Ticket Machines at train stations

shaymousse

Hi just wondering if anyone knows why Irish Rail are taking away ticket machines from stations? I commute from carlow and our machine has been removed for months now. The guy in the station is useful as ever, when I asked him where it was and if its coming back he told me "Dublin took it away" That was the end of the conversation!

So I decided to email IR and ask them......am still awaiting a reply 3 weeks later! Great service!

Anyway any ideas?

Judgement Day

shaymousse wrote: »

Hi just wondering if anyone knows why Irish Rail are taking away ticket machines from stations? I commute from carlow and our machine has been removed for months now. The guy in the station is useful as ever, when I asked him where it was and if its coming back he told me "Dublin took it away" That was the end of the conversation!

So I decided to email IR and ask them......am still awaiting a reply 3 weeks later! Great service!

Anyway any ideas?

Haven't a clue but who did you write to? If you want a response write to:

Dick Fearn,
CEO Irish Rail,
Connolly Station,
Dublin.1.

if you contact anybody else you're wasting your time!

patrickc

it was taken out of carlow due to it been robbed non stop

godtabh

patrickc wrote: »

it was taken out of carlow due to it been robbed non stop

How did the rob it? The look beefy enough

fh041205

Its happened all over the country AFAIK. Dundalk Drogheda and I think Laytown were all done in a week. Don't quote me exactly on that but I can assure you its a widespread thing.

Judgement Day

I believe Longford and Edgeworthstown have been hit too. They are a sitting target just asking to be attacked -won't be long before DG is hit as every door in the station already bears the marks of the skanger's jemmy.

Zoney

I suppose just trying to apprehend the culprits, or adding extra security is out of the question? Easier to just curtail services?

garfieldsghost

Zoney wrote: »

I suppose just trying to apprehend the culprits, or adding extra security is out of the question? Easier to just curtail services?

The funny thing is, in Longford, there's a depotman on duty overnight Mon-Fri... but he's stationed in the old signal cabin at the far end from the main station building! :rolleyes:

In a way it's probably better that the machine there is out of commission because no one was bothered programming it to handle the current special day return fare!

Run_to_da_hills

The only solution to all this is online buying and credit card / laser only machines, We will no doubt see more of this across the country in the coming future. Buying tickets at stations will also be heavily discouraged with more expensive rates and less specials on offer particularly with mainline.

Cash also poses security risks for staff at stations so it wouldn't surprise me if some of these machines were itentionally "removed" to speed up the process.

penexpers

Ones have been gone from Newbridge recently too.

AFAIK they are rolling out smartcard capable machines (I think there's one in Connolly now) so they could be just removing existing ones to retrofit the smartcard capability onto them. I might be wrong though.

shaymousse

I think they are gone caus ethey wer erobbed so much but they could at least have a credit card machine in the station!

garfieldsghost

shaymousse wrote: »

I think they are gone caus ethey wer erobbed so much but they could at least have a credit card machine in the station!

Most mainline stations have credit card facilities, as far as I know. Purchased a ticket with a credit card just the other day...

Zoney

Run-to-da-hills:

Other countries seem to cope with cash just fine. I am thinking the difference is a reluctance here to regularly empty the machines (i.e. before the amount is too large). Similarly our ATMs are not restocked frequently enough and with low denomination notes (on the continent or UK, you get given change when e.g. asking for €/£ 50/100 instead of 1 or 2 notes). Here the banks try even on match weekends to make do with stocking ATMs to the gills with 50s. And people wonder why there are problems with cash in transit robberies and ATM heists? The symptom of ATMs running out on Sundays is the least of the problems with this approach.

However, I suspect too that the difference here is also a greater chance of getting away with such acts.

I do think it's outrageous for the government to pass the buck and suggest people just need to use cash less so they don't have to try dealing with the problems. Absolutely typical.

And before you say that cash costs more - at least one bank here has switched their debit card service from one that costs the retailer cents per transaction (fixed amount) to something like 3% of purchase price. Credit cards also place a burden on retailers, which again obviously has to be passed on (indeed sometimes transparently now in terms of advertised extra charge). Dispensing with cash is about making life easier for politicians and banks, and more money and control for the latter.

shaymousse

Got my reply from irish rail:



11th November, 2009


Dear ,


Thank you for your email of 3rd November regarding the ticket vending machine in Carlow station.

Unfortunately the ticket vending machine was seriously damaged during an attempted robbery recently. It has now been taken away and sent to the manufacturer for repair and I am not able to give you an exact date of when it will be re-installed.

The Station Master, Kilkenny, Mr. Delaney, who is in overall charge of Carlow station, is currently assessing the Booking office requirement in Carlow with a view to setting up credit card facilities for customers.

Thank you for your comments regarding this issue.


Yours sincerely,

Paul Slowey,

Customer Relations Manager,
(Northern/Eastern), Connolly