IR cheap train fares???

CommuterIE

I was told by a mate today that Irish Rails prices are some of the cheapest in Europe, is this true??? He said train journeys in the UK can cost 2 to 3 times the price of here over similar distances

L1011

CommuterIE wrote: »

I was told by a mate today that Irish Rails prices are some of the cheapest in Europe, is this true??? He said train journeys in the UK can cost 2 to 3 times the price of here over similar distances

UK walk-up fares for train travel are HORRENDOUS. Also middle-distance commuter routes (Maynooth style distance) can be completely insane too.

However they also have some fares which are cheaper and their cheapest web fares for long-distance often start at a fiver... if you book months in advance.

ArmaniJeanss

1998, Paris to Lens (roughly Dublin to Dundalk timewise), walk up fare. 440French Franc return.
~€67. Basically my entire days budget for the holiday done on the trainfare.
Still hurts me 13 years later.

foggy_lad

CommuterIE wrote: »

I was told by a mate today that Irish Rails prices are some of the cheapest in Europe, is this true??? He said train journeys in the UK can cost 2 to 3 times the price of here over similar distances

You can't really compare a few poorly managed intercity lines with poor speeds and a few branch lines serving the intercity lines to the thousands of miles of well managed transport infrastructure in the uk or European countries.

SeanW

I've found Intercity rail travel on the continent to be very cost-effective, being a "walk up" passenger on all (of 3) distinct occasions.

Once I took a trip to Germany and the Netherlands. Took one train from Munich to Berlin, just over €100, (with a splendid train with excellent catering to boot). Then again, went from Berlin to Amsterdam, somewhere around €90 I think that was. This was waaaaaaaay back though in 2004.

Each journey was about 8 hours and probably covered 500-1000km.

Then I went to Finland earlier this year, and took night trains roundtrip between Helsinki and Rovaniemi. While everything else in Finland was *punishingly* expensive, the trains were rather cheap at €104 and €112 for the journies I undertook, each about 800km, and these both included a bed for the night. Making the cost of the overnight train journies comparable with the country's hotels.

All in all, I think European Continental rail presents decent value for money. Obviously I would exclude British railways from that and probably a few cases elsewhere.

schemingbohemia

foggy_lad wrote: »

You can't really compare a few poorly managed intercity lines with poor speeds and a few branch lines serving the intercity lines to the thousands of miles of well managed transport infrastructure in the uk or European countries.

Why Not? I know you've been on every single piece of public transport in Ireland but from that statement I would hazard that your experience of public transport in the UK is minimal.

You can get some very cheap fares in the UK but most walk up fares are hugely expensive, especially for anything over 45 minutes of a journey.

Last year on the BBC/CH4 they had a documentary on peoples experience on rail in the UK. You should have a look at that. One eye-popping fare was someone travelling from about Maynooth distance into London, their annual ticket cost nearly £3k, that's without any taxsaver discounts or anything.

Losty Dublin

schemingbohemia wrote: »

Why Not? I know you've been on every single piece of public transport in Ireland but from that statement I would hazard that your experience of public transport in the UK is minimal.

You can get some very cheap fares in the UK but most walk up fares are hugely expensive, especially for anything over 45 minutes of a journey.

Last year on the BBC/CH4 they had a documentary on peoples experience on rail in the UK. You should have a look at that. One eye-popping fare was someone travelling from about Maynooth distance into London, their annual ticket cost nearly £3k, that's without any taxsaver discounts or anything.

I'll second that, UK prices are beyond mad in the main. I had an English family in the car a few years ago and the mother was telling me of a price of over £800 for a family ticket from London to York!

schemingbohemia

It was a Dispatches programme "Train Journeys from Hell" surprisingly it's not on 4od, might be on youtube though.

http://www.channel4.com/programmes/dispatches/episode-guide/series-85/episode-1

And it was actually £4k for an annual ticket from Reading to London (not sure if any add-ons for travel in London are included). That train trip takes between 27-36mins so equivalent to Maynooth-Connolly/Pearse which can be done for €1k including all Irish Rail services in the GDA. A walk-up fare costs £15.50 today for Reading to Paddington, the fare from Maynooth to Connolly is €3.40.

loyatemu

schemingbohemia wrote: »

That train trip takes between 27-36mins so equivalent to Maynooth-Connolly/Pearse

you're giving IÉ a pass for their deperately slow journey times there - Maynooth is 25K from Dublin city centre, Reading is ~67K from London City (by road). What is the fare for an equivalent distance on IÉ?

Losty Dublin

loyatemu wrote: »

you're giving IÉ a pass for their deperately slow journey times there - Maynooth is 25K from Dublin city centre, Reading is ~67K from London City (by road). What is the fare for an equivalent distance on IÉ?

Maynooth is on a suburban corridor and pricing system so it isn't the best one to compare to. Compare it to a single from Newbridge which is about 60 KM away, on a mainline and with a suburban service and you are looking at €13.40 for a single.

LXFlyer

Reading/London to be fair is at 125 mph for many of the services too!!!

foggy_lad

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Maynooth is on a suburban corridor and pricing system so it isn't the best one to compare to. Compare it to a single from Newbridge which is about 60 KM away, on a mainline and with a suburban service and you are looking at €13.40 for a single.

Newbridge as you probably know is the most expensive place in the country to get a train to or from! why not compare Portlaoise? and why compare journey times when we all know that irish rail are far slower than any other operator in developed europe. 3 hours Dublin to Cork and with the level of delays and faults etc the average time is a lot more.

Losty Dublin

foggy_lad wrote: »

Newbridge as you probably know is the most expensive place in the country to get a train to or from! why not compare Portlaoise? and why compare journey times when we all know that irish rail are far slower than any other operator in developed europe. 3 hours Dublin to Cork and with the level of delays and faults etc the average time is a lot more.

Sorry, I didn't know that it's wrong to use, as you claim, the most expensive station that has a mainline and suburban service to compare prices to a UK trip on a mainline with suburban services of a similar distance :rolleyes:

Of course, the UK rail network has no delays either and I am sure that your daily trips on it will tell us so :rolleyes:

mikemac

Leonardo Express, the express train from the airport to Rome is €14

Local train only two stops away, €2.60

Gouging the tourists!

foggy_lad

mikemac wrote: »

Leonardo Express, the express train from the airport to Rome is €14

Local train only two stops away, €2.60

Gouging the tourists!

Bus from Dublin City Centre to Cork City Centre walk up fare
€11.70 one way, and
€19.80 day/midweek/monthly return! also
Family monthly return €39.60

Train from 2KM outside Dublin city centre to Cork kent station walk up fare
€66 one way,
€71 day return and €78.50 monthly return and
Family return 1 day €100 and monthly €140!
(One Day Family Tickets are not valid for travel on Fridays or Sundays or on days when special control measures are in place.)


Gouging the locals and everybody else!

BenShermin

foggy_lad wrote: »

Bus from Dublin City Centre to Cork City Centre walk up fare
€11.70 one way, and
€19.80 day/midweek/monthly return! also
Family monthly return €39.60

Train from 2KM outside Dublin city centre to Cork kent station walk up fare
€66 one way,
€71 day return and €78.50 monthly return and
Family return 1 day €100 and monthly €140!
(One Day Family Tickets are not valid for travel on Fridays or Sundays or on days when special control measures are in place.)


Gouging the locals and everybody else!

Only catch is that the bus is timetabled to be 1hr 40mins slower than the train in most cases;).

You've also misquoted the walk up fares for the bus (the fares you have given are only available to purchace online at buseireann.ie). Here are the actual walk up fares on Bus Éireann:

Service 8
13.00 : Adult Single
22.00 : Adult Rtn
22.00 : Adult Day Rtn
8.00 : Child Single
14.50 : Child Return
14.50 : Child Day Rtn
11.00 : Student Single
19.00 : Student Rtn
22.00 : Adult MW Rtn
14.50 : Child MW Rtn
44.00 : Family Rtn

Anyway, if you really want to look at gouging the tourists one has to look towards Blighty the inspiration for this thread. Here are the walk up fares between Gatwick Airport and London City Centre, and the time scheduled for the relative services (which rarely fluctuates):

Single Walk up:

Gatwick Express: £17.90 (30 mins to London Victoria)
Southern Railway: £12.50 (35 mins to London Victoria)
First Capital Connect: £9.40 (30 mins to London Bridge)

Express my arse:D.

Losty Dublin

BenShermin wrote: »

Anyway, if you really want to look at gouging the tourists one has to look towards Blighty the inspiration for this thread. Here are the walk up fares between Gatwick Airport and London City Centre, and the time scheduled for the relative services (which rarely fluctuates):

Single Walk up:

Gatwick Express: £17.90 (30 mins to London Victoria)
Southern Railway: £12.50 (35 mins to London Victoria)
First Capital Connect: £9.40 (30 mins to London Bridge)

Express my arse:D.

It is an express..... Of money out of ones wallets

foggy_lad

BenShermin wrote: »

Only catch is that the bus is timetabled to be 1hr 40mins slower than the train in most cases;).

You've also misquoted the walk up fares for the bus (the fares you have given are only available to purchace online at buseireann.ie). Here are the actual walk up fares on Bus Éireann:

Service 8
13.00 : Adult Single
22.00 : Adult Rtn
22.00 : Adult Day Rtn
8.00 : Child Single
14.50 : Child Return
14.50 : Child Day Rtn
11.00 : Student Single
19.00 : Student Rtn
22.00 : Adult MW Rtn
14.50 : Child MW Rtn
44.00 : Family Rtn

Anyway, if you really want to look at gouging the tourists one has to look towards Blighty the inspiration for this thread. Here are the walk up fares between Gatwick Airport and London City Centre, and the time scheduled for the relative services (which rarely fluctuates):

Single Walk up:

Gatwick Express: £17.90 (30 mins to London Victoria)
Southern Railway: £12.50 (35 mins to London Victoria)
First Capital Connect: £9.40 (30 mins to London Bridge)

Express my arse:D.

Have you allowed for travelling from Dublin city centre to Heuston in Dublin and from Kent station to Cork City centre? there are also far more delays on the train than there are on the busses.

While I do understand there are benefits to travelling by train especially for families, having a family fare of €140 is telling parents to fcuk off with their children and forcing them onto the bus or into their cars!

bk

BenShermin wrote: »

Only catch is that the bus is timetabled to be 1hr 40mins slower than the train in most cases;).

Yes, it is crazy that there no direct non stop bus service has been licensed to Cork yet.

Such a service would be just as fast as the train. A paranoid person might think they are purposefully not licensing such a service to protect Irish Rail.

Really it is scandalous, more then a year after the Cork motorway opened, still no bus service using it.

kingshankly

bought my first ever train ticket today (on behalf of someone else) a single from Dublin to cork for Saturday and was amazed it was only 18:50

Capt'n Midnight

mikemac wrote: »

Leonardo Express, the express train from the airport to Rome is €14

Local train only two stops away, €2.60

Gouging the tourists!

that's an international trait

1huge1

kingshankly wrote: »

bought my first ever train ticket today (on behalf of someone else) a single from Dublin to cork for Saturday and was amazed it was only 18:50

Half price on saturdays during the summer.

foggy_lad

kingshankly wrote: »

bought my first ever train ticket today (on behalf of someone else) a single from Dublin to cork for Saturday and was amazed it was only 18:50

1huge1 wrote: »

Half price on saturdays during the summer.

So the actual fare would have been €37 one way without the special offer!

n900guy

Losty Dublin wrote: »

I'll second that, UK prices are beyond mad in the main. I had an English family in the car a few years ago and the mother was telling me of a price of over £800 for a family ticket from London to York!

Yeah, I'd definitely believe that. I got a train from Oxford to York return. The direct trains without 2 stops cost £80 or so each way. First class on this transcontinental 3.5hr journey return is £250 or so per person. Might not sound like much in euros due to the exchange rate but it's a lot harder to earn £250 than €250. Quite frankly it's an unbelievable sum of money for rail travel of this length but that is the UK these days.

CaptainSkidmark

Trains in Holland are much cheaper!

Amsterdam-Vlissingen return is 36 euro return and its a 3 hour Journey!

homerjay2005

rail prices in ireland are shockingly high, for a crap, slow service. in UK, for instance a 2 hour journey is about £32 single. in ireland, a 2 hour journey single is €60. the online booking system for irish rail has changed recently to be more expensive, so the debate that walk ups is more expensive else where is no gone.

people really need to travel more around europe to appreciate the meaning of the word value.

also, the luas/dart and buses are disgracefullly high compared to alot of other countries. €2.30 for a luas journey that is €1 in other cities.

schemingbohemia

homerjay2005 wrote: »

rail prices in ireland are shockingly high, for a crap, slow service. in UK, for instance a 2 hour journey is about £32 single. in ireland, a 2 hour journey single is €60. the online booking system for irish rail has changed recently to be more expensive, so the debate that walk ups is more expensive else where is no gone.

people really need to travel more around europe to appreciate the meaning of the word value.

also, the luas/dart and buses are disgracefullly high compared to alot of other countries. €2.30 for a luas journey that is €1 in other cities.

If you buy the single for €60 you're foolish, if you plan a trip 3 weeks in advance you can usually get it for €20 or less, if you use the o2 discounts widely available you'll save another 15%.

Which two-hour journey are you talking about in the UK for £32? I've seen lots of similar journeys that cost a lot more if not booked well in advance.

donalfo

I just got a 10euro fare one way Sligo- Dublin. Why don't they make it 12euro as there is a 2euro transaction charge that has to be paid. Its an extra 1Euro if using credit cards, But the least paid is 12Euro. am I wrong? I know its still very cheap and I'm glad of the great value, but just advertise it as 12 Euro with a 1Euro cc charge,It's still great value but less misleading.

1huge1

schemingbohemia wrote: »

If you buy the single for €60 you're foolish, if you plan a trip 3 weeks in advance you can usually get it for €20 or less, if you use the o2 discounts widely available you'll save another 15%.

Which two-hour journey are you talking about in the UK for £32? I've seen lots of similar journeys that cost a lot more if not booked well in advance.

In my experience on British trains they are just as expensive as Irish Rail if not more expensive, it's definitely the continental european approach we should be looking at. London Underground prices for example are insane compared to the likes of Berlin, München etc.

Not having a go at the British or anything but I think they could do with following a more european model just as much as we could.

LXFlyer

However, LU prices are not insane if you use Oyster.

djpbarry

CommuterIE wrote: »

I was told by a mate today that Irish Rails prices are some of the cheapest in Europe, is this true??? He said train journeys in the UK can cost 2 to 3 times the price of here over similar distances

I don’t know if IE prices are among the cheapest in Europe, but they’re certainly not expensive. The UK is probably not the best comparison – rail prices here are absolutely insane.

foggy_lad wrote: »

You can't really compare a few poorly managed intercity lines with poor speeds and a few branch lines serving the intercity lines to the thousands of miles of well managed transport infrastructure in the uk...

In my experience, delays, line closures and train cancellations are far, far more common in the UK than in Ireland. That said, given the huge difference in scale between the two rail networks, it’s not really a valid comparison, but rail services in the UK are certainly not something that IE should be aspiring to emulate.

schemingbohemia wrote: »

Last year on the BBC/CH4 they had a documentary on peoples experience on rail in the UK. You should have a look at that. One eye-popping fare was someone travelling from about Maynooth distance into London, their annual ticket cost nearly £3k, that's without any taxsaver discounts or anything.

A friend of mine has an annual ticket from Coventry-London (about 160 km each way, or 2 hour drive), which cost him £7,000 this year.

homerjay2005 wrote: »

in UK, for instance a 2 hour journey is about £32 single. in ireland, a 2 hour journey single is €60.

That’s nonsense. For example, if I were to head to Euston Station and hop on a train to Birmingham right about now, it would cost me about £75 one way for the 1.5 hour journey (as per www.nationalrail.co.uk). However, a seat on the 19:00 Dublin-Belfast service will cost me just €20 (according to www.irishrail.ie).

homerjay2005 wrote: »

also, the luas/dart and buses are disgracefullly high compared to alot of other countries.

No, they’re not. Particularly when you take into account that subsidies for public transport in Dublin are relatively low, the fares really cannot be considered to be at all unreasonable. That’s before we even take taxsaver tickets into consideration.

lxflyer wrote: »

However, LU prices are not insane if you use Oyster.

It depends. Travelling to/from the centre of London at peak times, for example, is very expensive.

mickydoomsux

Facts!?!?! From someone with actual real life experience of something!?!?!In a C&T thread?

How dare you sir!!!!