Automatic ticket checking in Heuston

[Mark Gleeson]

Platforms are no longer announced until the train is ready to board, it avoids the huge snaking queues across the concourse.

This practice is fairly common elsewhere it is practiced in France

With the new gates the boarding process is much faster, avoiding the manual checking of tickets

Late boarding of trains in Heuston is nothing new, the 18:35 service has long suffered from it

[MaryK]

But if you read your ticket info for your online seat reservation it says please take your seat 20 min before the train departs. I have no problem with not boarding the train until it is ready but change the info on the on-line ticketing system to match up.

[iridium]

Has something changed with the software? Up to yesterday my monthly ticket was working fine, but today the gates didn't want to know - going in or out of Heuston. Ticket does not have City Centre option on it. Instead of letting me through, the machine took in the ticket and then proceeded to spit it back out and take it back in rapidly again several times in succession. Sort of like it was blowing a raspberry really.

Seriously, it's time to just deactivate the gates and leave them open until they actually work. How many thousands of euro have IE blown on this farce of a system?!

[Colm Moore]

I was there the other day, mid-morning and it seemed to be running fairly smoothly. Sure they had to let all the season ticket holders through a held open gate, but everyone seemed to have a ticket and anyone who had problems at first, was able to work it the second time.

Originally Posted by iridium

Has something changed with the software? Up to yesterday my monthly ticket was working fine, but today the gates didn't want to know - going in or out of Heuston. Ticket does not have City Centre option on it.

Did you use it in a bus?

Instead of letting me through, the machine took in the ticket and then proceeded to spit it back out and take it back in rapidly again several times in succession. Sort of like it was blowing a raspberry really.

Is the ticket bent or otherwise damaged?

Seriously, it's time to just deactivate the gates and leave them open until they actually work. How many thousands of euro have IE blown on this farce of a system?!

Once most tickets move over to smart cards, most of the problems should disappear. The first time failure rate with Dublin Bus smart cards is about 1% and I've not seen many second time fails at all.

[Thomas Ralph]

Originally Posted by iridium

Instead of letting me through, the machine took in the ticket and then proceeded to spit it back out and take it back in rapidly again several times in succession. Sort of like it was blowing a raspberry really

That normally happens if it can't read the magnetic stripe. Look at the message display on the gate: if it says "wrong side up" or "ticket failed", then it can't read the ticket.

[Mark Gleeson]

The rapid in and out generally indicates a problem with the reader, Dublin Bus had a similar thing. The ticket is normally accepted by the machine though after a few seconds

The situation in Heuston is unacceptable, its a lot better than the first week but all the problems where foreseeable if there had been a robust testing phase they would never have happened

[plant43]

Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson

There is a rule book called RVAR, its over 100 pages in length and is feared by train builders

It lays down the exact form of words which is acceptable, the timing and so on. Of course Irish Rail don't follow the rules to the letter, NIR do.

Of course you assume the system will be turned on

I travelled on Southern and South West Trains in the past few weeks and the amount of on board information is a lot more than on Irish Rail.

Example:
- Announcments about train dividing at some point an hour (or more) down the line, repeated audibly 5+ times after each station, may more times visually
- Announcments about onboard ticket checking about to take place
- Announcments to be aware of pickpockets
- Announcment that there is a trolley service on the train

Compared to this, Irish Rail is actually pretty good at giving short, concise information (when the systems are working).

[Oisin88]

The last few weeks it seems that they have given up on entrance/exit validation at heuston. When the train arrives, the whole group goes through the open gate with the old style ticket checker there, using his (sorry they are mostly "he") initiative whether or not to check tickets.

I don't know if the rest of the machines are working because my annual ticket gave up after about 3 months of use on the machines, and I now have to show it.

Pity about the waste of all that money.

[Oisin88]

Also, the on train ticket checkers are still insisting on ticket checking even before the first stop out of Heuston and after the last stop towards Heuston

[Colm Moore]

Making sure everyone pays their (correct) fare is very important to the bottom line due to the past levels of evasion. The alternative of not checking is higher fares or fewer trains for the rest of us. The extra checks cost nothing as the staff are employed anyway.

[Mark Gleeson]

But whats the point if the passengers will be checked on arrival, the reverse should be the case the train should be checked mid journey

There is also a headcount being done at the same time, which is important to the bottom line

That said in the UK, on a long distance service where the staff change, the new staff again check tickets

[Colm Moore]

The other day, we were checked at Heuston (ticket barrier, but the emergency gate was open ) and somewhere Heuston-Thurles. Only people boarding Thurles-Mallow were checked after that. Interestingly, the train host and the ticket checker both did the ticket checking.

[Thomas Ralph]

Yes, we had the train host/ticket checker double-teaming on the 1100 Heuston-Cork last Saturday too. Interesting as I thought there was a demarcation issue there.

[Oisin88]

Originally Posted by Victor

Making sure everyone pays their (correct) fare is very important to the bottom line due to the past levels of evasion. The alternative of not checking is higher fares or fewer trains for the rest of us. The extra checks cost nothing as the staff are employed anyway.

What about the cost/benefit of putting the machines in in Heuston then? If the staff were already there checking, why the extra machines? I'm sure a few less people on the dole would be most people's preferred option.

[Mark Gleeson]

Originally Posted by Oisin88

What about the cost/benefit of putting the machines in in Heuston then? If the staff were already there checking, why the extra machines? I'm sure a few less people on the dole would be most people's preferred option.

For smartcard functionality and the ticket check also is a passenger count and breakdown

[Ron Burgundy]

This morning the guy at the gate insisted everyone try their ticket in the machine even when they all said they don't work. Massive que developed and another staff member then came over to open the gate to everyone and stop the farce.

I pay over 2k a year for my ticket and if they put in this system i expect it to work with my ticket. I don't want an excuse and i don't want to be told to go to a building beside Connolly to get another ticket ( time and effort on my part )

When you are in a hurry for a train and your ticket doesn't work it can become a real pain trying to get through these barriers.

I don't get a new ticket until April and i sick of this rubbish on a daily basis.

[Colm Moore]

Originally Posted by Ron Burgundy

I pay over 2k a year for my ticket and if they put in this system i expect it to work with my ticket. I don't want an excuse and i don't want to be told to go to a building beside Connolly to get another ticket ( time and effort on my part )

Have them send a replacement to your local station and return you old one when you collect it.

No guarantee how long it will last though.

[Ron Burgundy]

Originally Posted by Victor

Have them send a replacement to your local station and return you old one when you collect it.

No guarantee how long it will last though.

I think that might be a little too hard for the staff in Portarlington, unless i write what i want out in crayon

[Oisin88]

Have they given up on ticket validation in Heuston already having spent all the money?
Almost every evening all passengers on my train walk through an open gate that says "turas in aisce." Sometimes there is an Irish Rail employee somewhere near, sometimes there isn't. Tickets are still checked on the train.

[Ron Burgundy]

Originally Posted by Ron Burgundy

This morning the guy at the gate insisted everyone try their ticket in the machine even when they all said they don't work. Massive que developed and another staff member then came over to open the gate to everyone and stop the farce.

I pay over 2k a year for my ticket and if they put in this system i expect it to work with my ticket. I don't want an excuse and i don't want to be told to go to a building beside Connolly to get another ticket ( time and effort on my part )

When you are in a hurry for a train and your ticket doesn't work it can become a real pain trying to get through these barriers.

I don't get a new ticket until April and i sick of this rubbish on a daily basis.

This is happening again and how they can keep this system in place when it is clearly not working is beyond me.