Bus Eireann Information for Drivers

Weyhey

While stuck on a Bus Eireann bus to Kildare for 4 and a half hours on Monday in the floods someone asked the driver would he not contact HQ or base and to find out which roads would be the best to take or to avoid. We were all gob smacked to hear the driver say something like 'sorry folks, that's Dublin Bus you're thinking of, we don't have anything like that'.

The poor man was depending on passengers with smartphones for traffic updates.

Can anyone tell me why B.E drivers don't have any way of contacting their HQ or vice versa for traffic updates or any other important issues? Are drivers normally left to their own devices when serious traffic issues arise? What if a bus break downs what happens then?

(By the way this post is not a complaint about the driver or B.E. that night in any way, everyone on our bus myself included had nothing but praise for our driver).

Buffman

Weyhey wrote: »

Can anyone tell me why B.E drivers don't have any way of contacting their HQ or vice versa for traffic updates or any other important issues?

DB have two-way radios as they're confined to a relatively small geographical area and can get away with only needing a few aerials/transmitters. I'd imagine setting up a similar nationwide system for BE would cost millions and need lots of infrastructure.

Another, probably cheaper option, would be to fit each bus with a company mobile phone. Still probably a non runner due to cost.

I'd imagine in an emergency the driver is expected to use his/her personal phone.

Vic_08

Buffman wrote: »

DB have two-way radios as they're confined to a relatively small geographical area and can get away with only needing a few aerials/transmitters. I'd imagine setting up a similar nationwide system for BE would cost millions and need lots of infrastructure.

An attempt to roll out a radio system was made around the late 90s but it never worked properly away from the main hubs.

Buffman wrote: »

Another, probably cheaper option, would be to fit each bus with a company mobile phone. Still probably a non runner due to cost.

The AVL system installed over the last few years works off GSM based technology and incorporates a voice and text communication system, although these units are in the vast majority of the service fleet only the AVL is in use. It should be possible to contact any location fitted with the base units with handsfree voice calls and for all or specific buses based on route or location to be sent short text messages, these facilities are not used at present.

Buffman wrote: »

I'd imagine in an emergency the driver is expected to use his/her personal phone.

That is an option but then the problem is who to call. Put simply there is nobody to call that is likely to have any better traffic information than a driver tuned to AA roadwatch.

DeltaEightOne

"While stuck on a Bus Eireann bus to Kildare for 4 and a half hours on Monday in the floods someone asked the driver would he not contact HQ or base and to find out which roads would be the best to take or to avoid. We were all gob smacked to hear the driver say something like 'sorry folks, that's Dublin Bus you're thinking of, we don't have anything like that'."

100% true and accurate. Sad reflection of a bus operator thats still stuck in the dark ages. Surprised he actually admitted it 'in uniform' because he'd be most likely up on a 'disciplinary' for saying something truthful!

"The poor man was depending on passengers with smartphones for traffic updates."

Again 100% true and accurate. Not surprised at all by this as there is no "national control centre" - even if you rang Busaras they are usually none the wiser and are the last to be informed by the Gardaí regarding road closures. If its not in the immediate Dublin area then Busaras aren't much help.

Can anyone tell me why B.E drivers don't have any way of contacting their HQ or vice versa for traffic updates or any other important issues?

Bus Eireann do have a sophisticated AVL (automatic vehicle location) / GPS system that incorporates a 2 way radio that was introduced in 2008 but it has never been utilised. Cost a fortune as well!

If the driver uses their own personal mobile phone to make contact 1) they have no way of being reimbursed for the phone call, 2) he/she is breaching company rules by using the said phone and he/she is also potentially facing a fixed penalty (€60 fine/2 penalty points) if a Garda catches them. 3) if an eagle eyed passenger spots them using the said phone (even with a bluetooth earpiece) and makes a complaint to Bus Eireann about the driver doing same, then guess who's up on a disciplinary for using a mobile phone whilst "driving", even though the driver is using it for the purposes of company business! Sounds absurd but its true! And yes, passengers ARE that malicious when they think they will get some kind of reward or reimbursement from BE!

Are drivers normally left to their own devices when serious traffic issues arise?

Yes, that is common practice. There are no hard and fast rules and the goalposts are always moving. Everything is hunky-dory until something goes wrong, or someone takes offence, and then guess who gets the blame? Initiative is a dirty word and the blame game is a game that the driver can never win even when they are 100% in the right and/or have no other option.

What if a bus break downs what happens then?

If a bus breaks down during maintenance on-call time (07:30-22.00) then you have some chance of getting help. Usually another bus would be sent out with a mechanic driving a van or the mechanic would drive the replacement bus out, swap the buses, and fix/drive the defective one back to the depot. Something similar is the norm with Dublin Bus who unlike Bus Eireann do have shift mechanics on duty 24 hours a day.

Turnaround time of getting a replacement/change of bus can be anything from 30 minutes to 3 hours, depending on distance from nearest depot etc... usually if another bus is following (i.e: 12 o'clock bus breaks down, 1 o'clock bus arrives behind) passengers would be transferred onto this bus but this all depends if there is sufficient room on the bus following behind.

If a bus breaks down North of the border then its up to Ulsterbus to send assistance/replacement bus etc and they work similar hours. But if the bus breaks down outside of maintenance hours either in the Republic or up the North, then the bus and its passengers are literally left to fend for themselves. No one to call, no one to help. How reassuring to know help is always at hand!

(By the way this post is not a complaint about the driver or B.E. that night in any way, everyone on our bus myself included had nothing but praise for our driver)

Should be a complaint made to BE about their complete lack of competency in general. Would be interesting to hear BE's response to your criticism, and obviously make damn sure to point out the reasons why you have nothing but praise for the driver (he probably wont even get any recognition from BE mgmt), and secondly ask them to explain why the communications technology and appropriate procedures that should be in place to deal with the likes of this are not there, it is unprofessional to say the least and somewhat unsafe that yourself and other passengers (i.e: untrained personnel) had to update the driver on what roads were passable etc. Not acceptable in any way.

A letter like this would be a surprise for the complaints dept which I would guess would be fairly pressed to come up with a good answer. Its reassuring to see that yourself and the other passengers adopted a mature and objective view of the situation, seeing that the situation was beyond the drivers control, rather than the screaming spoiled child attitude that most passengers adopt in situations like this, and others, for example when the big nasty bus driver wouldnt let them off between stops, wouldnt stop the bus to let them off on a blind summit, or stop to let them off at some other perfectly safe location like on the hard shoulder of a motorway.

Is it any wonder why bus drivers are usually grumpy?

Cookie_Monster

Can anyone tell me why B.E drivers don't have any way of contacting their HQ or vice versa for traffic updates or any other important issues?

Given this, and the fact that they don't use it how do BE actually track buses. What happens if a bus does not turn up to it's destination within a given time?

How long do they leave it before informing AGS, how do they locate it to check the issue and ensure it's just traffic rather than a crash for instance?

DeltaEightOne

The GPS side of things is used to track buses (but its not 100% reliable) but as for everything else the system is capable of doing (messaging, 2-way radio etc) is either used very rarely or not at all.

foggy_lad

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

Given this, and the fact that they don't use it how do BE actually track buses. What happens if a bus does not turn up to it's destination within a given time?

How long do they leave it before informing AGS, how do they locate it to check the issue and ensure it's just traffic rather than a crash for instance?

When enough waiting passengers at athlone or busaras etc keep asking where is the bus and how late is it going to be then someone Might try to track it down but generally for busses which don't make it all the way into busaras nobody even notices, seems a waste even having so many staff and inspectors etc walking around in busaras if they can't keep an eye on things. (if these are drivers on their breaks they should not be wandering around mingling with passengers)

Jehuty42

foggy_lad wrote: »

(if these are drivers on their breaks they should not be wandering around mingling with passengers)

Why not?

markpb

Jehuty42 wrote: »

Why not?

Part of me agrees with foggy - if they're on their break and hanging around public areas doing nothing, it gives customers a bad impression. Plenty of companies ask their employees not to be in customer visible places unless they're working or out of uniform.

On the other hand, if they're willing (and informed enough) to answer customer questions while on the floor, that's fair enough and presents a good image to customers.

Cookie_Monster

foggy_lad wrote: »

(if these are drivers on their breaks they should not be wandering around mingling with passengers)

it's their own free time to do with what they want, ok so maybe cover the uniform but you can't seriously expect drivers to stay confined to the lunchroom.

If they get asked something they can either answer it, or say they are on their lunch break.

LXFlyer

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

it's their own free time to do with what they want, ok so maybe cover the uniform but you can't seriously expect drivers to stay confined to the lunchroom.

If they get asked something they can either answer it, or say they are on their lunch break.

Totally agree - the last time I checked Ireland was a democracy although reading some posts here I do wonder if some people realise that?

markpb

lxflyer wrote: »

Totally agree - the last time I checked Ireland was a democracy although reading some posts here I do wonder if some people realise that?

Busaras is private property - if the company were to ask their employees not to be there in uniform when not working, that would be perfectly legal.

Cookie_Monster

markpb wrote: »

Busaras is private property - if the company were to ask their employees not to be there in uniform when not working, that would be perfectly legal.

but it's a public area, they can no more ask that of staff on their own time than insist passengers leave "just because" without a valid reason. If staff put a jacket over the uniform then they're not longer in uniform...

foggy_lad

When staff(some working and some not) congregate around the information desk or hang around out at the loading bays with cups of tea/coffee chatting about whatever match is/was on etc it gives a very poor impression and is far from professional behaviour imho, Thses staff members are also harder for passengers to approach as they are not openly working and many passengers woulf feel bad about disturbing them.

if staff are off duty they should be off the premises or at least out of sight for customers.

There is also issues where up to 3 or 4 staff will climb on board a bus leaving stations like Limerick to catch a lift to the Depot at the end of their shift. Surely this kind of behaviour is not just dangerous as there are several people standing in the footwell of a coach but the insurers must also frown upon such behaviour bacause afaik it is illegal?

AlekSmart

foggy_lad wrote: »

When staff(some working and some not) congregate around the information desk or hang around out at the loading bays with cups of tea/coffee chatting about whatever match is/was on etc it gives a very poor impression and is far from professional behaviour imho, Thses staff members are also harder for passengers to approach as they are not openly working and many passengers woulf feel bad about disturbing them.

if staff are off duty they should be off the premises or at least out of sight for customers.

There is also issues where up to 3 or 4 staff will climb on board a bus leaving stations like Limerick to catch a lift to the Depot at the end of their shift. Surely this kind of behaviour is not just dangerous as there are several people standing in the footwell of a coach but the insurers must also frown upon such behaviour bacause afaik it is illegal?

How (or why) does the ordinary Joe Soap differentiate between working and non-working (even if on a short break) Staff...perhaps some form of ink-stamp or stick-on flourescent badge...?

How does a mere observing mortal without super powers manage to know the topics of conversation of SO many Public Transport Staff members countrywide..on road,rail and perhaps even water...?

Sometimes,just sometimes I find myself thinking that the relativity between Time,Space and Reality is becoming distorted....?

The Dublin Bus Bye-Laws have a qualifying reference to perhaps placate the Foggiest of _Lads...

No person except an authorised person shall stand or attempt to stand on the steps of the vehicle while it is in motion.

Vic_08

And yet another thread is dragged off topic for more petty staff bashing.

I can't speak for all of my colleagues but no drivers I know are particularly keen on hanging around Busaras when not on duty, our shifts are long enough as it is without spending even more time at work without pay.

SHOVELLER

Any chance drivers could turn off the radio on routes? Cant read, sleep or listen to my own music with this idiocy.

No radio on in buses in other countries.

Going Forward

SHOVELLER wrote: »

Any chance drivers could turn off the radio on routes? Cant read, sleep or listen to my own music with this idiocy.

No radio on in buses in other countries.

Do they pay IMRO for performance rights, if so is the figure known?

Niles

SHOVELLER wrote: »

Any chance drivers could turn off the radio on routes? Cant read, sleep or listen to my own music with this idiocy.

No radio on in buses in other countries.

I actually like listening to the radio on the bus. Each to his own I guess... If I don't like what's on there's always the 'oul iPod.

Going Forward

Niles wrote: »

I actually like listening to the radio on the bus. Each to his own I guess... If I don't like what's on there's always the 'oul iPod.

Should all be tuned to Radio 1 though!
Nice to get back into the country and feel "at home " on the journey.

foggy_lad

SHOVELLER wrote: »

Any chance drivers could turn off the radio on routes? Cant read, sleep or listen to my own music with this idiocy.

No radio on in buses in other countries.

Nothing as bad as having to endure non stop rap/hip-hop/thump thump thump at full volume from some numptys leaking headphones because they bought their cheap knock-off "genuine apple" headset in the market or off eBay or adverts.ie.

I like when the radio is on but just loud enough to hear and follow the tune or to hear the news/conversation etc

tom23

Are you allowed to have passengers standing on on single deckers? We got a spare driver on 07:05 M3 express, door didn't work on the bus and the driver didn;t know where he was going and they all seem to say the same thing, I'm a spare, I am not told etc etc. God forbid if people had to exit the bus in a hurry, no door working, or if the bus had to emergency break the four passengers standing would be like flying projectiles.


Anyone know?

foggy_lad

tom23 wrote: »

Are you allowed to have passengers standing on on single deckers? We got a spare driver on 07:05 M3 express, door didn't work on the bus and the driver didn;t know where he was going and they all seem to say the same thing, I'm a spare, I am not told etc etc. God forbid if people had to exit the bus in a hurry, no door working, or if the bus had to emergency break the four passengers standing would be like flying projectiles.


Anyone know?

No! The only bus Eireann buses allowed to have standees are those single or double deckers which are like the Dublin bus buses. These buses are speed limited to 50kph afaik while all other bus Eireann coaches(except for a few old bangers limited to 80kph) including their double deck coaches are limited to 100kph.

No coach should not have standees except for city-buses designed for having people standing.