning with "what do you think of" i am entitled to do so and i honestly couldn't care less of you ignore my threads go on do it. There is plenty of other people on boards who enjoy reading about opinions on public transport so say what you bloody well want you bell ends :):):):):)

thomasj

Andremac96 wrote: »

what's everyone problem i have a right to post anything i want relating to commuting and transport in the commuting and transport section. if i want to post another 50 thread beginning with "what do you think of" i am entitled to do so and i honestly couldn't care less of you ignore my threads go on do it. There is plenty of other people on boards who enjoy reading about opinions on public transport so say what you bloody well want you bell ends :):):):):)

The point is sharing is caring!

At least by airing your opinion it gives us the chance to understand where you are coming from and respond with our thoughts thereby constructing a proper meaningful debate.

If you keep on setting up these threads without airing your own opinions people are just not going to reply!

Andremac96

thomasj wrote: »

The point is sharing is caring!

At least by airing your opinion it gives us the chance to understand where you are coming from and respond with our thoughts thereby constructing a proper meaningful debate.

So what do you think?

i want peoples opinions on these different types on of transport

thomasj

Andremac96 wrote: »

thomasj wrote: »

The point is sharing is caring!

At least by airing your opinion it gives us the chance to understand where you are coming from and respond with our thoughts thereby constructing a proper meaningful debate.

So what do you think?

i want peoples opinions on these different types on of transport

Why?

The_Wrecker

Andremac96 wrote: »

i want peoples opinions on these different types on of transport

There is plenty of other people on boards who enjoy reading about opinions on public transport so say what you bloody well want you bell ends

Are we all bell ends?

Andremac96

thomasj wrote: »

Why?

Doesn't Matter what the reason is

Andremac96

The_Wrecker wrote: »

Are we all bell ends?

no just the people who are said enough to try to get me baned

The_Wrecker

This topic has gone its distance and will probadly be closed by Victor soon.

Victor

Andremac96 wrote: »

what's everyone problem i have a right to post anything i want relating to commuting and transport in the commuting and transport section. if i want to post another 50 thread beginning with "what do you think of" i am entitled to do so and i honestly couldn't care less of you ignore my threads go on do it. There is plenty of other people on boards who enjoy reading about opinions on public transport so say what you bloody well want you bell ends :):):):):)

Goodbye!

starhillroad

I think Dublin Bus are overpriced, and over-unionised. They should be privatised. Indeed, they should be used as an example to the entire Irish state sector as an example. It is clear as daylight, when seeing other countries than the likes of CIE and ESB have created an overpriced cuntry with an elite of unionised persons, while the non unionised private sector slave from morning to night on lower wages, lower benefits and higher taxes to keep these neo communist nomenklatura in their featherbeds. Its a long way from William Martin Murphy and Jim Larkin you are, you bloodsucking parasites. Charging Irish commuters at least twice as much as the rest of the world for half the service.

Network direct, what a joke. After 8.00pm, the service decreases to a rural frequency from Walkinstown. What kind of business do you guys run. Obviously the solution is to run a smaller bus at the same frequency.

If the likes of SLIPTHRU object, ideally a European Army should be created and brought in. Even get the Irish army to drive the buses if need be for a short while, and from Lisbon in the East to Lvov in the West, a clear message should be sent. Enough is enough. If they object, get better cheaper workers in from Poland. If the Dublin Bus workers object, get in the cattleprods and alsatians. There are other sectors of Irish Society from the banking elite to heroin addicted scum that also need solutions formerly based in Poland hauled by good German Class 50 2-10-0 locomotives, but thats not for this thread.

Of course, watch the amount of hard oppressed 'wurkers' in CIE voice their objection right now, and hit the report button like its going out of fashion, but thats the only way you'll survive on this board. By getting the moderator to ban any opinion that is slightly dangerous, slightly offensive, or even very offensive within parameters. Luas showed what a private operator can do. Clean, secure, no skangers smoking weed upstairs or in the back, and STT security remove scum quickly and effectively.

Its other ordinary workers who have had their wages chopped to ribbons in this recession who have had to endure massive fare increases to keep you in clover, and your incompetent screwed up management who I despise even more. But don't worry, we might smell the fresh air, get a bicycle and learn what CIE really means. Cycling Is Easier.

As for the Leap card, shall I say, tag on, tag off. It charged me 2.40 for a five stop run, and I tagged off, another 2.40. 4.80 Euro. You extortionate vicious, overcharging, usurers. I was told to 'e-mail about it'. I said 'I won't bother, I know damn well what your company is like, how long it will take, and I might have to fill in forms in triplicate to get back 2.90 Euro. It took you 11 years and more to get the damn thing organised, and you STILL goddamnit, cannot get it right'.

We then have to endure guff from various ministers who get whisked around by Garda escort, and talk about public transport, the environment, and I'd accept higher 'carbon taxes' if it meant better and cheaper provision of the alternatives. But it does'nt. Nobody in Ireland has had the balls to face down CIE and its bloodsucking communist unions. One day, someone will, for there will be no alternative.

Don't even start me off about the free travel pass. Fine for pensioners, but the abuses are rampant, and because of a famine, we are always soft touches for the 'weak' in society. Well tough.....you don't work, starve.

AlekSmart

starhillroad wrote: »

I think Dublin Bus are overpriced, and over-unionised. They should be privatised. Indeed, they should be used as an example to the entire Irish state sector as an example. It is clear as daylight, when seeing other countries than the likes of CIE and ESB have created an overpriced cuntry with an elite of unionised persons, while the non unionised private sector slave from morning to night on lower wages, lower benefits and higher taxes to keep these neo communist nomenklatura in their featherbeds. Its a long way from William Martin Murphy and Jim Larkin you are, you bloodsucking parasites. Charging Irish commuters at least twice as much as the rest of the world for half the service.

Network direct, what a joke. After 8.00pm, the service decreases to a rural frequency from Walkinstown. What kind of business do you guys run. Obviously the solution is to run a smaller bus at the same frequency.

If the likes of SLIPTHRU object, ideally a European Army should be created and brought in. Even get the Irish army to drive the buses if need be for a short while, and from Lisbon in the East to Lvov in the West, a clear message should be sent. Enough is enough. If they object, get better cheaper workers in from Poland. If the Dublin Bus workers object, get in the cattleprods and alsatians. There are other sectors of Irish Society from the banking elite to heroin addicted scum that also need solutions formerly based in Poland hauled by good German Class 50 2-10-0 locomotives, but thats not for this thread. :eek: :eek: :eek:

Of course, watch the amount of hard oppressed 'wurkers' in CIE voice their objection right now, and hit the report button like its going out of fashion, but thats the only way you'll survive on this board. By getting the moderator to ban any opinion that is slightly dangerous, slightly offensive, or even very offensive within parameters. Luas showed what a private operator can do. Clean, secure, no skangers smoking weed upstairs or in the back, and STT security remove scum quickly and effectively.

Not a regular Red Line user then ?

Its other ordinary workers who have had their wages chopped to ribbons in this recession who have had to endure massive fare increases to keep you in clover, and your incompetent screwed up management who I despise even more. But don't worry, we might smell the fresh air, Get a bicycle

PLEASE Do

and learn what CIE really means. Cycling Is Easier.

As for the Leap card, shall I say, tag on, tag off. It charged me 2.40 for a five stop run, and I tagged off, another 2.40. 4.80 Euro. You extortionate vicious, overcharging, usurers. I was told to 'e-mail about it'. I said 'I won't bother, I know damn well what your company is like, how long it will take, and I might have to fill in forms in triplicate to get back 2.90 Euro. It took you 11 years and more to get the damn thing organised, and you STILL goddamnit, cannot get it right'.

...erm dare I say it,RTFM.....

https://www.leapcard.ie/PageSetting/ContentViewer.aspx?Val=ZBrekG8wfXkh9SLJSHbw6noFkIk75Qi6k1aPi1ZmXTxiFP%2bej4gDdsmbwEOfPVIS0MzQ6%2fQXfPRmeU3KwPYSW3%2bM5UuWJZxBevQqi1i2QiCsyafHYZrxD0OqhZq1bp2GiJv04hX1rWPvtZXO%2bjZSFbGpimyWzzBv9eDJLS%2brdTU%3d#howdoiuse......How do I use my Leap Card?
Leap Cards use contactless technology. Customers hold their cards against the validators to ‘Touch-On’. Validators are located:

Buses - at the entrance to the bus on the right hand side, and at the driver’s cab. If your journey is 13 stages or less, go to the driver and he/she will deduct the appropriate fare. If your journey is longer than 13 stages go to the Validator on the right hand side as you enter the bus where the flat fare will be deducted from your card.
Luas - on the platform.
DART and Commuter Rail - at entry and exit points of stations, and on some platforms.

Don't forget to Touch-On before starting your journey to make sure your card is valid for travel. If you don’t Touch-On, you may be prosecuted for fare evasion.When travelling on a bus, there is no requirement to Touch-Off.

However, don't forget to Touch-Off at the end of your journey when travelling on DART and Commuter Rail or Luas so that the correct fare will be charged. Failure to Touch-Off will result in the maximum fare being charged to your card.

We then have to endure guff from various ministers who get whisked around by Garda escort, and talk about public transport, the environment, and I'd accept higher 'carbon taxes' if it meant better and cheaper provision of the alternatives. But it does'nt. Nobody in Ireland has had the balls to face down CIE and its bloodsucking communist unions. One day, someone will, for there will be no alternative.

Don't even start me off about the free travel pass. Fine for pensioners, but the abuses are rampant, and because of a famine, we are always soft touches for the 'weak' in society. Well tough.....you don't work, starve.

Phew....:eek:.Bravo I say.....Starhill Road has summed up (and solved) the entire Public Transport conundrum in one fell post......Now,lets move on to the Worldwide Financial Crisis ?

KCAccidental

Ayn Rand would be proud!

dogyworld1

lounakin wrote: »

I've been here 12 or 13 years and I have seen Dublin change radically since then. 10 years ago, people would always stop at lights, there was less jay-walking,

well i dont know what part of ireland you lived in 12 or 13 years ago
but their was always cars running lights and people jaywalking haha

are you american?
jay walking is not a crime

starhillroad

Technically jaywalking is a crime, but its one thing I like about Ireland. We're not a bunch of anally retentive 4uckwits like say....hmm....let me think.....certain other countries.....who ask their Governments opinion before even having a shag, and the only position allowed is missionary. God forbid that its even enjoyed, lie back, brace yourself Brigid.....while slaving away for an overpriced shoebox in the sky. At least thats what they wanted to do to us during the Tiger Bubblebum years.

Its like a lot of things in Ireland. Its an offence on paper, but realistically, noone really gives a flying eff about it. Its there as a law to be enforced in extreme cases when someone is a complete idiot, say when someone is publicly drunk/stoned/high and has'nt a clue.

The average judge would take a look at a 'normal' charged with jaywalking in Ireland, depending on the circumstances, then look at the Garda and likely say.

"Can I have a word Garda"
"Stop wasting my effing time"

By contrast, I'd say with a pisshead/stoner/junkie, again, depends on the circumstances.

Its likely to be a charge in relation to another charge, to 'bump' up a criminal record on the conviction count. It normally goes.

1. Drunk and disorderly.
2. Failure to obey the intructions of a Garda.
3. Jaywalking .....and likely throw in some other rule under the Road Safety Act for good measure.

Oh, in relation to Dublin Bus, I apologise a bit. It was a right wing rant. But that does not detract from the fact that I still effing despise them.

Cool Mo D

starhillroad wrote: »

Technically jaywalking is a crime, but its one thing I like about Ireland. We're not a bunch of anally retentive 4uckwits like say....hmm....let me think.....certain other countries.....who ask their Governments opinion before even having a shag, and the only position allowed is missionary. God forbid that its even enjoyed, lie back, brace yourself Brigid.....while slaving away for an overpriced shoebox in the sky. At least thats what they wanted to do to us during the Tiger Bubblebum years.

Its like a lot of things in Ireland. Its an offence on paper, but realistically, noone really gives a flying eff about it. Its there as a law to be enforced in extreme cases when someone is a complete idiot, say when someone is publicly drunk/stoned/high and has'nt a clue.

The average judge would take a look at a 'normal' charged with jaywalking in Ireland, depending on the circumstances, then look at the Garda and likely say.

"Can I have a word Garda"
"Stop wasting my effing time"

By contrast, I'd say with a pisshead/stoner/junkie, again, depends on the circumstances.

Its likely to be a charge in relation to another charge, to 'bump' up a criminal record on the conviction count. It normally goes.

1. Drunk and disorderly.
2. Failure to obey the intructions of a Garda.
3. Jaywalking .....and likely throw in some other rule under the Road Safety Act for good measure.

Oh, in relation to Dublin Bus, I apologise a bit. It was a right wing rant. But that does not detract from the fact that I still effing despise them.

I don't think jaywalking is a crime at all. I think the only legal obligation on where you can cross a road is that if you are within 20 metres of a pedestrian crossing, you have to use it.

mikemac1

Maybe it should be cracked down on

Possibly you see so called parents push their buggy out onto the road to "test" the traffic.
Of course the drivers stop and the parent strolls across the road

A car or a bike can stop.
A multi-tonne bus cannot stop in the same distance.

Accident waiting to happen.
If a bus hasn't run over a buggy yet it's going to happen some day and it will be front page news
And it won't be the drivers fault realy

devnull

I've seen countries where Jaywalking is a crime and absolutely NOBODY will cross a road other than at designated traffic points and where the green man shows at traffic lights. You would be amazed at how much better traffic flows in the city centre and it makes things actually quicker for both pedestrians and motorists alike and for sure helps ease congestion.

The trouble is other countries also have much better regimes when it comes to dealing with traffic and driving offences in the cities. You see a taxi parked illegally here, a cyclist break a red light, illegally parked vehicle, cars using public transport lanes and other offences and they're simply told not to do it again. Abroad they get fined on the spot.

This creates a culture of people don't do such things as they know they will get fined. It creates a better environment for others. Here's we're just a soft touch, and instead the Garda attitude to traffic offences is "Sure, don't do it again bud" or "sure, just apologies and that'll do" alternatively if the Garda show they mean business, far less people will be inclined to try.

AlekSmart

devnull wrote: »

The trouble is other countries also have much better regimes when it comes to dealing with traffic and driving offences in the cities. You see a taxi parked illegally here, a cyclist break a red light, illegally parked vehicle, cars using public transport lanes and other offences and they're simply told not to do it again. Abroad they get fined on the spot.

Sometimes even,Devnull,those better regimes consist of nothing more than a few simple elements which can and do make a serious difference.

For example,virtually every UK town or city will have central areas where pedestrians and vehicular traffic are safely segregated by the hi-tech expedient of a steel barrier....:eek:

This means that the stroller cannot simply decide to stride across the road on a whim,potentially endangering themselves and everybody else in the equation...no sir,your average Brit will have to find a gap,usually at a ped-crossing...amazing stuff altogether and never likely to find favour with the freedom loving Irish :rolleyes:

Those with longer memories may remember a Garda crackdown some years ago on "Jaywalking" which entailed Gardai,under the baleful gaze of an RTE camera crew,admonishing astonished pedestrians for not observing the signals......the initiative,or in Garda parlance,"Operation" did'nt last long......:rolleyes:

monument

devnull wrote: »

I've seen countries where Jaywalking is a crime and absolutely NOBODY will cross a road other than at designated traffic points and where the green man shows at traffic lights. You would be amazed at how much better traffic flows in the city centre and it makes things actually quicker for both pedestrians and motorists alike and for sure helps ease congestion.......

Those countries usually also have far more realistic crossings for people walking. Pedestrians usually in those countries have a green the same time as traffic turning across the crossing and the pedestrians have the right of way and it is usually respected.

We on the other hand a system very focused on having green only to one type of user at the one time.

mikemac1 wrote: »

Maybe it should be cracked down on

Possibly you see so called parents push their buggy out onto the road to "test" the traffic.
Of course the drivers stop and the parent strolls across the road

A car or a bike can stop.
A multi-tonne bus cannot stop in the same distance.

Accident waiting to happen.
If a bus hasn't run over a buggy yet it's going to happen some day and it will be front page news
And it won't be the drivers fault realy

If a driver cannot stop in time for somebody legally crossing the road then they will be at fault.

In law, any driver knocking into the back of another car or bus etc is automatically at fault because they have not left enough stopping distance or were not looking.

AlekSmart wrote: »

For example,virtually every UK town or city will have central areas where pedestrians and vehicular traffic are safely segregated by the hi-tech expedient of a steel barrier....:eek:

Many of which have removed them because they have proven to be not so great for pedestrians and deadly for cyclists.

AlekSmart

monument wrote: »

Those countries usually also have far more realistic crossings for people walking. Pedestrians usually in those countries have a green the same time as traffic turning across the crossing and the pedestrians have the right of way and it is usually respected.

We on the other hand a system very focused on having green only to one type of user at the one time.

Many of which have removed them because they have proven to be not so great for pedestrians and deadly for cyclists.

Many...but not all,or even most...I'd suggest "Some of which have removed them" as the removal of the barriers also tends to be accompanied by further works to ensure that the pedestrian and vehicular modes do not get to conflict with the gay abandon all to obvious in Erins green isle...?

I would cite Westland Row and the Northbound aspect of College Green as being two locations where it's miraculous that multiple fatalities are not a daily occurence.....:(

pixieprinny

I've only recently started using Dublin Bus and there's a lot of things that stick out like a sore thumb

Firstly the app is great. Without that I would completely lost. The directions on the bus stop points are a joke and if you didn't really know Dublin city, you'd be screwed trying to get around.

I find the inner city centre drivers the most helpful, they don't seem to loose the cool when people stop the bus and then ask for directions and realise they need a complete different number.

As someone mentioned earlier, the fact the most bus stops have no shelter is stupid. I can understand within the city, so junkies and homeless aren't hanging around/sleeping under them, but there are very little shelters outside the city centre, where the bus waiting times are longer....and you're usually more exposed to the elements.

People jumping the queue is another big one. I think that ranges around the whole of Ireland, that no-one understand how to use a queue. "Oh I'm the last to arrive in the line, sure that means I'm first on"

Also the fare stages are some difficult to understand. Have no idea how it's calculated and the website doesn't give much insight to it.

The leapcard system should be smart enough that you can just simply tag on/tag off at the validator if you are only using the bus for part of the journey. Most of the buses location are available by realtime so they're obviously some kind of tracker on the bus so why not integrate with the leapcard with stops.

I know this may be cheeky, but I can't stand the fact older people thinking they are entitled to your seat. I don't mean elderly people, I mean people aged mid 30's- 40's. I have no problem giving up my seat if I'm getting off at the next few stops or if they are pregnant or in desperate need on a seat, but just because they're a couple of years older than me and only out of the office after work doesn't entitle ya to my seat. :mad:

KD345

pixieprinny wrote: »

I can't stand the fact older people thinking they are entitled to your seat. I don't mean elderly people, I mean people aged mid 30's- 40's. I have no problem giving up my seat if I'm getting off at the next few stops or if they are pregnant or in desperate need on a seat, but just because they're a couple of years older than me and only out of the office after work doesn't entitle ya to my seat. :mad:

People in their 30s/40s ask you for your seat? Seriously?

Varied

Get the 40 or 13 every morning, they are always severely overcrowded. Other than that they are fairly reliable.

I use the 'my dublin bus' app, its very handy

pixieprinny

Yeah and the bus wasn't even packed. The downstairs was full but there was only a few people up top.

I had one woman ask me to move from the single seat when the bus was practically empty. She said "it was her usual seat"...she seemed a bit away with the fairies so I moved.

I seriously would hate to be a man, I've heard women bitch because guys haven't giving up their seat to them. Come on like, its not the Titanic, it's lovely is a gentleman offers you the seat but Christ ya can't expect the seat just because you're a woman

Eutow

Vahevala wrote: »

It is expensive. I have to spend 124 Euro on a monthly bus and luas ticket which is pricey, yearly tickets are lethally expensive. :(

Bus stops around Suffolk Street are ridiculous, way too packed and very hard to catch a bus there without risking missing it or getting run over Bus stops are way too close together, it is like they are afraid that people have to walk a little bit... :rolleyes:

Also the RTPI displays at times seem to be a work of fiction, a regular bus route that I get at a certain stop seems to never display on it, yet appears at the bus stop perfectly...

Would agree with the security thing, anything to get rid of the scumbag element either drinking/smoking/playing loud music/shouting racist abuse would be welcome..

If you think Dublin Bus stops are too close together you should come to Toronto. It's absolutely ridiculous how close some of their bus stops are. Their bus stops don't have a real time display and they also don't have a number you can text to find out when the next bus will arrive. At least Dublin Bus do have this, but in saying that Dublin Bus can be very unreliable.

I would agree though that 124 Euro for a monthly is too expensive considering that you can't use it on DART, Dublin Bus and Luas.

Heroditas

Love the app. It's a lot more accurate since it's been in service for a while.

Got the bus into town last week. I had to use coins for the first time in about 7 months because I'd been using pre-paid cards - the 10 journey ones for 90mins.
Anyway, asked for €2.30, got a strange look and was given a ticket. When I sat down and looked at it, I saw it was for €2.15. Went up and questioned it and was reminded, via another strange look, that the highest fare was €2.65.
I had completely forgotten about that increase earlier this year! I apologised and offered to top up to €2.65 and also offered to buy a new ticket.
The driver laughed and waved me away saying it was alright!
There's an awful lot of extremely decent people driving those buses. I can't imagine it's the most pleasant of jobs on some of the routes.

anomynous

I take the 18 everyday from Palmerstown to Ballyfermot, I've only started and don't completely understand dublin bus. Do I say where I'm going before dropping in my change? Its like everyone else just gives the money, grabs ticket and sits?? Anyone help me please?

schemingbohemia

State your destination to the driver, s/he will tell you the fare then drop it in.

http://www.dublinbus.ie/en/Your-Journey1/How-to-use-the-bus/Step-2/