Travel Experiences - Post Malahide Viaduct Collapse

[James Shields]

Originally Posted by irishsaint

http://www.nirailways.co.uk/enterpri...nformation.asp
Really? I aint seen any dissable friendly busses opperate from drogheda. Anyone else?

Depends... Does "carry passenger up to coach seat and throw wheelchair in luggage compartment underneath" count as accessable?

I haven't seen any disabled users try to use it yet.

[irishsaint]

Ok so here is the latest news etc that i can find out/ source from nir.

The 3rd enterprise set which should be in use is being stored in inchicore. It is hoped that at some stage over the weekend, it will be loaded to truck and transferred to belfast to be put back into use...i dont know how reliable it is this is but that it came from a translink official can only be posative. Next up is fully fuelled,the Enterprise is able to do Dublin - Belfast - Dublin x 2 before requering to be refuelled again. Note, it is currently only going as far as drogheda. There is no reason why the enterprise cant be refuelled in york st depot, its just practice was to refuel through out the opperating day in dublin... so its just changed to drogheda!!

I see a previous post about the road works etc.... its a nightmare..... there must be another way into drogheda that is not too inconvenient?

[Mark Gleeson]

But its no longer in Inchicore its in Heuston, highly unlikely to be honest, when there are 3 usable sets elsewhere

[James Shields]

Originally Posted by irishsaint

I see a previous post about the road works etc.... its a nightmare..... there must be another way into drogheda that is not too inconvenient?

Agree the road works are a pain. I was on the 9pm bus tonight. Made Connolly to start of road works in 38 minutes, then was stuck for a further 10 minutes.

The alternative is to stay on the motorway to the next exit and come in to Drogheda by the Duleek or Donore roads and back to the station. This would also avoid Julianstown, so would definitely save time. The trouble is it would mean paying €5 per bus for the toll bridge.

[chris]

Originally Posted by James Shields

The alternative is to stay on the motorway to the next exit and come in to Drogheda by the Duleek or Donore roads and back to the station. This would also avoid Julianstown, so would definitely save time. The trouble is it would mean paying €5 per bus for the toll bridge.

Surely some arms could be twisted to either curtail the roadworks or drop the toll for rail replacement services?

Also, are there any plans to start at least enabling work as far as balbriggan on electrification? the travelling public will NOT be happy if this line is forced to close again unnecessarily for that.

[irishsaint]

Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson

But its no longer in Inchicore its in Heuston, highly unlikely to be honest, when there are 3 usable sets elsewhere

Perhaps they are going to load it at heuston to truck.

[irishsaint]

the 7:35 Dublin - Belfast Enterprise was delayed by about 30 minutes this morning, should have left drogheda at 8:30 but didnt leave till about 9:00... this will have a continuous knock on effect for the whole day.

[stuffit]

The Connolly to Drogheda bus drivers are total pr**ks.

They are refusing to stop en-route to Drogheda.

There are plenty of people living just off the Dublin Road who are driven right past their housing estates as the buses approach Drogheda. The drivers are refusing to stop and let passengers off the bus.

There are road works for the next three months 1 km south of Drogheda. Only one lane is in use with temporary signals operated by the construction crews. This results in 10 minute tailbacks at the road works. Why not let the passangers disembark if they wish. It's no inconvenience to the driver. The bus has to stop anyway so the total journey time wouldn't be impacted.

This intransigence is adding 20 minutes travel time to anyone living on the south side of Drogheda.


Also anyone living in Laytown might want to exit the bus as it leaves Julianstown. Instead they are forced to travel to Drogheda and wait for a train to take them back in the direction they've just travelled from. Commuters must wait 30 minutes on average at Drogheda station for the train service to Laytown.

[RHanaway]

Originally Posted by stuffit

They are refusing to stop en-route to Drogheda.

They can't just stop anywhere someone fancies getting off.
However, a little common sense is called for here when the bus is going to be stopped for 5 mins let people off (if its safe to do so), your correct it has no impact on journey time. Also would it kill the drivers to stop for 1 min in Julianstown???

[irishsaint]

I actually think its down to the drivers.... there was one I had (hawaii five owe)... wearing his really cool blue shaded raybans with his bluetooth earpiece, this guy would have made the hoff look ordinary in red swim shorts.

anyway... this chap was the driver i had wed evening and he had a sign cellotaped to the front of the bus saying, no request stops allowed. Someone did ask him when stuck in the road work tail back and he said no.

Yesterday evening, before the tailback at the old europa hotel a bus driver stopped and let someone out then drove on and when we got stuck in the chaos of the road works, about a dozen people got off..... its completely down to to who the driver is..... some are ordinary decent folk, some are not.

[Mark Gleeson]

Due safety reasons we have been told most drivers will not allow you off the bus in Julianstown

You can of course travel, Dublin Malahide - bus Donabate and train onwards to Drogheda if you wish, that will run all day as of Monday

[ThomasJ]

Originally Posted by irishsaint

anyway... this chap was the driver i had wed evening and he had a sign cellotaped to the front of the bus saying, no request stops allowed. Someone did ask him when stuck in the road work tail back and he said no.

Yesterday evening, before the tailback at the old europa hotel a bus driver stopped and let someone out then drove on and when we got stuck in the chaos of the road works, about a dozen people got off..... its completely down to to who the driver is..... some are ordinary decent folk, some are not.

i think the driver is doing it at their own discretion and own risk.

i dont know about be or the other bus companies but ive heard dublin bus hq have been instructing their drivers not to let passengers on/off between stops and that they are using security cameras to ensure this is been adhered to.

[Colm Moore]

Originally Posted by stuffit

The Connolly to Drogheda bus drivers are total pr**ks.

They are refusing to stop en-route to Drogheda.

I think thats a little unfair.

1. Bus companies are only allowed serve bus stop.
2. While drivers may occassionally allow passengers off if they are stuck in traffic and they happen to be up against the kerb, there is no way there are going to do it if they aren't up against the kerb - they can't risk someone falling, espcially if that person is inconsidate. Foul mouthed people are often inconsiderate.

If you want an addtional stop provided, talk to the bus company (possibly Irish Rail in this case), not the driver.

[roamling]

Originally Posted by Victor

If you want an addtional stop provided, talk to the bus company (possibly Irish Rail in this case), not the driver.

I agree. the bus companies have their own safety standarts and we should be glad that Dublin Bus and others are actually trying to cope with the mess IE created in the first place. The bus driver cant just let people off because their house might be in sight but there is no bus stop. IE should take the complaint about any inconvenience caused and then try to fix it, not the busdriver.

[tigger1962]

I don't think this is fair on the bus drivers... you can't get off a train mid stop and the service is from station to station. They are not advertised as being a bus service just as a stopgap to those who have to get to dublin and back to drogheda ... if you want to get off at a bus stop use the advertised Bus Eireann services!

[irishsaint]

Originally Posted by irishsaint

the 7:35 Dublin - Belfast Enterprise was delayed by about 30 minutes this morning, should have left drogheda at 8:30 but didnt leave till about 9:00... this will have a continuous knock on effect for the whole day.

the 12:15 enterprise from drogheda (old 11 from connolly) was delayed about 25mins - left at 12:30.... looks like that knock on from this morning is causing 30mins delays on the new emergency timetabled enterprise departures from drogheda....

[tigger1962]

yep it is.. the incoming train from belfast arrived 16.28, it was one of those new commuter machines. Left at 16.33.. quick turn around.

[irishsaint]

Originally Posted by tigger1962

yep it is.. the incoming train from belfast arrived 16.28, it was one of those new commuter machines. Left at 16.33.. quick turn around.

yep, that is! thats 13mins late dept so they have made up time at least... all will be lost though at 20:00 when the nightmare refuelling ritual begins..

[citizens7]

Originally Posted by chris

Surely some arms could be twisted to either curtail the roadworks or drop the toll for rail replacement services?

Also, are there any plans to start at least enabling work as far as balbriggan on electrification? the travelling public will NOT be happy if this line is forced to close again unnecessarily for that.

For passengers going to Dundalk and further north why can't a bus be run directly from Connolly to Dundalk station.

[citizens7]

Originally Posted by tigger1962

I don't think this is fair on the bus drivers... you can't get off a train mid stop and the service is from station to station. They are not advertised as being a bus service just as a stopgap to those who have to get to dublin and back to drogheda ... if you want to get off at a bus stop use the advertised Bus Eireann services!

I agree, its bad enough having to stop for roadworks without having to stop to let people off who can't be bother walking from Drogheda station as they would have done when trains were running.