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Unread 23-11-2009, 13:20   #1
Jferb
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Default 19:15 Tralee-Dublin Web-Fare

The 19:15 Tralee to Dublin adult web-fare appears to have gone up to €20 (from €10) after November 29th. However, the same train from Cork (20:30) is still listed as €10. This is surely a glitch and I've contact IE on the matter but unsurprisingly they haven't had the good manners to get back to me.
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Unread 23-11-2009, 13:52   #2
plant43
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Bit of digging gets the page listing the services

http://www.irishrail.ie/news_centre/...ew&news_id=402

It's noted that the services listed there are only valid for special fares until 28th November. It looks like they have removed the 1915 train from the special offer? I don't think the fact that the Cork train is still 10 euro has any bearing on this. (don't see why either)
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Unread 24-11-2009, 17:28   #3
Jferb
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The Cork and Tralee trains are the same train from Mallow so it would be illogical that the fare from Tralee should suddenly go up to €20 while still being €10 from Cork. Up to now, every such train has been priced the same from/to Tralee and Cork (be it €10,€20 or €36).

Furthermore, the 19.15 is the only €10 service between Tralee and Heuston so I'd doubt that they'd scrap it whilst retaining the €10 promotion elsewhere. The 11.00 Heuston to Tralee (and Cork) remains €10.
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Unread 25-11-2009, 09:56   #4
Thomas Ralph
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Sounds like price discrimination to me.
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Unread 25-11-2009, 17:23   #5
Jferb
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Got the following response from IE earlier:

I have checked the website the pricing is correct Cork to Heuston €10.00, Tralee to Heuston €20.00.

So this means that there'll no longer be any €10 fares from Tralee to Dublin but there remains no less than three trains a day from Cork priced at €10 (including the train the 19:15 feeds into - and that train is €10 from Limerick also).

And there remains €10 fares from Sligo, Westport, Galway, Limerick and Waterford to Dublin too. So have IE decided to specifically s**t on their Kerry customers?!?!?!
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Unread 25-11-2009, 20:11   #6
Colm Moore
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Not necessarily. Those fares aren't there as of right, they are there to fill seats. If the seats are full or near full, there is no need to offer low fares.

What are occupancy levels like on those trains?
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Unread 25-11-2009, 23:58   #7
Jferb
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I'd believe that if it were true but from my experience it's not. On a number of occasions when I've been on the 11:00 Dublin-Tralee, people have actually been left standing from Mallow to Killarney and that train is always €10, except Fridays.

The soon to be axed 20:00 Dublin-Tralee on the other hand is a very quiet service, yet it's always €20. The 19:15 Tralee-Dublin is similarly quiet and I've seen no recent increase in numbers that would justify a sudden doubling of the fare. And, as I've already said, that train connects with the 20:30 Cork-Dublin at Mallow and that remains €10 from Cork (as does the connecting train from Limerick) so this can only be interpreted as blatant discrimination against those using this particular service from Kerry.
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Unread 26-11-2009, 00:04   #8
Mark Gleeson
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It is further from Tralee by 40 miles. The capacity pinch is between Mallow and Tralee not the mainline section in many cases

The goal of the 10 euro fare is to fill previously quiet trains, the 11am used to be quiet, now its busy. There are plans for a more advanced pricing system based on demand without any function of time, I have been briefed by IE on this and it is very fair compared to the time based fares in Europe, as in book 2 weeks ahead. Not sure when we will be seeing it deployed

In the past where we spotted errors in the pricing Irish Rail moved quickly to fix the issue

Last edited by Mark Gleeson : 26-11-2009 at 00:17.
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Unread 26-11-2009, 08:37   #9
Thomas Ralph
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Discrimination it may be, Jferb, but it's no different than Ryanair fares to Paris Beauvais (and no doubt similar prices of other airlines) magically shooting up on the dates around the France/Ireland football match last week, the Six Nations match in February, and the Heineken Cup final in May. The normal single price for that journey is €66; if IÉ can fill the train at €20 a seat it makes no business sense whatsoever for them to charge €10.
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Unread 26-11-2009, 16:19   #10
Jferb
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I still think ye're missing the point I'm making. There isn't much demand for the 19:15 between Tralee and Mallow so there doesn't seem to be any logic to scrapping the €10 fare to Dublin on this service, especially when the €10 fare remains on this service for those departing from Cork and Limerick.

On the other hand, I've been ages expecting the €10 fare on the 11:00 Dublin/Cork/Tralee to be scrapped as that service is so packed, but the €10 fare remains on that service into December. So IE are clearly not logically adjusting their prices according to demand!
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Unread 26-11-2009, 16:27   #11
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There is one change in this service from the 29th though. At the moment the 20:30 train from Cork doesn't stop in Limerick Junction. From next week it will, with a connecting train from Limerick. Being a cynic, I can only surmise that IE have decided to shaft its Kerry customers to accommodate the extra €10 paying passengers expected from Limerick.
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Unread 05-12-2009, 19:38   #12
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Will it seems my perseverance at hassling IE has paid off! The 19:15 is now back down to €10 again.

Or else this quick change of heart is a mere coincidence..
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Unread 06-12-2009, 11:20   #13
plant43
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jferb View Post
Will it seems my perseverance at hassling IE has paid off! The 19:15 is now back down to €10 again.

Or else this quick change of heart is a mere coincidence..
Someone pointed out on Facebook that there were no 10 euro fares from Kerry-Dublin. And hey presto, 10 euro fares are back again.

Looks like Facebook is the best means of contacting Irish Rail now, which says a lot.
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