Dublin Bus Mythbuster

mmmcake · 15-12-2014 2:55pm

Realt Dearg Sec wrote: »

There's other things they do on the continent, like have meaningful timetables, buses that run on time, a system where they actually stop the bus, logical fare measuring schemes etc etc. Or is it just some stuff from the continent that you want to adopt?

Maybe just maybe if everyone paid the correct fare, the money would be there to run a better service?

Realt Dearg Sec · 15-12-2014 3:04pm

mmmcake wrote: »

Maybe just maybe if everyone paid the correct fare, the money would be there to run a better service?

Well, maybe if the actual company itself could agree amongst themselves on what the correct fare is...

devnull · 15-12-2014 8:08pm

mmmcake wrote: »

We dont want them to be nice, we need them to intimidate.
If you have every been on a bus on the continent and had a ticket check you know what i mean, they take no prisoners.

You can still be nice and pleasant whilst also punishing the evaders.

The guy in question with me started giving me a lecture about why was I defrauding the company of around a thousand euro a year, if he saw my leap card history he'd have felt rather stupid.

The driver was embarrassed by the whole episode since he'd saw me every morning for a long time and apparently made a complaint about the inspector.

punisher5112 · 15-12-2014 9:30pm

devnull wrote: »

You can still be nice and pleasant whilst also punishing the evaders.

The guy in question with me started giving me a lecture about why was I defrauding the company of around a thousand euro a year, if he saw my leap card history he'd have felt rather stupid.

The driver was embarrassed by the whole episode since he'd saw me every morning for a long time and apparently made a complaint about the inspector.

In the circumstances you have stated he should have listened to the driver and maybe toned it down.

Its a hard 1 & you were very unlucky as there are a hell of a lot that are not genuine like yourself and they are taking the p#ss big time.

Also he may have had reason as there have been drivers caught pocketing money and that. Hopefully he was just having a bad day.

cdebru · 16-12-2014 4:27am

lxflyer wrote: »

Well in Q1 2014, 28,982 tickets were checked and 642 standard fares issued, and 90 court cases taken with regard to fare evasion.

In Q2 2014, 30,102 tickets were checked and 516 standard fares issued, and 110 court cases taken.

Wow thats really impressive, until you realise that DB would carry about 30,000,000 passengers in each quarter, so 0.1% of tickets were checked or to put it another way 99.9% were not checked. But what actually proves my point is that out of near 60,000 checks in 6 months they are finding less than 2% are fare evaders, now that is a joke and one that DB use to justify not checking more, do you know why they only find 2% because of where they check, when they check and who they ignore. So they pick on the nice easy targets people like Devnull, who I'm guessing is a respectable enough guy and they avoid like the plague routes where fare evasion is rampant, with all the dodgy passes, the people who dodge on and pay nothing the underpayers who think the standard fare to anywhere in the city is 1.95, the 25 year olds travelling on kids tickets etc etc they only find less than 2%.

thebullkf · 18-12-2014 12:14am

MagicMarker wrote: »

Excuses.

Up to 10 times a day someone might say to you 'I just topped up my leap card' and not once have you ever asked to see a receipt. How much time does asking a question take? You really expect me to believe you're so busy that you can't do that? How many times do you slow down on your route to have a quick chat with a driver driving the other way?

You don't ask the question because you simply couldn't give a toss. At least be honest about it.

Magicmarker give up the ghost= you made a broad sweeping statement and were put back in your box. At least admit it, move on.

I dont work for DB, never have, but i will say this , if it ever does get privatised you can forget about busses to the rougher areas, that are loss leaders. I admire and respect most if not al drivers, its a stressful job.

Drivers can be cunts but the amount of **** behaviour i have witnessed by passengers is one f the reasons i dont use it.

Mahogany · 19-12-2014 1:45am

AlekSmart wrote: »

What was the extent of the journey ?

I was supposed to be charged 2.05 but instead it was 2.60. I was travelling between 8-13 stages but was charged for over 13, even though there wasn't that many left on the route!

Sneaky sneaky....so from now on I say 2.05 please, they can't argue that one.

AlekSmart · 19-12-2014 3:15am

Mahogany wrote: »

I was supposed to be charged 2.05 but instead it was 2.60. I was travelling between 8-13 stages but was charged for over 13, even though there wasn't that many left on the route!

Sneaky sneaky....so from now on I say 2.05 please, they can't argue that one.

Do you think it may have been personal ?..or worse still....a MISTAKE :eek:

Any chance of the journey details...even from Fare Calculator...stop to stop ?

cdebru · 19-12-2014 12:34pm

Mahogany wrote: »

I was supposed to be charged 2.05 but instead it was 2.60. I was travelling between 8-13 stages but was charged for over 13, even though there wasn't that many left on the route!

Sneaky sneaky....so from now on I say 2.05 please, they can't argue that one.

Why would you say sneaky sneaky ? Do you think the driver has some personal benefit from charging you more on your leap card ? Do you think he is on commission? Could it be he made a mistake ? He is new ? He is unfamiliar with the route ?
Either way best thing if you know it is €2.05 just say €2.05

AlekSmart · 19-12-2014 12:40pm

cdebru wrote: »

Why would you say sneaky sneaky ? Do you think the driver has some personal benefit from charging you more on your leap card ? Do you think he is on commission? Could it be he made a mistake ? He is new ? He is unfamiliar with the route ?
Either way best thing if you know it is €2.05 just say €2.05

If any Leapcard user suspects an overcharge,all they have to do,if they haven't already raised it with the Busdriver,is contact Leapcard Helpline @ 1850 824 824 with the details of the problematic transaction and it will be addressed....Sneaky,Sneakier,Sneakiest !!....;)

Perhaps the Mods could make a big-sticky out of that Leapcard Number...?

the cats pajamas · 19-12-2014 12:52pm

when I use the bus I am happy with the service.
If i had a criticism it would be of other bus users, drunks and addicts can bother me.
I wonder would they ever see a hop on and off security force like the luas has.

I can tolerate loud vulgar phone conversations, loud music through head phones or played through a phones speakers and even smelly food.

Mahogany · 22-12-2014 3:36am

cdebru wrote: »

Why would you say sneaky sneaky ? Do you think the driver has some personal benefit from charging you more on your leap card ? Do you think he is on commission? Could it be he made a mistake ? He is new ? He is unfamiliar with the route ?
Either way best thing if you know it is €2.05 just say €2.05

Because it's sly, the machine can be hard to read luckily I've good eyesight.

Sure someone on this said before "I try to make money for my company" and I pointed out that's not the goal when working for a state company. So of course drivers are going to try get as much as they can.

AlekSmart · 22-12-2014 6:31am

Mahogany wrote: »

Because it's sly, the machine can be hard to read luckily I've good eyesight.

Sure someone on this said before "I try to make money for my company" and I pointed out that's not the goal when working for a state company. So of course drivers are going to try get as much as they can.

An interesting concept.....

thesandeman · 22-12-2014 7:23am

^
Sounds like a politician.

cdebru · 22-12-2014 10:32am

Mahogany wrote: »

Because it's sly, the machine can be hard to read luckily I've good eyesight.

Sure someone on this said before "I try to make money for my company" and I pointed out that's not the goal when working for a state company. So of course drivers are going to try get as much as they can.

How is that not the goal when working for a state company ? Do you want employees of state companies to not care if people pay or not ? Who should pick up the tab for those people who won't pay ?
And trying to make money for the company was said in the context of getting everyone to pay their correct fare, you are adding an implication that the poster and other DB drivers would intentionally steal passengers money on behalf of their employer, which is plain nonsensical BS.

MOH · 28-12-2014 7:20pm

Like it or not, it's a fact that for whatever reason, buses regularly have the ticket machine set to the incorrect stage which leads to passengers being charged the incorrect fare. And in my personal experience, it's an overcharge rather than an undercharge about 80% of the time.

I actually just took the venerable OP's sage advice and pointed out to the driver of the bus I just got home that the stage displayed on the machine was at least one stage previous to where the bus actually was. He just looked at me as if I had two heads and assured me that the machine was set correctly.

Whether it's a deliberate DB policy or just general incompetence, passengers are being regularly charged the wrong amount and DB are benefiting from it. Hopefully the new inspection regime we're promised will also clamp down on such fare mischarges.