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When I heard the fare increases for the LUAS, I was taken aback. I thought Transport 21 was a turned corner in our commitment to public transport and getting people out of cars. We had issues with its close proximity to election time but it was something. Then we get this piece of joined up thinking:
The LUAS operators say it is designed to alleviate rush hour congestion by encouraging people to use the service at different times.
What brainbox decided that a workforce where the majority need to be in work between 8:30 and 9:30 would have the luxury of “using it at other times?” The implicit logic in all this is—unfortunately—not an exodus to the bus service—those on the red line are as delayed as cars travelling to the city—but back to the car, on a road that could really take no more. If you can put more carriages on, then do it. Otherwise the cracks begin to widen unmanageably on a strategy for public transport and when that happens the only indication a public will take from it is to return to the road.
Grand, it is only a 10c increase but the most prolific users of public transport are workers for whom the service is effective. LUAS users—especially red-line users—have a fantastic service encouraging them to ditch the car in droves. Simon McGarr put the point succinctly and more eloquently than I, so a blatant cog:
Did you see that the Railway Procurement Agency recently proudly announced that the Luas was a roaring success? It had so many passengers that it no longer needed a subsidy.
Here’s another way of looking at this apparent success. The low anticipated usage numbers, on which the decision to build an on-street tram line, rather than a fast, high-capacity, integrated metro system was based, were wrong.
People are riding the Red Line from Town to Tallaght and back again. Every day, they are squashed into a sweaty crush because the figures used by the people who made that decision took no account of the accelerating growth evident in Ireland from 1987 on. And, here’s what makes me grind my teeth: they were alerted to the mistake when they could have done something about it. They decided to go ahead anyway.
Similar decisions are being made about the unintegrated Metro lines being planned at the moment. Look forward to frustration and chaos at the proposed Stephen’s Green Metro station for the rest of your life because the decision has been made to ignore the usual underground model according to which lines begin and endoutside the city centre to prevent overcrowding and ease cross-town travel.
I was also wondering about this.
Let’s face facts. Public transport in this banana republic is a total and complete farce. If you want to travel do so off-peak. Travelling off-peak avoids the great unwashed on the Luas, Bus and Dart.
Mind, there is a completely differing species [of unwashed, semi tanned umpa-lumpa's] on the Luas Red line to that of the Green [Dundrum SC destined] line. One could almost write a book on same e.g., I witnessed a sing-off on the Green Line over the Christmas period, Christmas carol’s no less, quite fun.
….took a Luas a night Dart’s were cancelled due to lack of seasonal demand?? Yeah, right.
It would be excellent if we could be given the composition of the costs associated with a monthly commuter travel tickets on the Luas and Dart/Bus and see what element precisely relates to the space and comfort element of the journey. Could this be an FOI exercise?
Quaere: How many 80 Euro fines has Vieola Services achieved from fare evaders? I wonder did the RPA have full visibility of this in addition to the overall operating revenue/s?
I am also bemused that CIE has not announced plans for and concerning DART services that will run via/through Lansdowne Rd. once the contentious planning and development begins [directly under the current West Stand]. Shall passengers all alight and take a bus transfer from the Lansdowne Rd. station and re-alight at Grand Canal Dock?
‘Dear Passengers, be careful not to slip on the leafy byways of Lansdowne Rd., we have similar problem’s on the tracks don’t you know. That’s why we are always late in the autumn.’
I think the government and future governments should give greater tax incentives (like in the UK) for bicycle users and owners and also allow Commuters off-set ALL travel tickets against tax rather than just the annual tickets [or am I missing something?].
Jack
PS: Yeah, I know some off topic, some on topic etc. No need to state it.
What I would like to know is if this 10c increase is part of the official 2.75% increase approved by the Department of Transport or is it an extra the company threw on to explore some loophole.
It would be a clever way to boost income, increase fares while telling the Department that if the tactic works their revenue would go down because the increase is designed to stop people using the Luas.
How many of the people “congesting” the LUAS at peak are people Seamus Brennan extended free travel to? (Previously social welfare travel passes couldn’t be used at peak)