Bus and Train fares to rise soon!

jock101 · 18-10-2010 10:28PM #1

Our genius minister of transport Dempsey, announced today that the prices of a bus and train ticket is due to rise, in an effort to get people to use public transport by using some new smart card system that will cost of a packet, if they get it working at all! I'll stick to my car thank you!

Scofflaw · 18-10-2010 10:44PM

Link, please. Will check back in an hour or so - if no link has been added, thread is dead.

OP, are you aware there's such a thing as Twitter?

moderately,
Scofflaw

jock101 · 18-10-2010 10:51PM

http://www.herald.ie/national-news/city-news/smart-card-will-push-up-commuter-fares-2384096.html

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/commuters-face-cash-fare-hike-in-smart-system-2383739.html

:P:P

ongarite · 18-10-2010 11:22PM

Its about time this was introduced, its a disgrace Dublin hasn't had integrated ticketing before.

Just back from London and their "Oyster" card system is fantastic. Super easy to use and tourist friendly.

Cookie_Monster · 19-10-2010 07:26AM

I wouldn't hold your breath on this system making its debut on time. Prices will not rise by the way, they will rise for cash fares, which is entirely your choice to pay. Cash fares will rise to discourage them as they take longer to process and slow everything down.
Aside from this prices will probably rise for all PT with the budget anyway

FreudianSlippers · 19-10-2010 07:30AM

I think the rise in prices are ok once the new smartcards are cheap enough. Once it's clearly beneficial to use the smartcards over individual fares then I see no problem really.

senordingdong · 19-10-2010 07:34AM

OisinT wrote: »

I think the rise in prices are ok once the new smartcards are cheap enough. Once it's clearly beneficial to use the smartcards over individual fares then I see no problem really.

Doubht it.

The way I see it is that the second people flock to the cards, the cost of the cards will rise.

dan_d · 19-10-2010 08:36AM

Hang on a second. Prices have done nothing BUT rise for at least the last 7 years or more. The quality of service has not improved correspondingly. In fact this year, it has disproved - due to "cutbacks" (subtitles:all the money we were getting in was being used to give pay rises....now there's less money in, we're still paying the same wages, so we'll just have to cut the services...oh well.) Add in the fact that we are now being charged to park at the train stations and use the lousy service...where is all the money going?? Where??

We've built 2 Luas tracks that don't meet, the DART has made it to Malahide and no further - regardless of the fact that Dublin has extended hugely out this side...and the airport still has no rail link to it. Having travelled in numerous European and American cities for years, I can quite safely say our public transport system is a complete and total joke for the amount of money that goes into it's coffers every year. I'm not saying they should operate at a profit - public transport system generally don't. I'm saying there's a way of operating a public transport system efficiently, usefully, and (most importantly) to make it attractive to people to use - and it is most definitely not operated in this way. Or any way, it would appear.

As for the Smart Card - was there not a news story in the recent past that 2 smart cards will have to be used because they managed to not install a system that will work across all public transport and only need one card. And apparently it's taken them 8 years to bring in this system. What on earth have they been doing??

http://www.tribune.ie/news/home-news/article/2009/jul/05/186m-travel-smartcard-wont-be-available-until-2010/

The phrase "couldn't organise a p*&s up in a brewery" comes to mind, in the case of both the Government, Iarnrod Eireann and Bus Eireann. As far as I'm concerned (as with everything in this country) we've had more money than we knew what to do with for the last 10 years, and I'm still looking at the same unreliable rubbish bus system, and a train timetable that's more and more similar to the 2000 timetable every year. We could have spent the last 10 years throwing money at creating a fantastic public transport system - Luas Lines that linked and preferably connected to the airport and through various suburbs, DART service to Drogheda (It goes to Greystones on the south side...) or at the very least, Balbriggan, improving and widening the bottlenecks that are Tara Street, and Connolly, running regular trains to (at the very least) every major city in the country, improved bus services between suburbs instead of all through the city centre....I could go on for years. Instead we're regressing - again. Apparently we haven't learned.

Sorry for the rant, but this particular subject infuriates me, especially since I'm a regular train user.

donkey balls · 19-10-2010 02:33PM

When i lived in Austrailia i used a smart card to get to work which involved bus&train journeys and the odd ferry that was back in 2003,My friends father works for CIE and i told him about the way things are done in Sydney.
He told me that one of the reasons/delays in bringing out a ticketless system here was that none of the transport providers could agree on the amount of profits to be split.

Bottle_of_Smoke · 19-10-2010 03:59PM

A1. Much prefer these kind of systems

AlekSmart · 19-10-2010 04:23PM

I could go on for years. Instead we're regressing - again. Apparently we haven't learned

No dan_d you`re wrong...we have learned,or at least our Minister for Transport has learned....That theres gold in them thar hills...especially when you`re cosying up to Private Sector Road Toll Franchisees by guaranteeing them BIG MONEY !!... then telling the muppets who`ll be paying it that it`s all so Commercially Sensitive that it`s must be kept secret at all costs.

Thats not regression,surely Dan.....?

dan_d · 19-10-2010 05:27PM

AlekSmart wrote: »

No dan_d you`re wrong...we have learned,or at least our Minister for Transport has learned....That theres gold in them thar hills...especially when you`re cosying up to Private Sector Road Toll Franchisees by guaranteeing them BIG MONEY !!... then telling the muppets who`ll be paying it that it`s all so Commercially Sensitive that it`s must be kept secret at all costs.

Thats not regression,surely Dan.....?

Never! Thanks for proving me wrong!!!:rolleyes:;)

fat__tony · 19-10-2010 05:32PM

Wonderful, more hikes in public transport prices with the general economy on it's knees.

What world are they living in?

The CIE are a waste of oxygen. :mad:

AlekSmart · 19-10-2010 07:40PM

Sorry Fat_Tony,but for this little scam it`s not all down to CIE.

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/commuters-face-cash-fare-hike-in-smart-system-2383739.html

Please remember that this stuff all spewed forth from the lips of Mr Timothy Gaston,a gentleman with the rather splendid,and expensive sounding,title of Director-Integrated Ticketing Board.

Pay particular attention to these lines.....

"Schemes all over the world have some kind of incentive. When they're everywhere and you can use them then there should be a differential in the cash fare."

All sounds very well and good,commonsense even.....?

Then,just as we start to feel a warm inner glow.....a "source" then slips seamlessly into PolitiKspeaK....

A source said that cash fares were likely to rise from their present levels as opposed to offering a discount on 'smart card' fares.

"We're creating an all-mode ticket (ITS) and at the time (it's being rolled out), we'll be looking at differential pricing," the source said. "We're probably more likely to put up cash fares than discounting fares. The hope then is that people sign up to it. The convenience element is important, and it's helped if there's a reduction in fares."

This source is indeed a master/mistress of PolitikSpeaK...in order to offer a "SmartCard Incentive" we will use the ingenuity of the Irish.

...."OK Ted,this is the crack...if we increase the Cash Fares before the Smart Ticket goes live,then we keep the Smart Ticket prices at the old cash level,then the plain people will actually think they`re gettin a discount....Simple Ted Eh..?...Innit..Y`see they`ll think it`s a REDUCTION....Genius or wha!! "...:eek:

I don`t actually know what we`re paying a Director-Integrated Ticketing Board these days,but it ain`t half enough for entertainment like this....encore encore I say...:rolleyes:

Or more of this sort of stuff......http://debates.oireachtas.ie/DDebate.aspx?F=TRJ20080326.xml&Node=H4

I need to lie down :cool:

dynamick · 19-10-2010 08:29PM

In London, all bus journeys were £1 in 2004, now they are £2 cash fare but £1.20 when paid by Oyster Card. Under 16s are free. So I would guess that Dublin will go the same direction with a surcharge at first to get the smart card to catch on and then nearly double the cash fare so that the bus isn't delayed by people buying tickets on board. Almost nobody pays cash for a bus ticket now in London.

View · 20-10-2010 12:26AM

Many public transport systems do not allow cash fares at all. Instead, they operate on a pre-pay basis. There is no reason why such a system couldn't be introduced here. It would speed up the loading of public transport at stops and, hence, reduce journey times.

No need to worry about "cash fares being raised then".

senordingdong · 20-10-2010 07:47AM

View wrote: »

Many public transport systems do not allow cash fares at all. Instead, they operate on a pre-pay basis. There is no reason why such a system couldn't be introduced here. It would speed up the loading of public transport at stops and, hence, reduce journey times.

No need to worry about "cash fares being raised then".

Are the rates of these pre-paid methods ring fenced?

Is it not possible for the cost of pre paid tickets to go up?

Deise Tom · 20-10-2010 08:04PM

jock101 wrote: »

Our genius minister of transport Dempsey, announced today that the prices of a bus and train ticket is due to rise, in an effort to get people to use public transport by using some new smart card system that will cost of a packet, if they get it working at all! I'll stick to my car thank you!

That particular man, must be one of the all time worlds worsts ministers.

jimmycrackcorm · 21-10-2010 02:28AM

I have to take an expressway bus this weekend for the first time in a long time. I was shocked at finding out the ticket cost, plus I'll have to also take the luas and Dublin bus to get to my destination. The total cost exceeds the fuel cost of me driving my car for the same journey. I also have static costs for running a car but they balance up the significant time savings.

This is bizarre from a public transport policy point of view. Surely the idea is to incentivise and so improve public transport?

AlekSmart · 21-10-2010 09:42PM

Surely the idea is to incentivise and so improve public transport?

Where in the name of God,Jimmycrackcorn did you get that bizzarre notion from ?

The only incentives this administration,and in particular it`s Department of Transport are concerned about are ones which will improve the Cash Flow and Balance Sheets of its Toll Franchisee`s and this is,in principle,totally opposed in ethos,to improving affordable efficient Public Transport.

These brave entreprenurial types who took enormous risks in setting up the Toll Franchises just deserve their rewards without being subject to undue public scrutiny....don`t they .....well don`t they ???

senordingdong · 22-10-2010 11:53AM

Furthermore, in some of my journies, I will pay cash, becasue the que to pay with cash is a fraction of the size of the pre-paid que.

Method of payment is a see saw and will never change the duration of journies.

Deise Tom · 22-10-2010 12:00PM

Following on from the recent 50 cent added to each perscription charge which medical card patients have to pay which is used as a way of generating income for the government, why dont they do something similar with the bus pass. Why not charge say a Euro if the fair is above a certain prize, say five or ten euro. The amount of them in the country is huge and they are used. I have one and use it from time to time and would not minding paying a euro or two to travel to Dublin or Cork etc.

Bus and Train fares to rise soon!

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