DART system near breaking point?

El Stuntman

Transport21 Fan wrote:

But it going to be about more than money. At some point the Government might be forced to have to have a showdown with the CIE unions ala a 'Iron Lady's' 1985 Miners Strike. Hopefully it won't come to that and the DART drivers will stop listening to bearded dregs in Liberty Hall and finally get with it. Then we'll see an end to the crazy padding on the DART.

I fully agree but believe that this 'union problem' is wider than just the CIE unions (just look at they way that the AL unions persist in their dinosaur attitudes)

Nurses/teachers/cvil servants/garda - anyone on the public sector payroll is going to have to be faced down and told 'the gravy train is over'

chance of this government doing that? 0%

hard times ahead

MOH

El Stuntman wrote:

in farness to IE, the 8.12 from Raheny today was only 2 minutes late, had a full 8 carriages (the nice new ones) and took exactly the timetabled 22 minutes to get to Landsdowne

so the system can work

it's the apparently random nature of it that drives commuters nuts. You never guaranteed that the train will be on time or you will be able to get on

If 1 8.12 train per month was late or didn't have 8 carriages, then I could handle it - it's the fact that there's a problem 50% of the time that is so hard to take. And always, always on a Monday morning - now why could that be?

No wonder people drive....:mad:

But the 8.19 this morning had reduced carriages, full after Killester, 12 minutes late getting to Booterstown

My average daily delay this year for what should be a 24-minute journey is 6 minutes. By the end of the year I'll have lost almost one entire (i.e 24-hour) day due the incompetence of IE.

El Stuntman

MOH wrote:

But the 8.19 this morning had reduced carriages, full after Killester, 12 minutes late getting to Booterstown

My average daily delay this year for what should be a 24-minute journey is 6 minutes. By the end of the year I'll have lost almost one entire (i.e 24-hour) day due the incompetence of IE.

that's kind of my point though?

the utter unreliability of the service - some days good/some bad.

and we tolerate it...

MOH

El Stuntman wrote:

that's kind of my point though?

the utter unreliability of the service - some days good/some bad.

and we tolerate it...

Sorry, I was agreeing with you. Just pointing out that as soon as they get one train right, they screw up the very next one. Although I do disagree with you on the figures, 95% of the DARTs I've taken this year have been late, 50% by more than five minutes.

El Stuntman

MOH wrote:

Sorry, I was agreeing with you. Just pointing out that as soon as they get one train right, they screw up the very next one. Although I do disagree with you on the figures, 95% of the DARTs I've taken this year have been late, 50% by more than five minutes.

I give them 5 minutes, this is Ireland after all

I always LOL when I think of the mass heart attacks the DART service would induce if we transplanted it in Zurich.

MOH

El Stuntman wrote:

I give them 5 minutes, this is Ireland after all

I always LOL when I think of the mass heart attacks the DART service would induce if we transplanted it in Zurich.

Yup, it would cause a few alright.

I wouldn't mind a five minute delay now and then, but when it's 5 times a week, 52 weeks a year .. it adds up!

markf909

And its not just the DART, my train today was 8 mins late on a 40 minute journey but anytime within 10 mins is on time according to IE's worthless charter.

El Stuntman

markf909 wrote:

And its not just the DART, my train today was 8 mins late on a 40 minute journey but anytime within 10 mins is on time according to IE's worthless charter.

5 minutes or more late on the AVE and you get your money back

would love to see IE offer that

markpb

El Stuntman wrote:

5 minutes or more late on the AVE and you get your money back. would love to see IE offer that

I'll see your 5 and counter with 2 on the Arlanda Express between Stockholm and it's main airport. And they never came close to having to offer it when I used it.

Yes, it's tongue in cheek time

El Stuntman

markpb wrote:

I'll see your 5 and counter with 2 on the Arlanda Express between Stockholm and it's main airport. And they never came close to having to offer it when I used it.

Yes, it's tongue in cheek time

hmm, I actually took that Arlanda Express recently and didn't notice any refund offer - damn expensive though at 220 kroner or so.

Expensive + reliable = OK in my book.

I would happily pay €30 per week (instead of my current €16.50) if I thought I would have a fast, efficient, clean and comfortable commute

Alun

El Stuntman wrote:

hmm, I actually took that Arlanda Express recently and didn't notice any refund offer - damn expensive though at 220 kroner or so.

It's on the website http://www.arlandaexpress.com/ under "On board / Punctuality".

Captain Chaos

The problem with the lack of 8 car formation is a lack of DART units at the moment.

5 2car sets are out of action for the past number of months, these were a batch bought in 1999, I think. Thats 10 carriages down and around 20 are away on refurb, and around 4-6 are on testing.

Right now there are more 6 car sets than usuall as they are trying to stretch the fleet to fit the timetable. If you want more 8 cars trains they can do it but it will mean less trains on the system as a result. Thats why there is a 4 car set running around for the past month or 2 now.

When all the sets are back and those 10 Spanish made Alstom carriages get sorted out things will get a bit better.

El Stuntman

Captain Chaos wrote:

When all the sets are back and those 10 Spanish made Alstom carriages get sorted out things will get a bit better.

unfortunately years of IE assuring me that 'we're getting better' don't really make me very hopeful in this regard

unaccountable, state-subsidised, inefficient, union-dominated, demoralised...meh