Its Friday - lets have a happy thread

Victor · 18-10-2007 11:19pm #1

Theres has been a little bit of angst recently and rather than getting cross with each other, how about sharing some funny or cool staff relating to Commuting & Transport with each other.

My stupidest moment on a bus: getting on and asking for an 83c fare when I meant €1.40 - it was a number 83 bus.

Transport21 Fan · 18-10-2007 11:38pm

When I lived in Tallaght years ago, I fell asleep on the last 65 and ended up in Blessington when it was still a village in the mountains stranded. I walked home and rounding the Embankment saw Finbarr Furey taking a piss in the bushes. Asked him for a lift back and he gave me one.

Dub13 · 18-10-2007 11:41pm

Victor wrote: »

My stupidest moment on a bus: getting on and asking for an 83c fare when I meant €1.40 - it was a number 83 bus.

Thats nearly as bad as posting a 'Its Friday' type of a thread on a Thursday....:D

aliveandkicking · 19-10-2007 12:02am

Very drunk one night in town. Went to get the nitelink and got on the 7N instead of the 77N. Whats worse is I fell asleep on it and woke up in Dun Laoghaire

Ham'nd'egger · 19-10-2007 12:49am

aliveandkicking wrote: »

Very drunk one night in town. Went to get the nitelink and got on the 7N instead of the 77N. Whats worse is I fell asleep on it and woke up in Dun Laoghaire

Some years ago, one of my friends was on the piss and went to get on the Nitelink home to Donaghmede. Being pissed, he too fell asleep only to wake up suddenly some time later. He looked around and not recognising where he was, he just bailed out of the bus and started walking. After an age (Or maybe two), a taxi flies by and he hails it.

"Where to, son?"
"Donaghmede please"
"****, your a long way from home"
"Why, where am I"
"Clondalkin!"

What makes it better is the fact that he fell asleep on the Nitelink 3 days later and ended up in Portmarnock!

Wishbone Ash · 19-10-2007 1:07am

Hamndegger wrote: »

fell asleep only to wake up suddenly some time later. He looked around and not recognising where he was

Just wondering - I used to hear stories from people who insisted that they fell asleep and woke up in the depot and had to wait for hours until morning to get out. I've always treated these stories with a bit of :rolleyes: as I presume that bus garages are busy places with all night activity and I would also presume that a DB driver would give his bus a 'once over' before clocking off.

Does this happen and if it does, surely there is no discernable difference between the last 'night' buses and the early morning departures (i.e. I can't imagine how anyone would have to wait hours to get out).

Ham'nd'egger · 19-10-2007 1:49am

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Just wondering - I used to hear stories from people who insisted that they fell asleep and woke up in the depot and had to wait for hours until morning to get out. I've always treated these stories with a bit of :rolleyes: as I presume that bus garages are busy places with all night activity and I would also presume that a DB driver would give his bus a 'once over' before clocking off.

Does this happen and if it does, surely there is no discernable difference between the last 'night' buses and the early morning departures (i.e. I can't imagine how anyone would have to wait hours to get out).

My mate fell asleep en route, Ashers, so I can't say for sure about people ending up in the garage, though I'm sure it has happened. There has been a few times over the years when I would be the last passenger on the last bus or at a terminus and a driver would ask me to run upstairs to check so I would assume it's the done thing.

Vikings · 19-10-2007 5:02am

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Does this happen and if it does, surely there is no discernable difference between the last 'night' buses and the early morning departures (i.e. I can't imagine how anyone would have to wait hours to get out).

Happened to me on a private bus company, was a little bit legless and fell asleep on the floor in between seats on the way home from a night out, apparantly nobody could wake me up including the driver... got a phone call during the night asking where I was looked out the window and said 'still on the bus, talk to ya soon etc' then went back asleep.

Woke up about half 6 the next morning and saw tractors going by outside :eek: turns out I was in the back end of Straffan. Got a lift home though as one of the drivers was starting the school runs

Not sure what would happen on a Dublin Bus mind you, probably get the life shook out of you till you woke up at the last stop.

corktina · 19-10-2007 7:29am

you have no shoes and empty pockets.....:)

mikemac · 19-10-2007 7:30am

Used to get a private bus from Nenagh to Galway every Sunday evening.
It was run for the college students and it was jammed every time.

There was a girl on the bus who used to get travel sick every week. Vomit everywhere :eek:
Sometimes, it'd end up on the floor and sometimes she had a bag. The driver was always happy to stop the bus so she could vomit in the ditch while 55 people looked on and laughed. This happened every week.

After a while the driver was getting tired of this and insisted she sit up the front beside him so she could jump outside immediately when the time came.
So one Sunday night she vomited all over the drivers jumper and he lost the rag.
He kicked the girl off the bus and refused to take us anywhere.

Had to wait for two hours on the side of the road until another driver from the company showed up. We eventually struggled into Galway at 11:30.:(

This guy wasn't sacked over the incident and most people had some sympathy for him.

seamus · 19-10-2007 9:27am

Mustangs wrote: »

Not sure what would happen on a Dublin Bus mind you, probably get the life shook out of you till you woke up at the last stop.

Mate of mine routinely falls asleep on the 49N and wakes up in Tallaght. A few times the drivers have dropped him back to his door in Knocklyon, a few others times he's been woken by foreign drivers screaming foreign words at him and he's had to get off.

Calina · 19-10-2007 9:53am

Coming home from Brittany the hard way - train to Paris, bus around city, Charles de Gaulles Terminal 1, last flight back to Dublin.

Dropped my purse in the toilets. Don't realise it's gone until I go to pay for a magazine a few minutes later.

Near heart attack. Frantic retracing of steps. Arrive back at ladies' toilets in a panic.

A woman takes one look at me says "did you drop a purse?" I say yes. She takes it out. "Do you have identification?"

I have my passport. The name matches the name on the credit card inside the purse. She hands it back to me. Not one cent is gone. She was on her way to Information with it. Even now I still feel how utterly lucky I was.

Jip · 19-10-2007 10:06am

Passengers do end up back in the garage on Dublin bus, I don't think they're ever locked in overnight though. A favourite of the lads in the garage is to put the bus through the wash and if the sleeping beauty is still asleep and they're beside an openable window, they'll open the window.

I reckon there's 3 different types of nitelink drivers, you'll get the sound lads who'll wake and check where everyone is going near the end of the route so that they can skip unnecessary bits, you'll get the mostly foreign lads who'll stick rigidly to the route and wake you by shouting and getting a bit angry, and then you'll get the oul lads who've been at it for years who won't get out of their cab for anything, so if you're still asleep at the last stop you're going straight back to the garage unless you wake up in the meantime.

Zoney · 19-10-2007 10:33am

On a trip to Hungary via Vienna, I left my return ticket to Ireland in my coat on the bus from Vienna airport to train station.

I most fortunately was able to just pick them up again from the bus office in the airport. I would have been set back some amount for new tickets otherwise - seemingly the only option despite my having ID and being on the airline database as booked on the flight.

Rovi · 19-10-2007 10:43am

I've an uncle who was notorious for sleeping when he should be awake; several times over the years on the train from Dublin to Portlaoise, he ended up in Limerick Junction or Cork.
My aunt used to have to watch him like a hawk when he was driving, to the point of sitting sideways in the passenger seat and thumping him when he started nodding off.
My brother tells of the time when this uncle was driving himself and our cousin up to Dublin one Sunday night, back in the good old days of going through Monasterevin, Kildare, Newbridge, and Naas. As they passed through one of the towns, uncle got his high and low beams mixed up, so he was happily driving along on the dips when the road was clear but would switch to highs when other traffic appeared. To the great amusement of my brother and cousin, he spent the remainder of the journey commenting on how rude most of the oncoming motorists were, flashing their lights and blowing their horns.

As a young man (this was back in the '60s), he drove a Commer van with a flat bench seat. He would slide over to the passenger seat, and steering with his right hand and using his right toe on the accelerator, would lean out the passenger window to call out to incredulous children who couldn't believe they were seeing a man getting a lift in a van with no driver!

monument · 19-10-2007 11:34am

Using the Luas smartcard and forgetting to tag-off twice in one day.

Chris_533976 · 19-10-2007 2:44pm

One of my friends did the 'sleep in the bus' thing.

After a hefty night of drinking he managed to get on the bus from Cork to Carrigaline. Fell asleep anyway on the bus and only woke up when the bus was pulling back into the Cork Bus Station. Very embarassed he was.

Worst I've done was on a flight from Dublin to Amsterdam. Looked out the window and said "hey cool we're passing over Manchester". Then I thought to myself that I'd only recognised it because of the motorway layout below the plane. It was in that horrifying moment of self-realisation that I said to myself "yes I am a nerd".

fricatus · 19-10-2007 2:47pm

monument wrote: »

Using the Luas smartcard and forgetting to tag-off twice in one day.

You'll have to fill in the blanks for those of us who only occasionally use the Luas. What is "tagging off" and why is it a bad thing that you forgot to do so twice in one day? Does the meter keep running or something?

fricatus · 19-10-2007 2:48pm

Chris_533976 wrote: »

Worst I've done was on a flight from Dublin to Amsterdam. Looked out the window and said "hey cool we're passing over Manchester". Then I thought to myself that I'd only recognised it because of the motorway layout below the plane. It was in that horrifying moment of self-realisation that I said to myself "yes I am a nerd".

Been there

Wishbone Ash · 19-10-2007 3:11pm

Mrs Wishbone Ash (who would park in your ear) managed to get clamped twice in one day! :eek:

Calina wrote:

She hands it back to me. Not one cent is gone. She was on her way to Information with it. Even now I still feel how utterly lucky I was.

I found a very large travel wallet on my bus in Dublin Airport a few years ago. I handed it into the Airport police. There was $15,000 and passport, tickets etc. It was reclaimed shortly afterwards but not a word of thanks!

(In case you are wondering how I knew there was $15,000, the officer counted it out in front of me before giving me the receipt)

Raam · 19-10-2007 3:25pm

I used to live in the apartments near Portmarnock Dart station. Getting the 42N home one night, I decided to get off at Campions and walk the backroads home instead of taking the journey through Feltrim and Malahide. Not my best idea, that road was dark and scary back then, not to mention the fact that it's a bloody long walk

strassenwolf · 19-10-2007 3:29pm

I can remember returning from London by boat and train many years ago, for Christmas. I hadn't been in Ireland for about 2 years.

A lot of us trooped from the ferry terminal at Dun Laoghaire and over to the 6/7/8 bus heading into town. As it was Christmas, there was a fairly lively atmosphere on the bus by the time the conductor came around.

A bloke in the seat in the seat in front of me asked for a ticket to the city centre. The conductor must have been reaching the end of the ticket roll, because the ticket came out printed on a strip of paper about 2-3 feet long, rather than the usual 2-3 inch piece.

The conductor then headed off to the front of the bus to insert a new role, leaving the customer looking bemused at this long strip of paper. Eventually he called after the conductor:

"Hey Mister, I asked for a bleedin' ticket, not a f****n' scarf."

What a way to start Christmas:D

Ste.phen · 19-10-2007 3:32pm

fricatus wrote: »

You'll have to fill in the blanks for those of us who only occasionally use the Luas. What is "tagging off" and why is it a bad thing that you forgot to do so twice in one day? Does the meter keep running or something?

When you start your journey, you 'tag on', and it deducts* the price of a journey to the end of the line from your balance.
When you 'tag off', it refunds you the distance between the fare for the full journey, and the fare for the distance you've actually travelled.

* - less a small discount

The number of times i've done this is shocking. Hate paying for a trip to tallaght when i'm only going to Smithfield

the worst part is you never remember until you're on your way back.

jlang · 19-10-2007 5:15pm

Chris_533976 wrote: »

Looked out the window and said "hey cool we're passing over Manchester". Then I thought to myself that I'd only recognised it because of the motorway layout below the plane. It was in that horrifying moment of self-realisation that I said to myself "yes I am a nerd".

I can top that - not only did I know where I was, but I felt I needed to show everyone else: http://www.flickr.com/photos/afewscoops/1483818223/. Still need to, apparently.

Wishbone Ash · 19-10-2007 5:31pm

Any other drivers ever suffer the ignominy of thinking that the bus is empty and you make/take a loving call from a wife/girlfriend/partner etc. only to discover later that there'a a smug looking passenger sitting behind you!

Or assuring a passenger that you will let them know where to get off and only discover as the bus empties that Little Miss Lost is still sitting there miles past her stop!

Victor · 19-10-2007 5:41pm

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

I found a very large travel wallet on my bus in Dublin Airport a few years ago. I handed it into the Airport police. There was $15,000 and passport, tickets etc. It was reclaimed shortly afterwards but not a word of thanks!

AFAIK you are entitled to 5% of the cash.

delop · 19-10-2007 5:52pm

Got on the 20b one day in town , I usually say 1.45 and put the money in...

Me: 20b please
Driver: I know!
Me: Huh? you know what
Driver: Where you going.....

Etc etc :-)

Another passenger had to explain to me what happened *blush*

Capt'n Midnight · 20-10-2007 5:19pm

When I was in college one of the new lads got on the bus and asked for a return to O'Connell street.

Many many times you'd hand your monthly ticket over to the conductor on the first day of the new month and get off and queue for ages in the office in O'Connell street to get a new one.

Ages ago there was a school trip in one of the old hop-on-the-back double deckers, one of the lads opened the emergency exit back window upstairs, and the whole thing dropped off !

Dub13 · 20-10-2007 5:28pm

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

Ages ago there was a school trip in one of the old hop-on-the-back double deckers, one of the lads opened the emergency exit back window upstairs, and the whole thing dropped off !

Showing your age...:)

Wishbone Ash · 20-10-2007 10:29pm

Capt'n Midnight wrote: »

one of the new lads got on the bus and asked for a return to O'Connell street

At Donabate station one morning years ago, I saw a girl extending her hand as the train approached!

:D:D

Victor · 20-10-2007 10:37pm

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

At Donabate station one morning years ago, I saw a girl extending her hand as the train approached! :D:D

In some countries you have to request stops for trams, whatever about trains.

Dub13 wrote: »

Thats nearly as bad as posting a 'Its Friday' type of a thread on a Thursday....:D

Oh, I nearly forgot. Banned! Hahaahahha!

Wishbone Ash · 21-10-2007 12:37am

Igy wrote: »

When you start your journey, you 'tag on', and it deducts* the price of a journey to the end of the line from your balance.
When you 'tag off', it refunds you the distance between the fare for the full journey, and the fare for the distance you've actually travelled.

* - less a small discount

The number of times i've done this is shocking. Hate paying for a trip to tallaght when i'm only going to Smithfield the worst part is you never remember until you're on your way back.

Excuse my ignorance Igy. Is there a time limit for 'tagging off'. For instance, if you've forgotten to 'tag off' one evening , can you do it the following morning? (assuming, of course,that you haven't used the LUAS in the interim).

Victor · 21-10-2007 2:05am

Wishbone Ash wrote: »

Excuse my ignorance Igy. Is there a time limit for 'tagging off'. For instance, if you've forgotten to 'tag off' one evening , can you do it the following morning? (assuming, of course,that you haven't used the LUAS in the interim).

I think single journeys are meant to be completed within 3 hours.

Chris_533976 · 21-10-2007 11:30am

I was on a primary school tour YEARS ago and of course, they gave us a **** bus.

One of the lads down the back of the bus started yelling to one of the teachers "MISS THIS WINDOWS LOOSE" over and over again

Its Friday - lets have a happy thread

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