Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

Dangerous taxis in Dublin

Options
124»

Comments

  • Options
    #92
    magicbastarder
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Arts Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 49,530 CMod ✭✭✭✭magicbastarder


    That doesn't really address the concern. Why should a single passenger be able to use bus lanes when a car full of people, making much more efficient use of the road cannot? There's no greater benefit being bestowed simply because the taxi passenger is using 'public' transport.


  • Options
    #93
    Ballyvassman
    Registered Users Posts: 1 ✭Ballyvassman


    If somebody is unlucky enough to come off because of one of these guys does anybody know if the emergency services can read your medical details via the Taggisar Stickers?


  • Options
    #94
    Wishbone Ash
    Registered Users Posts: 24,993 ✭✭✭✭Wishbone Ash


    the boss of me wrote: »
    Taxis are not a private form of transport. They are public transport.. That's what the p in PSV stands for. As many bus lane's are under utilized it makes sense to allow taxis use them.
    They are available to the public but when hired are essentially 'private'. I don't see why someone who has the funds to hire a PSV for themselves (i.e. privately) should be able to access lanes designated for multi-seat public transport vehicles.

    I don't understand your point about bus lanes being 'under-utilised'. It would defeat their purpose if they were in constant use by small PSV's and similar vehicles.


  • Options
    #95
    the boss of me
    Registered Users Posts: 706 ✭✭✭the boss of me


    magicbastarder wrote: »
    That doesn't really address the concern. Why should a single passenger be able to use bus lanes when a car full of people, making much more efficient use of the road cannot? There's no greater benefit being bestowed simply because the taxi passenger is using 'public' transport.

    You seem to be making the argument that multiple occupancy vehicles should be allowed use bus lanes. That's a whole different point.
    Like it or not, taxis are and always have been viewed as an integral part of the public transport system. Say for example a person is traveling from Cherry wood to East Point.. There is no bus service connection from the Green line to East Point so a passenger may use a taxi for the last part of the journey.


  • Options
    #96
    the boss of me
    Registered Users Posts: 706 ✭✭✭the boss of me


    Wishbone Ash wrote: »

    I don't understand your point about bus lanes being 'under-utilised'. It would defeat their purpose if they were in constant use by small PSV's and similar vehicles.

    What's to understand ?? Take the bus lane along the r132 from the Airport to Santry. There is a bus scheduled on that bus corridor approx every five minutes. The bus lane can handle a lot more traffic than that so why not let taxis take up some of the slack ??


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #97
    tomasrojo
    Registered Users Posts: 11,767 ✭✭✭✭tomasrojo


    Yes, a properly functioning bus lane looks empty most of the time if you’re sitting right next to it in a stopped car.
    http://humantransit.org/2010/10/london-uk-conservatives-attack-m4-bus-lane.html

    (Not sure whether it's a strong argument against letting taxis use bus lanes provided they don't start affecting bus schedules, but bus lanes carry huge numbers of people, despite appearing to be empty a lot of the time.)


  • Options
    #98
    Eathrin
    Registered Users Posts: 8,076 ✭✭✭Eathrin


    I'd also argue that buses and bicycles are far more environmentally friendly than private vehicles and taxis.


  • Options
    #99
    Chuchote
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,368 ✭✭✭Chuchote


    Ballyvassman wrote: »
    If somebody is unlucky enough to come off because of one of these guys does anybody know if the emergency services can read your medical details via the Taggisar Stickers?

    Hadn't heard of these – what a great idea! Can you read them with a phone? Can any old passer-by satisfy his curiosity about your asthma and epilepsy, or only someone entitled to?

    Maybe ask over on the Emergency Services forum (and come back and tell us?)

    Taxis: I suppose the reason they can use bus lanes is that they take some of the strain off the buses. This worked well when taxis were relatively few and strictly licensed, but now that there are so many, bus lanes are often clogged with them, often with a single driver looking for work and driving around and around town.


  • Options
    #100
    Chuchote
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,368 ✭✭✭Chuchote


    Deedsie wrote: »
    I never really understood why an out of service bus or an empty bus or minibus gets to use the bus lane.

    Maybe because they need to get to a starting point before picking people up?


  • Options
    #101
    magicbastarder
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Arts Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 49,530 CMod ✭✭✭✭magicbastarder


    the boss of me wrote: »
    There is no bus service connection from the Green line to East Point so a passenger may use a taxi for the last part of the journey.
    bus to fairview park, then maybe ten minutes walk.
    or walk from clontarf dart station. i used to do it myself, was working in oracle years ago.

    anyway, let's say there wasn't that option. i would regard as weak any argument that taxis should be allowed in bus lanes, because they fill holes in the public transport system.

    it's just kinda odd that i could choose to drive into town, or go out on the road and hail a taxi, and make the same journey, but because i've paid someone else to do the driving, i get to use the bus lanes.

    your typical taxi has a maximum capacity of four passengers, and takes up half the length of the lane that a bus does. so a bus with eight passengers on it would match the most efficient use taxis could typically make of a bus lane. it's not a big issue in the suburbs, but in the city centre, especially with the explosion in the number of taxis, i suspect it is having a measurable impact on the efficiency of the bus service.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #102
    Chuchote
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,368 ✭✭✭Chuchote


    magicbastarder wrote: »
    it's just kinda odd that i could choose to drive into town, or go out on the road and hail a taxi, and make the same journey, but because i've paid someone else to do the driving, i get to use the bus lanes.

    I wonder has anyone made a study of how many passengers are carried on average by taxis (including time spent cruising for fares).


  • Options
    #103
    dinky earnshaw
    Registered Users Posts: 207 ✭✭dinky earnshaw


    Wishbone Ash wrote: »
    Totally agree - why should someone who has decided to utilise a private form of transport be permitted to travel on lanes primarily designated for public transport?

    Are you including cyclists in that ?


  • Options
    #104
    magicbastarder
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Arts Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 49,530 CMod ✭✭✭✭magicbastarder


    fifth image down.

    http://www.citymetric.com/transport/pictures-do-cars-take-too-much-space-city-streets-483

    that's a genius idea from the cyclists in latvia.


  • Options
    #105
    Trond
    Registered Users Posts: 1,972 ✭✭✭Trond


    Wishbone Ash wrote: »
    Totally agree - why should someone who has decided to utilise a private form of transport be permitted to travel on lanes primarily designated for public transport?

    :rolleyes: they are public transport


  • Options
    #106
    Kaisr Sose
    Registered Users Posts: 3,256 ✭✭✭Kaisr Sose


    Deedsie wrote: »
    I never really understood why an out of service bus or an empty bus or minibus gets to use the bus lane.

    Or an empty Taxi...


  • Options
    #107
    magicbastarder
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Arts Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 49,530 CMod ✭✭✭✭magicbastarder


    empty taxis are not allowed use bus lanes, unless they're on the way to pick up a prearranged fare. how many do use the bus lanes when empty and not on the way to pick up a booking is anyone's guess.


  • Options
    #108
    cython
    Registered Users Posts: 4,767 ✭✭✭cython


    magicbastarder wrote: »
    empty taxis are not allowed use bus lanes, unless they're on the way to pick up a prearranged fare. how many do use the bus lanes when empty and not on the way to pick up a booking is anyone's guess.

    Wrong, they can also use them if "plying for hire", i.e. looking for a fare that might try to flag them down.


  • Options
    #109
    Kaisr Sose
    Registered Users Posts: 3,256 ✭✭✭Kaisr Sose


    The nuts and bolts of it is they use them empty. The law should be changed to say "may use a bus lane "only" when conveying a passenger and at no other time"

    Of course, the policing of that will never happen.


  • Options
    #110
    the boss of me
    Registered Users Posts: 706 ✭✭✭the boss of me


    magicbastarder wrote: »
    empty taxis are not allowed use bus lanes, unless they're on the way to pick up a prearranged fare. how many do use the bus lanes when empty and not on the way to pick up a booking is anyone's guess.

    According to the NTA taxis are allowed use bus lanes in the course of their business. This includes carrying pax, on the way to a job or "plying for hire" . They're not allowed use lanes for personal use but that's hard to police.


  • Options
    #111
    Chuchote
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,368 ✭✭✭Chuchote


    magicbastarder wrote: »
    empty taxis are not allowed use bus lanes, unless they're on the way to pick up a prearranged fare. how many do use the bus lanes when empty and not on the way to pick up a booking is anyone's guess.

    Urban legend — or perhaps reality — is that taxi drivers keep an envelope in the glove compartment with an 'address' that they're supposedly going to.


  • Advertisement
  • Options
    #112
    cython
    Registered Users Posts: 4,767 ✭✭✭cython


    Chuchote wrote: »
    Urban legend — or perhaps reality — is that taxi drivers keep an envelope in the glove compartment with an 'address' that they're supposedly going to.

    They're not allowed to use them to carry only goods and not passengers, so unless that is claimed to be the address of a pre-booked fare that happened to be noted on an envelope, having it there is no good to them.


  • Options
    #113
    Chuchote
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,368 ✭✭✭Chuchote


    cython wrote: »
    They're not allowed to use them to carry only goods and not passengers, so unless that is claimed to be the address of a pre-booked fare that happened to be noted on an envelope, having it there is no good to them.

    Yeah, that's what it's supposed to be, in the urban legend.


Advertisement