[n97 mini]

Is it still in Beta as it's been inaccurate the majority of the times I've used it.

Most recently a bus showing as due in 7 minutes whizzed past the stop early, with us only 20 metres away. And then last night the bus I was getting wasn't on the system at all, it was the only one not showing for that stop, but yet it still arrived.

I was all in favour of the RTPI but it's hard to use something when you don't have complete confidence in it.

[-Chris-]

I don't trust it at all.

[snappieT]

Officially, it's out of beta.

It seems to me that about 90% of the time it works, and it works quite well. For those other 10% of the time, something just goes plain wrong and it doesn't autocorrect itself. There have been many occasions where all buses show "Due" at a given stop that I've heard of. Dublin Bus seem to report reasonably frequent downtime, be it for planned maintenance or teething problems. I'm confident/hope that the system has an inner feedback loop to make the estimates more accurate as real-life journey time between any two points is measured more and more.

Transport for Ireland, who operate RTPI, have a feedback form to alert them of anomalies in the data. I suggest you use it whenever you find an issue so that they can investigate.

[n97 mini]

Just submitted feedback there.

[lxflyer]

As someone who uses the bus every day I'd agree with Snappie T - 90% of the time it does seem to work well. Already I've seen issues that I've experienced at certain stops (unreliable predictions) being eliminated - whether it was as a result of my feedback I don't know, but they were addressed.

Occasionally I have come across "phantom" buses that do not appear on the RTPI - it could be a problem with the on-board equipment not sending a signal.

There can also be problems with heavy traffic (particularly at peak times in the city centre) that can result in buses taking longer than the original predictions.

However, I think that

Originally Posted by -Chris-

I don't trust it at all.

is being a bit harsh on it. That certainly would not be my experience.

The more feedback they get from users the better the system will be in the long run.

[n97 mini]

Originally Posted by lxflyer

There can also be problems with heavy traffic (particularly at peak times in the city centre) that can result in buses taking longer than the original predictions.

I don't really mind that so much as it means you'll still get your bus. Buses arriving early is a problem though.

Originally Posted by lxflyer

is being a bit harsh on it. That certainly would not be my experience.

If it is *consistently* unreliable you can't trust it, even if that reliability is 10% of the time. You will always be wondering is now one of those times that it's wrong.

[ArmaniJeanss]

Its close to 100% accurate on my main route the 38/A/B.

There are a handful of stops where it consistently underestimates and another few where it overestimates, both by just a few minutes, but I factor that in and I'll probably be caught out when they tweak it !!

Great system, Dublin Bus, kudos. Now if only you stop the farce of the 38A adding 10 minutes to its journey by going through Blanch village then everything would be good.

[AngryLips]

I think some cases where it is incorrect is where the stop is near the beginning of the route and so it's showing the timetabled time and not the real time. If there was a delay in the bus arriving at its terminus then that would delay the outbound journey also.

[jd83]

Ive been using it now through the app on my phone and it works good so far. Sometimes it can be a bit off. Considering it involves dublin bus im actually shocked its working so well.

[markpb]

Originally Posted by jd83

Ive been using it now through the app on my phone and it works good so far. Sometimes it can be a bit off. Considering it involves dublin bus im actually shocked its working so well.

I think RPTI will fix DBs perception in Dublin. From my experience, a lot of bus routes in Dublin are very predictable but they appear unreliable and unpredictable. Telling people that a bus will arrive in 15 minutes makes that 15 minutes seem a lot shorter. Leaving them standing there with no idea how long they'll be waiting makes them feel like the service is unreliable.

[schemingbohemia]

I've generally found it very good with a few exceptions. The 14 stop outside Tara St Station has often been wrong. For some reason the 44 on Westland Row counts down fine until about 9 minutes to the time then disappears for a few minutes (leaving the next 44 showing up as in 50 minutes) then re-appears when the bus leaves the terminus.

This morning the DB website was showing the 0810 59 arriving at Hyde Road at 823 (which I should have realised was too early to get from Mackintosh Park) it didn't arrive until 832 but the website didn't change until 828 when I was already at the stop 6 minutes.

[lxflyer]

I've noticed the same problem with the 14 - they can get stuck for several changes of lights at Amiens Street/Memorial Road which contributes to the problem.

[Kumsheen]

Is real time GPS data now provided for all bus stops, or is timetable data used in place of stops not covered?

If timetable data is used, how do you know on the website if the "due" time is real or just timetabled?

[robd]

Agree with the 90% of the time. Have been caught out once in the situation where a bus whizzes pass that isn't due for 5 mins. Was on Howth Road and used Android App (unofficial) to get time. Frustrating but it only happened once.

Also, not all stops are inputted. No data for my stop so I use the stop before.

Also, there's frequent problems at peak evening time with the Terminus (first) stop for 31's/32's and the 29a. Buses seem to magically appear and disappear, may not turn up and turn up unscheduled. Hard to know whats going on. At a guess I'd say when a bus gets stuck in traffic on previous run it can just fall off list.

Overall I've a positive experience. Would rate it in line with it's accuracy. So, 90% happy.

[lxflyer]

Originally Posted by Kumsheen

Is real time GPS data now provided for all bus stops, or is timetable data used in place of stops not covered?



If timetable data is used, how do you know on the website if the "due" time is real or just timetabled?

Yes real time is provided for all stops but that obviously is dependent upon the bus having departed the terminus.

If it hasn't departed the times displayed are the scheduled times. However this is not indicated on the signs/app/text.

Therefore RTPI has far greater usefulness in the middle or latter sections of a route, given the timetable is more applicable at or near the terminus.