Airlink return tickets and Busáras

Red Sleeping Beauty

I walked into BusÁras and up to the desk looking for a return ticket for the Airlink. "We don't sell them here" was the response I got. Apparently I had to go to a newsagents that sells them.

So you can't buy a return on the bus and can't buy a return in the bus station. Fierce confusing I think. Do they not sell the tickets in the station or did I get a fecker at the desk ? Cause that happened before.

I went in to get a Eurolines ticket and was told they didn't sell them and I had to come back between 9-5 mon-fri and go to the Eurolines desk. When I went back then I got my Eurolines ticket at the desk I was refused from previously.

Awul carry on altogether.

Victor

Busáras is run by Bus Éieann. Airlink is run by Dublin Bus.

Spaces on Eurolines services are prioritised for those already holding return tickets, so tickets may not be available in advance.

Red Sleeping Beauty

Oh, fair enough, that clears that up.

KC61

Alan Rouge wrote: »

I walked into BusÁras and up to the desk looking for a return ticket for the Airlink. "We don't sell them here" was the response I got. Apparently I had to go to a newsagents that sells them.

So you can't buy a return on the bus and can't buy a return in the bus station. Fierce confusing I think. Do they not sell the tickets in the station or did I get a fecker at the desk ? Cause that happened before.

I went in to get a Eurolines ticket and was told they didn't sell them and I had to come back between 9-5 mon-fri and go to the Eurolines desk. When I went back then I got my Eurolines ticket at the desk I was refused from previously.

Awul carry on altogether.

You can get return tickets for the Airlink from the Dublin Bus Head Office in O'Connell Street or at the Airport.

However, if you're travelling out and back on the same day, Dublin Bus rambler tickets are valid on the Airlink - which offer the cheapest option!

MiniD

KC61 wrote: »

You can get return tickets for the Airlink from the Dublin Bus Head Office in O'Connell Street or at the Airport.

However, if you're travelling out and back on the same day, Dublin Bus rambler tickets are valid on the Airlink - which offer the cheapest option!

It does seem a bit daft that the major bus and rail stations do not allow you purchase a return ticket for the Airlink which stops and terminates at their stations. Surely it's unfair to expect passengers, probably carrying luggage, to go to Dublin Bus head office (with limited opening hours) to avail of the discounted return ticket?

If they don't want station staff to deal with an extra ticket to sell, why can't they put vending machines at Busaras and Heuston, similar to the Airport?

Mill21

I think If you are coming from the airport you can buy them at the CIE desk in Arrivals.
And it makes sense that you can't buy an Airlink ticket in Busáras (D Bus vs Bus É), but I'm surprised you can't buy them on the bus.

just checked yeah you can but them in Arrivals. not much good if you are coming from town tho I know http://www.dublinbus.ie/en/Your-Journey1/Timetables/Airport-Services/

probe

Welcome to the world of disintegrated, bureaucratic, negligently regulated, non-user-friendly, dysfunctional public transport in Ireland.

Integrated ticketing over my dead body monopolists! Round trip tickets over my dead body too!

A country that is rapidly going down the tubes. And deserves to do so, given the way that "services" perform.

A country with third world down-market public transport designed for peasants.

To top it all, Ryanair squirts Irish style low quality, public transport all over Europe - destroying the brand name of Ireland is the process.

Driving a race to the bottom, on €200,000 pa salaries (or "wages" as they often refer to same in the Irish clueless media). IRL is increasingly becoming YukLand in the global perception.

AlekSmart

Welcome to the world of disintegrated, bureaucratic, negligently regulated, non-user-friendly, dysfunctional public transport in Ireland.

Integrated ticketing over my dead body monopolists! Round trip tickets over my dead body too!

A country that is rapidly going down the tubes. And deserves to do so, given the way that "services" perform.

A country with third world down-market public transport designed for peasants.

To top it all, Ryanair squirts Irish style low quality, public transport all over Europe - destroying the brand name of Ireland is the process.

Driving a race to the bottom, on €200,000 pa salaries (or "wages" as they often refer to same in the Irish clueless media). IRL is increasingly becoming YukLand in the global perception.

It`s probably of merely academic interest but we have just waved goodbye to the former Secretary General of the Department of Transport,Ms Julie O`Neill.
This fine lady had just completed 37 years (?) of strenous public service and had decided to retire gracefully on a pension reputed to be 37/80th`s of her final salary as Sec Gen (€200,000 + ?)

Ah well....perhaps the "New Man" Tom O`Mahoney will get an oul integrated ticket or two out of the "Working Group" before he gets to cash in his chips....

Ms O`Neill`s rather high profile inability to engineer an integrated ticket did however merit this stenorian comment from her boss.....Noel Dempsey.....

“I thank Julie O’Neill for her commitment, drive and exceptional leadership here at the helm of the Department of Transport over the past 7 years and for her valuable work in many Departments over her distinguished 37 year career. On my own behalf and on behalf of the Government, I wish to publicly thank Julie O’Neill for her work in the Department and I wish to highly commend her excellent track record here in the Civil Service.”

There yiz have it so.......what`s all this "Third World Public Transport designed for Peasants" stuff.....would Noel Dempsey have delivered such praise and pension if we had not got a World Class Public Service act..... :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Red Sleeping Beauty

probe wrote: »

Welcome to the world of disintegrated, bureaucratic, negligently regulated, non-user-friendly, dysfunctional public transport in Ireland.

Integrated ticketing over my dead body monopolists! Round trip tickets over my dead body too!

A country that is rapidly going down the tubes. And deserves to do so, given the way that "services" perform.

A country with third world down-market public transport designed for peasants.

To top it all, Ryanair squirts Irish style low quality, public transport all over Europe - destroying the brand name of Ireland is the process.

Driving a race to the bottom, on €200,000 pa salaries (or "wages" as they often refer to same in the Irish clueless media). IRL is increasingly becoming YukLand in the global perception.

I don't really know what you're getting at or where you're coming from. But I broadly agree that transport here in Dublin at least is poor. There's a ton of money being spent on some rubbish rail thing while the bus service goes to ruin. Good article in the recent Village if you're interested.

Getting a bus from the airport is a pain. The few "normal" buses you can get are crammed with people with suitcases trying to save a few quid and €6 to town is a rip off.... until recently I championed being able to get an "all day" ticket in Glasgow for £3.20 which got me from the airport to their town and then I can use that all day . I retract any positivie comments made about it cause they recently upped their fares and seperated the airport tickets from the rest of their services so the "all day" doesn't count anymore.


Just in case you're going to go on a rant about how great privately owned "public" transport is.



Oh and I don't see why Bus Aras can't sell the airlink bus tickets. I really can't. If you can buy them in a newsagents then why can Bus Eireann sell them ? Same cack with you can't get a return on the bus and the driver's got no change.

probe

Alan Rouge wrote: »

Just in case you're going to go on a rant about how great privately owned "public" transport is.


Oh and I don't see why Bus Aras can't sell the airlink bus tickets. I really can't. If you can buy them in a newsagents then why can Bus Eireann sell them ? Same cack with you can't get a return on the bus and the driver's got no change.

It is irrelevant whether public transport is privately owned or owned by the state. The key issue is customer service quality - integration of ticketing and connections, minimizing journey times door to door, and making the information the PAX needs to make random door to door journeys, and competitive pricing.

Most people know how to get to work on public transport from where they live - even if they prefer to drive because it is so downmarket and unreliable. But they probably haven't a clue how to get to an address on the other side of town they haven't visited before or for a long while, how long it will take, and how long they will have to wait, how many connections are involved, how many tickets they will have to buy, etc etc.

In a country with a state of the art public transport system, many/most people typically buy an annual subscription that covers unlimited use of all modes of ground public transport (ie airlines excluded). When they have paid €2,000 for an unlimited travel ticket for an entire country (with special rates for couples and families with children), with trams and buses every six minutes or so, and trains at predictable, running on a clockface timetable basis, they will use their cars less and less. They will want to get value for their two grand. Far less traffic congestion in cities. Less CO2 emissions. Less energy imports. Their cars will last longer, have a higher resale value, and will be fun to drive when they get behind the wheel. Familiarity breeds contempt......