Irish Rail - On-line suburban tickets

kkelly77

Why can't Irishrail make it possible for suburban tickets to be purchased online? If you look at their site, they display a 'Web Price' as well as the option to select Premier, Standard and Ticket only. However, if you select Ticket only, you get an error on the screen telling you you can't purchase online. Why the hell not?!!:mad:

It's not as if the technology to do so doesn't exist. Anyone have any ideas? I have a 25% discount code I'd like to use.

Losty Dublin

kkelly77 wrote: »

Why can't Irishrail make it possible for suburban tickets to be purchased online? If you look at their site, they display a 'Web Price' as well as the option to select Premier, Standard and Ticket only. However, if you select Ticket only, you get an error on the screen telling you you can't purchase online. Why the hell not?!!:mad:

It's not as if the technology to do so doesn't exist. Anyone have any ideas? I have a 25% discount code I'd like to use.

Online bookings require a train with numbered seating and a display unit to show a seat is booked, something suburban/Dart's don't have nor will they get due to the short distance journeys they cater for.

In any case, can you really see a reserved seat being kept free for you on a rush hour train?

schemingbohemia

If it's the 25% off code that was posted in Bargain Alerts and re-posted here by me, then I'm fairly sure that code had to be used on Tuesday?

foggy_lad

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Online bookings require a train with numbered seating and a display unit to show a seat is booked, something suburban/Dart's don't have nor will they get due to the short distance journeys they cater for.

In any case, can you really see a reserved seat being kept free for you on a rush hour train?

The op was referring to buying the ticket only option online just like we can do with Bus Eireann, most Bus Eireann tickets can be purchased online and incur a 5% discount every time nuot just when booked in advance and there is no booking or reservation charge or other credit card charges.

kkelly77 wrote:

Why can't Irishrail make it possible for suburban tickets to be purchased online?

Losty Dublin

foggy_lad wrote: »

The op was referring to buying the ticket only option online just like we can do with Bus Eireann, most Bus Eireann tickets can be purchased online and incur a 5% discount every time nuot just when booked in advance and there is no booking or reservation charge or other credit card charges.

And I explained why not.

**Timbuk2**

Losty Dublin wrote: »

And I explained why not.

But why isn't it possible to buy tickets online, without a reserved seat. It would be very convenient if we could just buy a train ticket online, possibly at a slightly discounted price, and find our own seat on the train! Otherwise we have to queue in the station at the desk, or queue at the machines, to buy tickets.

Cool Mo D

**Timbuk2** wrote: »

But why isn't it possible to buy tickets online, without a reserved seat. It would be very convenient if we could just buy a train ticket online, possibly at a slightly discounted price, and find our own seat on the train! Otherwise we have to queue in the station at the desk, or queue at the machines, to buy tickets.

You'd still have to go to the machine, or the desk to collect your reserved tickets though.

Losty Dublin

**Timbuk2** wrote: »

But why isn't it possible to buy tickets online, without a reserved seat. It would be very convenient if we could just buy a train ticket online, possibly at a slightly discounted price, and find our own seat on the train! Otherwise we have to queue in the station at the desk, or queue at the machines, to buy tickets.

Online bookings require you to collect a ticket on the day so they are better suited for longer trips; can you imagine the fun of up to 200 people at Howth or Maynooth collecting booked tickets as well as those buying their own tickets each morning? For those who use suburban rail trips on a regular, there are multi ticket or weekly/monthly options which offer discounts over single/return trips as well as saving you time.

n97 mini

Losty Dublin wrote: »

can you imagine the fun of up to 200 people at Howth or Maynooth collecting booked tickets as well as those buying their own tickets each morning?

Would those 200 people not have to buy them in the station anyway?

Losty Dublin

n97 mini wrote: »

Would those 200 people not have to buy them in the station anyway?

Yes they would but online purchasing doesn't make any difference here as it saves no time to them for what are mainly €3-€4 fares.

n97 mini

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Yes they would but online purchasing doesn't make any difference here as it saves no time to them for what are mainly €3-€4 fares.

The original point was regarding the fun of 200 people turning up to collect tickets at Howth or Maynooth. 200 people turning up to buy tickets results in equally as much, if not more, fun.

foggy_lad

Losty Dublin wrote: »

And I explained why not.

So the reality of it is that Irish rail only sell a small percentage of their tickets online because only intercity tickets can be bought online, no suburban or commuter tickets to maynooth Portlaoise or even Longford can be bought

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Yes they would but online purchasing doesn't make any difference here as it saves no time to them for what are mainly €3-€4 fares.

Portlaoise is priced online at €21.50 for a ticket you are not allowed buy online
Longford is €23 again for tickets you can't buy online! Not to mention Kildare and Newbridge the most expensive station in the country.

n97 mini

foggy_lad wrote: »

Portlaoise is priced online at €21.50 for a ticket you are not allowed buy online.
Longford is €23 again for tickets you can't buy online!

And ironically Bus Eireann will happily sell you a tickets for Portlaoise and Longford online. And at €10.45 and €14.25 respectively you'd save a few quid too.

Losty Dublin

n97 mini wrote: »

The original point was regarding the fun of 200 people turning up to collect tickets at Howth or Maynooth. 200 people turning up to buy tickets results in equally as much, if not more, fun.

My point exactly; there is no benefits to anybody in offering online ordering for short commuter trips. As it is, many passengers for these trips use season/multi journey tickets so who stands to gain from it? Answer; nobody.

n97 mini

Losty Dublin wrote: »

As it is, many passengers for these trips use season/multi journey tickets so who stands to gain from it? Answer; nobody.

And neither would it do any harm. The travelling public would benefit from a uniform simplified system, where they can buy all tickets online.

LXFlyer

That is what is intended for www.transportforireland.ie in due course. It will become a single source for all public transport information.

foggy_lad

n97 mini wrote: »

And ironically Bus Eireann will happily sell you a tickets for Portlaoise and Longford online. And at €10.45 and €14.25 respectively you'd save a few quid too.

Bus Eireann Adult monthly return to Longford is €21.85 and Portlaoise is €16.85 Adult monthly return, Dundalk is €33 online with irish rail but only €11.40 monthly return with Bus Eireann for a half hourly service which is faster and delivers you to the town centre.

Losty Dublin wrote: »

My point exactly; there is no benefits to anybody in offering online ordering for short commuter trips. As it is, many passengers for these trips use season/multi journey tickets so who stands to gain from it? Answer; nobody.

Ten journey Bus Eireann tickets to Portlaoise are €42.75 and Longford costs €63.65, and Dundalk is €47.50 so how much do Irish rail charge for the same 10 journey tickets?

dowlingm

The train should cost more than the bus, but the train should be a better passenger experience than the bus.

I realise that for many IE services only one of these is currently true... indeed in the case of the Limerick-Roscrea line it's arguably worse.