Iarnród Éireann funding crisis puts lines at risk, report warns

[Colm Moore]

Originally Posted by grainne whale

Yes, it won't be too far off now, my point is that they are not actually travelling for free (we) have made our contribution over all the years of working.

Originally Posted by grainne whale

Scrap, car parking changes at stations and people will use the train more. Travelling by bus is just as quick and no car parking changes.

Anything that is free at the point of use is at risk of being misused / abused.

[grainne whale]

Originally Posted by Colm Moore

Anything that is free at the point of use is at risk of being misused / abused.

That may very well be the case - however it discourages people from travelling by train (where I live in Celbridge) nobody is going to drive to the station (1.5 miles from town) and pay for parking on top of the train fare - it's far easier to hop on a bus. There are no parking charges in Clondalkin / Fonthill station and the parking there is not abused.

[Jamie2k9]

There are no parking charges in Clondalkin / Fonthill station and the parking there is not abused.

That's because it's miles from anywhere useful.

I agree parking charges are a problem but regular users get reasonable deals and I think continued promoting of this is required.

[grainne whale]

Originally Posted by Jamie2k9

That's because it's miles from anywhere useful.

I agree parking charges are a problem but regular users get reasonable deals and I think continued promoting of this is required.

Now that would be an idea - free parking where stations 'are miles from anywhere' should be free - ie Hazelhatch/ Celbridge

[James Howard]

While regular users used to get very reasonable deals on annual passes, this has gone up by 50% over the last 4 years. Since it's now down to about a 40% discount on 12 monthlies, that will be eroded entirely over the next 3 to 4 years at this rate.

I do think that on principle, you should be charged a bit extra to park a car at the station but for some stations enforcement costs must come pretty close to the revenue. By the time you've factored in the revenue lost this has to almost entirely absorb the income stream from parking.

My understanding is that Irish Rail get about a million euro a year from parking. This is the revenue gained from about 250 to 300 long-distance passes or about 40,000 day returns. I tend to encourage friends and neighbours to use the train when travelling to Dublin as it is so much easier than driving but the most common reason people give for driving aside from the train not going where they need to go is the parking charges.

4.50 on top of 25 euro for a journey than can be done on 20 euro of diesel tips the balance for a lot of people and makes it senseless to use the train if two people are travelling.

[grainne whale]

Originally Posted by James Howard

While regular users used to get very reasonable deals on annual passes, this has gone up by 50% over the last 4 years. Since it's now down to about a 40% discount on 12 monthlies, that will be eroded entirely over the next 3 to 4 years at this rate.

I do think that on principle, you should be charged a bit extra to park a car at the station but for some stations enforcement costs must come pretty close to the revenue. By the time you've factored in the revenue lost this has to almost entirely absorb the income stream from parking.

My understanding is that Irish Rail get about a million euro a year from parking. This is the revenue gained from about 250 to 300 long-distance passes or about 40,000 day returns. I tend to encourage friends and neighbours to use the train when travelling to Dublin as it is so much easier than driving but the most common reason people give for driving aside from the train not going where they need to go is the parking charges.

4.50 on top of 25 euro for a journey than can be done on 20 euro of diesel tips the balance for a lot of people and makes it senseless to use the train if two people are travelling.

Yes I find the same, I always encourage friends/neighbours to use the train Celbridge/Hazelhatch to Dublin as it is far more pleasant than a bus journey, but again it's the parking charges that put them off, also the cost of 145/Luas is a factor. For them it's a no brainer, it's far easier to drive.

[Jamie2k9]

Now that would be an idea - free parking where stations 'are miles from anywhere' should be free - ie Hazelhatch/ Celbridge

I knew I should of been clearer in the first post!

Problem is Clondalkin carries next to no passengers because planned development didn't happen. The same case can't be made about Hazelhatch.

I'm sure free parking would help but it's a necessity at Clondalkin but not so much a problem at Hazelhatch.

[Underground]

Originally Posted by grainne whale

Yes I find the same, I always encourage friends/neighbours to use the train Celbridge/Hazelhatch to Dublin as it is far more pleasant than a bus journey, but again it's the parking charges that put them off, also the cost of 145/Luas is a factor. For them it's a no brainer, it's far easier to drive.

The next stop in, Adamstown, has free parking. The actual main carpark was never even finished!