Buses not accepting €50s

stacexD

Got a fairly rude bus driver a couple of weeks ago that left me pretty p*ssed off for the day...

It was 9:00 in a small enough town, but down at the very end of the town where the only shops are a phone shop, bargain shop and a pub, with an electrical shop down a good bit. (a good bit meaning it took about a minute and a half to run to it)
Put my bags in the luggage compartment. Got onto the bus and handed the bus driver a €50 note to pay for a €19.50 ticket. He looked at me like I was total scum and paused for a few seconds then said "no". I said what and he said "No. None of that." I asked what he meant twice while he still looked at me like scum then said I'm not tking that 50. I told him it was the only cash I had on me and he said tough luck. So after another couple of seconds pause he said "well you'd wanna go and find some change now" There were 10 or more people on the bus already so I kinda doubt that he didn't have €30 on him (there were 2 stops before this too)

His attidute and the fact that I needed to be on that bus had me fairly flustered and feeling a bit upset, and I couldn't just say f*ck it and walk away because my bags were already on. So I got off the bus went into the phone shop to be told they had no change, went into the bargain shop to be told the same, ran down to the electrical shop and was told the same again. I don't know where he even expected me to get change at 9 in the morning when the shops were only opening.
Must have been close on 10 minutes later now and I was running back up to the bus when I seen an old man counting money and asked him for change.

Went back onto the bus with my change and the driver started huffing and puffing then gave me my ticket and drove off before i even got up the step to the seats.

There was another 6 stops between where I got on and where I was going which was a bus station, so I got thinking how hard would it have been for him to take the 50 off me and give me change later or at the bus station instead of holding the whole bus up for 10 mins.

I know they don't have to accept large notes but €50 isn't exactly a large not to pay a €20 fare and the cheapest fare on that route is even €6. Not like the town services or anything!

I'm not looking for a lecture on the rules or bus eireann quotes but does anyone have any opinions on whether they think he was being reasonable or a bit of a pr*ck? If not on the not accepting money, but just the way he handled the whole situation?

Most bus drivers I come across are lovely, the only other bad experience I've had with one was years ago when I was 15 buying a child ticket and he started arguing with me that I definitely wasn't 15 (I don't even look old, I'm 20 now and almost always get asked for I.D :pac:)When he lost the argument he gave me the ticket and said something like "well, who am I to judge you, sure I'm only a bus driver" while I was walking away. Come to think of it, it was the same route.. It might even have been the same guy :pac:

robbie_998

your lucky he waited for you.

foggy_lad

stacexD wrote: »

Got a fairly rude bus driver a couple of weeks ago that left me pretty p*ssed off for the day...

It was 9:00 in a small enough town, but down at the very end of the town where the only shops are a phone shop, bargain shop and a pub, with an electrical shop down a good bit. (a good bit meaning it took about a minute and a half to run to it)
Put my bags in the luggage compartment. Got onto the bus and handed the bus driver a €50 note to pay for a €19.50 ticket. He looked at me like I was total scum and paused for a few seconds then said "no". I said what and he said "No. None of that." I asked what he meant twice while he still looked at me like scum then said I'm not tking that 50. I told him it was the only cash I had on me and he said tough luck. So after another couple of seconds pause he said "well you'd wanna go and find some change now" There were 10 or more people on the bus already so I kinda doubt that he didn't have €30 on him (there were 2 stops before this too)

His attidute and the fact that I needed to be on that bus had me fairly flustered and feeling a bit upset, and I couldn't just say f*ck it and walk away because my bags were already on. So I got off the bus went into the phone shop to be told they had no change, went into the bargain shop to be told the same, ran down to the electrical shop and was told the same again. I don't know where he even expected me to get change at 9 in the morning when the shops were only opening.
Must have been close on 10 minutes later now and I was running back up to the bus when I seen an old man counting money and asked him for change.

Went back onto the bus with my change and the driver started huffing and puffing then gave me my ticket and drove off before i even got up the step to the seats.

There was another 6 stops between where I got on and where I was going which was a bus station, so I got thinking how hard would it have been for him to take the 50 off me and give me change later or at the bus station instead of holding the whole bus up for 10 mins.

I know they don't have to accept large notes but €50 isn't exactly a large not to pay a €20 fare and the cheapest fare on that route is even €6. Not like the town services or anything!

I'm not looking for a lecture on the rules or bus eireann quotes but does anyone have any opinions on whether they think he was being reasonable or a bit of a pr*ck? If not on the not accepting money, but just the way he handled the whole situation?

Most bus drivers I come across are lovely, the only other bad experience I've had with one was years ago when I was 15 buying a child ticket and he started arguing with me that I definitely wasn't 15 (I don't even look old, I'm 20 now and almost always get asked for I.D :pac:)When he lost the argument he gave me the ticket and said something like "well, who am I to judge you, sure I'm only a bus driver" while I was walking away. Come to think of it, it was the same route.. It might even have been the same guy :pac:

Three feckin shops didn't have change in their daily floats at 9am in the morning yet you expected a bus driver to be carrying several hundred euros in change?? He had probably taken a few €50 notes already that morning leaving him with no change, you knew about your early morning journey so why not be prepared and get change the day/night before?

Cookie_Monster

he should have taken it, there's no obligation to give change, but then you would have been pissed off about paying 50 for a 20 quid journey.

Drivers can't win in such a situation, can't risk carrying enough cash for change all the time and can't not give change cos of complaints and can't say no because of complaints. He could well have had no change because the previous 10 people on board could have done the same.

He was nice enough to wait for you after all despite you inconveniencing everyone on the bus by not having the correct change and wasting time so I reckon you came out even...

stacexD

foggy_lad wrote: »

Three feckin shops didn't have change in their daily floats at 9am in the morning yet you expected a bus driver to be carrying several hundred euros in change?? He had probably taken a few €50 notes already that morning leaving him with no change, you knew about your early morning journey so why not be prepared and get change the day/night before?

€30 is not hundreds of euros.
I use this bus a lot and have seen people pay with 50s hundreds of times with no problem.

paddy145

Going by how the OP described it I would say the driver was a bit rude, if he had aleady broken €50 notes that morning he could easily have said "Sorry, I cant change that". On the other hand he did wait for you so it is a bit of a conflicting story.

foggy_lad

stacexD wrote: »

€30 is not hundreds of euros.
I use this bus a lot and have seen people pay with 50s hundreds of times with no problem.

It is hundreds after giving it to 10 people, also you always see people paying with €50's and that is why there was no change left for you, I just think being more prepared brings it's own rewards and a lot less ill feeling

mrsdewinter

foggy_lad wrote: »

stacexD wrote: »

€30 is not hundreds of euros.
I use this bus a lot and have seen people pay with 50s hundreds of times with no problem.

It is hundreds after giving it to 10 people, also you always see people paying with €50's and that is why there was no change left for you, I just think being more prepared brings it's own rewards and a lot less ill feeling

Your final statement is a much nicer way of phrasing my reaction! You were extremely lucky, OP, that the driver waited for you. I'm sure the other passengers loved cooling their heels while you sorted yourself out. Next time, get your ducks in a row before setting off.

stacexD

foggy_lad wrote: »

It is hundreds after giving it to 10 people, also you always see people paying with €50's and that is why there was no change left for you, I just think being more prepared brings it's own rewards and a lot less ill feeling

I usually am, it just happene to be one of those days. Went to the atm before hand and it was only giving out 50s. Didn't get change the night before because I was staying at my brothers house and he owed me €20 but of course this day would have to be the day he didn't have cash on him :pac:
Like I said in the OP, it's not as much the not taking cash that bothered me as much as the way he handled it. Not once did he say he didn't have change, apologise about it, or be nice/respectful in general! How hard would it have been for him to say "sorry I don't have change of 50 but I'll wait if you want to try the shops" in the first place. I'm not offended easily or anything but he had a serious attitude towards me.
So much for "Our drivers will be well presented, friendly, helpful and courteous to you at all times."

Edit: I don't think he could have drove off while waiting for me anyway since my bags were on the bus

Lapin

foggy_lad wrote: »

Three feckin shops didn't have change in their daily floats at 9am in the morning yet you expected a bus driver to be carrying several hundred euros in change??

foggy_lad wrote: »

I just think being more prepared brings it's own rewards and a lot less ill feeling

So by this logic you expect the shops to have change but not the bus company. I'd expect the bus company to be prepared too, rather than expecting other businesses to facilitate them.

As the OP said, the driver could have given the change later in the journey when he had it.

In this particular case, the evidence suggests that the driver was simply being a prick.

dearg lady

Lapin wrote: »

So by this logic you expect the shops to have change but not the bus company. I'd expect the bus company to be prepared too, rather than expecting other businesses to facilitate them.

As the OP said, the driver could have given the change later in the journey when he had it.

In this particular case, the evidence suggests that the driver was simply being a prick.

I thought the point was the customer should have been more prepared...that's what I took from it..

tbh, based on what was posted I don't think the driver was a prick, he might have been a a bit short when speaking to the OP, but he waited for 10 minutes, that seems more than considerate

Carlos Orange

paddy145 wrote: »

Going by how the OP described it I would say the driver was a bit rude, if he had aleady broken €50 notes that morning he could easily have said "Sorry, I cant change that". On the other hand he did wait for you so it is a bit of a conflicting story.

Somewhere there is a post complaining about the driver waiting for 10 minutes for no reason. The OP wasted a couple of hours of everyone elses time instead of being organised.

Lapin

dearg lady wrote: »

I thought the point was the customer should have been more prepared...that's what I took from it..

Yes, but my point was that being prepared should work both ways. Customers are individuals and different situations arise with each of them.
A public transport operator is a professional outfit that should be able to manage a simple thing like having adequate change on a regular bus route.
Or at least ensuring their staff deal with the sitution in a polite manner at times when they may not have it.

dearg lady

Lapin wrote: »

Yes, but my point was that being prepared should work both ways. Customers are individuals and different situations arise with each of them.
A public transport operator is a professional outfit that should be able to manage a simple thing like having adequate change on a regular bus route.
Or at least ensuring their staff deal with the sitution in a polite manner at times when they may not have it.

sorry, I thought you were referring specifically to foggy lads response. Yes, I agree they should be somewhat prepared, and perhaps they were. I've worked in various shops, and had the entire float cleared out by the first one or two customers many times.

Lapin

psinno wrote: »

Somewhere there is a post complaining about the driver waiting for 10 minutes for no reason. The OP wasted a couple of hours of everyone elses time instead of being organised.

If the bus operator ran their business in a professional manner, rather than relying on butchers, bakers & candlestick makers along their route to supply them with change, (or a driver willing to give the change at a later stop), nobody's time would have been wasted.

PseudoFamous

My weekly ticket costs €49.50, and myself and a friend usually get on at the first stop of the route.

I've dealt with a bus driver who went absolutely mad when I handed him a fifty and told him the ticket I wanted. He wasn't the usual directly employed BE driver, but had been contracted on that morning. Started shouting about how its not his job to be counting out change. This was at 6.45am, and I wasn't properly awake, so this was fairly bewildering to me. I somehow managed enough clarity of mind and responded lovely and audibly that if he couldn't take 49.50 from 50€ at his age, he probably shouldn't be driving a bus, and repeated the ticket I wanted. He was about to start up again, so I told him to keep the change, and give me the ticket. As soon as I got to Busaras, I had the story written up, and handed it to an inspector.

Probably had no bearing on the event, but I feel that I was completely in the right in this incident.

I don't know why I decided to share that.

Lapin

dearg lady wrote: »

I've worked in various shops, and had the entire float cleared out by the first one or two customers many times.

As have I, (in a pub).

And I politely explained this to my customers.
If I knew them, I told them they could settle with me later. Otherwise I told them I'd have their change shortly.

The difference here is that my customers usually hung around for a while anyway or could come and go as they pleased.

In the OP's case, he/she needed to be on that bus and had to get somewhere, therefore, it was a much more stressful situation for him/her.

Cookie_Monster

Lapin wrote: »

If the bus operator ran their business in a professional manner, rather than relying on butchers, bakers & candlestick makers along their route to supply them with change

If buses started carrying large volumes of cash to supply change they be targeted by criminals, it's a balance between carrying enough to meet most of the change demand vs not enough to make buses and coaches an easy target for the scummers

dearg lady wrote: »

. I've worked in various shops, and had the entire float cleared out by the first one or two customers many times.

yeah it was a constant problem when I worked in retail, at least in larger stores you have several floats and a cash office to go to if really needed.

daddydick

I actually can't believe the attitude of some people here telling the OP that he was 'lucky' and 'extremely
Fortunate' that the bus driver waited for him.

The bus driver was a prick. A useless prick and it's people with a stinking attitude like that that make this country such a **** hole. The land of a thousand welcomes my effin hole. Friendly? Come off it. It's people like ye OP who have the bus driver in a job. The least you expect is to be treated like a human being. If I was the OP I would be fuming. What a w@nker of a bus driver.

Rant over.

PS Get off your high horse telling him to be better prepared for a bus journey, what the fcuk like??

Victor

While I think the driver may have been rude in this case, I think it is unreasonable for people to show up with large denominations at small businesses, especially mobile ones, at the start of the day. There is some responsibility on behalf of the passenger to plan ahead.

corktina

Sitec wrote: »

I was in the same situation one morning at 6:30AM. The bus driver basically said "What do you want me to do about it?". I managed to get change from a passenger [Bbut in fairness a bus company is a business and they should be the ones with a float][/B], not the shop down the road or the customer.

If people are willing to pay the fare it's hardly a big issue to have change for them. I can guarantee this wouldn't happen in any other country it's just the typical Irish business mentality. Then they wonder why nobody goes on the bus!

...bold bit...but €30 change times up to 50 passengers times however many buses are on the road is serious dead money for any business to be carrying!

corktina

Victor wrote: »

While I think the driver may have been rude in this case, I think it is unreasonable for people to show up with large denominations at small businesses, especially mobile ones, at the start of the day. There is some responsibility on behalf of the passenger to plan ahead.

this is totally correct . its a fact of life that middle aged guys do get grumpy and do get pissed off by small things,

Terrontress

I don't think that there is a normal service provider / customer relationship in this instance.

Bus operations are licensed, and in some cases subvented, as they provide a necessary service to the public who are represented by those who issue the licenses.

If the bus driver was unable to issue a ticket due to having no change then the op should have been allowed to travel without a ticket until such time as one could be issued. If, throughout the entire journey, no change was available then the op travels for free. It is a timetabled public service.

Losty Dublin

Wee story for you OP; one night 3 years back when I was working my taxi I took 7 customers in a row on a Saturday night who tendered 50 euro notes. I had change to hand to cope with all of them they were all hefty enough fares but at the end of the day after totting up my fares, I worked out that I gave out 160 euros of change to them. That was actually akin to what I took in the night before.

Moral of the story? Bus and taxi drivers have to get the change from somewhere as well and a couple of 50's can wipe us out quick enough.

Viper_JB

I thought there was a facility where the bus driver could print out a receipt for any change he couldn't give which could be refunded later at a bus station, or is that just Dublin bus?

Plazaman

I'll spread the blame here as 60/40 with 60 going to the Bus Driver. It's well known (or should be) that no lone service provider (be it Bus Drivers, Taxi Drivers or Pizza Delivery peoples) like to carry large floats due to risk of robbery. Actually you can blame scumbags for the predicament OP, I like to blame them for all problems including the bad weather.

So thats why if a person knows they have to travel in advance, why not have exact change and speed up the embarking process for all concerned.

Still all the driver had to do in this situation is take the €50 and say to OP, come back to me when you're getting off, I should have change by then.

_Kaiser_

Maybe if the "service" wasn't so overpriced to begin with and usually priced at "awkward" amounts this wouldn't be such an issue - same applies to public transport generaly (why can't we have fares like €1.50 or €2 on Dublin Bus for example, rather than €1.65 - or whatever it is now - etc)

Yes the driver was a bit of a prick by the sounds of it (regardless of the fare, basic manners/common courtesy/customer service - something many frontline public transport workers should get familiar with in my experience - costs nothing) but that said, he didn't have to hang around either while you found enough change to cover it OP. Unless it was a busy shop or something I'd expect a €50 note to cause problems in most places at that hour.

jimmyendless

When I was in college I literally had no money and rounded up the copper coins from around the flat to pay for a small bus fair. Still got an ear full from the driver "what am I supposed to do with that".

There is no need for driver to be a prick about it. If he can't handle the €50 he could just say to the OP "I can't take the €50, there will be nothing left of my float".

when i get buses that have no change they say "i owe ya x, come back to me when we get there"
thought that was standard
well not standard, but im surprised he didnt do the same

surprised he waited too

thomasj

One of the reasons why the leap card is needed on the bus eireann network sooner rather than later!

AlekSmart

daddydick wrote: »

The bus driver was a prick. A useless prick and it's people with a stinking attitude like that that make this country such a **** hole. The land of a thousand welcomes my effin hole. Friendly? Come off it. It's people like ye OP who have the bus driver in a job. The least you expect is to be treated like a human being. If I was the OP I would be fuming. What a w@nker of a bus driver.

Rant over.

PS Get off your high horse telling him to be better prepared for a bus journey, what the fcuk like??

Gues that Bus Eireann driver was dead lucky that it was'nt Daddydick he met that morning....is there an anger management forum round here someplace....?

AlekSmart

corktina wrote: »

this is totally correct . its a fact of life that middle aged guys do get grumpy and do get pissed off by small things,

Hey hey hey..whoa there now Corktina..(I learnt to drive on a Mk 1 ).....less of the "Middle Aged !!!!!

AlekSmart

Plazaman wrote: »

Still all the driver had to do in this situation is take the €50 and say to OP, come back to me when you're getting off, I should have change by then.

I'd agree to an extent Plazaman,however it's rarely as cut and dried as that.

One issue here is that Bus Eireann DO NOT provide a float to their drivers.

Equally the BE Fares table appears to have been developed by a Dickensian bookeeper who,if it were possible,would have fares of 9 Pounds 9 Shillings and 11 pence Ha'penny (£9,9s 11 1/2d ) ( )

Drivers on a busy Inter-Urban or Expressway service could very easily lose whatever personal float they have at the first stop.

It just happened to be one of those days. Went to the atm before hand and it was only giving out 50s. Didn't get change the night before because I was staying at my brothers house and he owed me €20 but of course this day would have to be the day he didn't have cash on him
Like I said in the OP, it's not as much the not taking cash that bothered me as much as the way he handled it. Not once did he say he didn't have change, apologise about it, or be nice/respectful in general! How hard would it have been for him to say "sorry I don't have change of 50 but I'll wait if you want to try the shops" in the first place. I'm not offended easily or anything but he had a serious attitude towards me.
So much for "Our drivers will be well presented, friendly, helpful and courteous to you at all times."

Edit: I don't think he could have drove off while waiting for me anyway since my bags were on the bus

From re-reading the OP's post,the fault lies with her brother,who's level of debt was unsustainable and led to him defaulting in his repayment the night before...perhaps this is one for the Finance Forum...?

Mind you,we as a People,do have a substantial amount of expectations....

Lapin: So by this logic you expect the shops to have change but not the bus company. I'd expect the bus company to be prepared too, rather than expecting other businesses to facilitate them.

As the OP said, the driver could have given the change later in the journey when he had it.

In this particular case, the evidence suggests that the driver was simply being a prick.

I'll go with Lapin's verdict here as they appear to have the jump on this type of driver...

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056490918&page=2

Lapin:To apply for a job as a driver with Bus Éireann or Dublin Bus, simply submit a CV with the words "Obnoxious Arsehole" and the job is yours.

It would seem that the CV was successful then....?

One of the first things I learned,expensively,was to complete every fare transaction before moving off.

The notion of saying "I'll have it for ye later" or "I'll collect when I'm getting off" spells disaster for a Bus Driver wishing to remain solvent.

I learnt the hard way,with several incidents,up to and including being accused of misappropriating pasengers change.

It's amazing how often "I'll get it off you later" became ..."You never gave me my change"....!

For what it's worth,my tactic was/is always to call out to other pasengers on-board to enquire if they had change and to advise of a delay whilst the change-less passenger gets their act together.

I am constantly educated at the effect such an announcement has,with people who,barely 15 minutes before,had told me they had NO change,suddenly managing to mint/print heaps of the stuff down the back of the Bus.

It's equally interesting that the OP sees no issue with the other commercial entities not having any change (although,again from experience,such businesses close to Bus Stops,often have to become a little less "customer friendly" in this regard).

Hopefully the arrival of LeapCard will allow some form of detente to rule in all of this ?

Samba

foggy_lad wrote: »

Three feckin shops didn't have change in their daily floats at 9am in the morning yet you expected a bus driver to be carrying several hundred euros in change?? He had probably taken a few €50 notes already that morning leaving him with no change, you knew about your early morning journey so why not be prepared and get change the day/night before?

If the bus company is incapable of planning for such circumstances, then i'd suggest they change their policies to reflect this, if I know they won't accept a €50 note then I know not to show up at the bus stop with one, but that's not the case here at all.

AlekSmart

Samba wrote: »

If the bus company is incapable of planning for such circumstances, then i'd suggest they change their policies to reflect this, if I know they won't accept a €50 note then I know not to show up at the bus stop with one, but that's not the case here at all.

It's interesting alright,and to the best of my recollection,under the Truck Acts (?) once a vendor advertises their prices they do not have any obligation to give change,the obligation is on the purchaser to pay the required amount...anything over that is a tip !! :eek:

n97 mini

OP, you should have known to have exactly the right fare as bus drivers aren't provided with any float -- you should have known that too. You should also know bus drivers aren't grumpy, they're just annoyed because the amount of pesky customers that board the bus with 50s. You should also know that you have to be at the bus stop at least an hour before departure, as this would have given you plenty of time to sort your financial affairs. You should also have known according to the bye laws you can't ever travel without a valid ticket, except in some situations, but there's no point in appealing as you were definitely in the wrong.

Finally you should have known that by coming on here you were only going to get lectured by people who are more intelligent that you.

Honestly what did you expect!

invinciblePRSTV

I think its fair that bus drivers on small fare city services shouldn't have to accept large denomination notes.

On the other hand, Long distance commuter services, such as those run by BE, with ticket prices in the teens are fairgame however to use large notes.

As an example the service i use is an early morning one and the same thing happened to me as the OP just before xmas. The ATMs only would dispense 50s, the only shop open is the petrol station on the outskirts of town so what am i supposed to do? Miss a few hours of work and get a later service as i wait for for a shop to open to break a 50 and spare the bus drivers blushes?

Get a grip lads ffs. It should be well within BE drivers abilities to ensure they have enough change to cope with such a situation, just like every other business in the state does.

Its not rocket science but is another example of a CIE company having difficulty with a concept - people using notes to pay for things - which pretty much every other organisation has no great difficulty dealing with.

Lapin

AlekSmart wrote: »

Mind you,we as a People,do have a substantial amount of expectations....

What is the problem with paying customers having expectations of a decent level of service?

Losty Dublin

invinciblePRSTV wrote: »

On the other hand, Long distance commuter services, such as those run by BE, with ticket prices in the teens are fairgame however to use large notes.

Which is fair enough a point until...

invinciblePRSTV wrote: »

As an example the service i use is an early morning one and the same thing happened to me as the OP just before xmas. The ATMs only would dispense 50s, the only shop open is the petrol station on the outskirts of town so what am i supposed to do?

Can you helpfully point out to us all why this mess needs appears to be caused by and had to be cleaned up by the early morning bus driver?

invinciblePRSTV wrote: »

Get a grip lads ffs. It should be well within BE drivers abilities to ensure they have enough change to cope with such a situation, just like every other business in the state does.

Its not rocket science but is another example of a CIE company having difficulty with a concept - people using notes to pay for things - which pretty much every other organisation has no great difficulty dealing with.

As mentioned above, Bus Eireann drivers are not provided with a float for many reasons, security being one very good one. Should you now expect a driver then personally provide a float from his/her own pocket when you tender over and above the requisite amount?

markpb

Losty Dublin wrote: »

As mentioned above, Bus Eireann drivers are not provided with a float for many reasons, security being one very good one. Should you now expect a driver then personally provide a float from his/her own pocket when you tender over and above the requisite amount?

What goes on between BE and their staff (or contracted drivers) is nothing to do with the customer. Would you accept if someone in a shop told you that they couldn't give you change because their manager didn't provide them with a float?

This seems like a good time to point out the advantages of online ticket sales to both BE (less cash/security concerns) and to customers (not having to worry about change). However, some routes and stops are still missing and the discount offered to customers along with the requirement to print out the ticket (instead of just presenting the code to the driver) makes it less attractive to customers than it could be.

invinciblePRSTV

Losty Dublin wrote: »

invinciblePRSTV wrote: »

On the other hand, Long distance commuter services, such as those run by BE, with ticket prices in the teens are fairgame however to use large notes.

Which is fair enough a point until...

invinciblePRSTV wrote: »

As an example the service i use is an early morning one and the same thing happened to me as the OP just before xmas. The ATMs only would dispense 50s, the only shop open is the petrol station on the outskirts of town so what am i supposed to do?

Can you helpfully point out to us all why this mess needs appears to be caused by and had to be cleaned up by the early morning bus driver?

invinciblePRSTV wrote: »

Get a grip lads ffs. It should be well within BE drivers abilities to ensure they have enough change to cope with such a situation, just like every other business in the state does.

Its not rocket science but is another example of a CIE company having difficulty with a concept - people using notes to pay for things - which pretty much every other organisation has no great difficulty dealing with.

As mentioned above, Bus Eireann drivers are not provided with a float for many reasons, security being one very good one. Should you now expect a driver then personally provide a float from his/her own pocket when you tender over and above the requisite amount?

Of course I never implied that it was the bus drivers fault that ATMs only dispense 50s and shops aren't open early enough. My point is surely someone somewhere in BE must have clicked that it isn't always feasible for people to have something smaller then a 50 note available and that in this day and age 50 notes are commonly used in transactions.

Nor did i imply that drivers should provide a float from their own pocket, where you got this notion from im not quite sure.

As for the topic of floats, i've frequently noted BE drivers having a wallet of cash with them, is this not a float?

Samba

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Should you now expect a driver then personally provide a float from his/her own pocket when you tender over and above the requisite amount?

What?

If handing out change proves to be an issue too often due to the float restrictions enforced by management, then simply adopt a rule of exact change only and if you don't have exact change, you give them a refund in the form of an exchangeable receipt or credit note, just like Dublin bus. Alternatively you simply stop tendering cash all together.

Judging by the bus drivers reaction, this clearly seems to be an ongoing issue that frustrates him on a regular basis.

OP I'd suggest writing to management and failing that, go above management but don't criticise the driver, criticise their float and payment procedures.

It may well be the case that under the law they are not obliged to provide you with any change but try setting up a bus company that adopts this policy of no change whatsoever and see how long you're in business for.

Lapin

invinciblePRSTV wrote: »

As an example the service i use is an early morning one and the same thing happened to me as the OP just before xmas. The ATMs only would dispense 50s, the only shop open is the petrol station on the outskirts of town so what am i supposed to do?

Losty Dublin wrote: »

Can you helpfully point out to us all why this mess needs appears to be caused by and had to be cleaned up by the early morning bus driver?

Because there is a big difference between a small town shop and a national bus operator.

The local shop may see a half dozen customers walk through its doors before lunchtime and adjusts their float to reflect this.

Likewise, those responsible for operating a 50+ seater bus on the same route at the same time everyday should have an indication of the demand for that service and provide their driver with an adequate resources for that journey.

Passengers just want to get from A - B and have little interest in the internal squabbles or policy decisions of the bus company.

Installing buses with with a credit/debit card payment facility (as most other businesses have) would go a long way towards resolving the issue of carrying change and addressing driver security. But I have a feeling the unions would kick up a fuss, given their allergy to 'new' technology.

Losty Dublin

markpb wrote: »

What goes on between BE and their staff (or contracted drivers) is nothing to do with the customer. Would you accept if someone in a shop told you that they couldn't give you change because their manager didn't provide them with a float?

This seems like a good time to point out the advantages of online ticket sales to both BE (less cash/security concerns) and to customers (not having to worry about change). However, some routes and stops are still missing and the discount offered to customers along with the requirement to print out the ticket (instead of just presenting the code to the driver) makes it less attractive to customers than it could be.

If they don't have a float and you don't have the right cash then you don't get change

To be fair, we have touched on a while ago that there are circumstances, both by fault and otherwise when change isn't available and there will be losers when this comes to. Having worked as a taxi driver, I may have a better, albeit, slanted insight from the operators end when this happens. As Alek said a while ago, it's suprising how much change people do have on their persons when you refuse to take a large note for various reasons for the want of their looking for it.

foggy_lad

Lapin wrote: »

If the bus operator ran their business in a professional manner, rather than relying on butchers, bakers & candlestick makers along their route to supply them with change, (or a driver willing to give the change at a later stop), nobody's time would have been wasted.

Lapin wrote: »

What is the problem with paying customers having expectations of a decent level of service?

Of course the op also had the opportunity to buy and pay for their ticket online saving themselves 5% off the price in the process!

The drivers should not begin refusing large notes if they don't have change but instead give the passenger the choice of paying with €50 and getting no change or being more prepared and having the exact fare or close enough to it.

markpb

foggy_lad wrote: »

Of course the op also had the opportunity to buy and pay for their ticket online saving themselves 5% off the price in the process!

The OP may have had the opportunity to buy the ticket online. Maybe their start or destination isn't supported. Maybe they don't have a printer?

foggy_lad

Lapin wrote: »

So by this logic you expect the shops to have change but not the bus company. I'd expect the bus company to be prepared too, rather than expecting other businesses to facilitate them.

As the OP said, the driver could have given the change later in the journey when he had it.

In this particular case, the evidence suggests that the driver was simply being a prick.

No I don't expect the shops to have change, my point was that the op had no change and neither did three busy retail outlets yet they expected a bus driver to use his/her own money as a float to give out change to people who were wholly unprepared for their journey.

Losty Dublin

invinciblePRSTV wrote: »

Of course I never implied that it was the bus drivers fault that ATMs only dispense 50s and shops aren't open early enough. My point is surely someone somewhere in BE must have clicked that it isn't always feasible for people to have something smaller then a 50 note available and that in this day and age 50 notes are commonly used in transactions.

Nor did i imply that drivers should provide a float from their own pocket, where you got this notion from im not quite sure.

As for the topic of floats, i've frequently noted BE drivers having a wallet of cash with them, is this not a float?

Fair enough, you can't get small notes today but it's still not the drivers fault when he is unable to change it. Maybe the company could look at an float arrangement but they may already have decided it's untenable for whatever reason/s. It wasn't too long ago that city bus drivers were being held up for small amounts of cash and missing weeks and months of work from trauma, assaults etc so perhaps that's to do with it. Possibly some drivers provide their own float or maybe it's cash collected en route, I don't know for sure

Zoney

Just would like to add that in most other countries I've been, if you request "50" from an ATM, you will receive 20, 20 and 10. Even sometimes 20, 10, 10, 5, 5. I've had this in Sterling, Euro and Dollars.

It appears to be specific to this country that the banks save money by stocking ATMs with mainly large denominations (i.e. 50s and some 20s) and handing out as few notes as possible. (Note: in general request 30, 80, 130, etc. here in Ireland to have some change if the machine has any)

Incidentally, perhaps this means ATMs here have a greater value of cash in them, and cash in transit amounts are greater? Hence more robberies?

Something in this country must be different, as banks in other countries are no different and would do the same if it suited them.

Caveat - last visit to Germany I did on two occasions receive 100 euro notes from ATMs, but on the other hand I was requesting around 150 or so. Still, I had expected 50s.

stacexD

foggy_lad wrote: »

No I don't expect the shops to have change, my point was that the op had no change and neither did three busy retail outlets yet they expected a bus driver to use his/her own money as a float to give out change to people who were wholly unprepared for their journey.

There was one customer between all 3 shops.

I never said I wanted him to use his own money, nor would I want him to.

It's a busy bus, almost always full with most fares over €15. €15x50 = €750 to be expected on every journey, especially the early morning ones with people travelling to work and college at that time. It's bus eireann that need to sort out problems like this, they say on the website you should try to have exact change on you. They're a business like any other they should either have an exact fare rule or sort it out since it's happening all the time not only to me.

If they had some competition you'd soon see somewhat reasonable fares along with some standard of customer service.

MadsL

Lapin wrote: »

Installing buses with with a credit/debit card payment facility (as most other businesses have) would go a long way towards resolving the issue of carrying change and addressing driver security. But I have a feeling the unions would kick up a fuss, given their allergy to 'new' technology.

Nail. Head. Lunacy that bus drivers are handling cash at all. Why not issue tickets through Payzone or similar, or do a deal with mobile phone companies to ticket by text and bill to phones.

The micropayments options are really simple these days...best solution is to stop ALL buses handling cash full stop and install a decent network of ticket sales and machines.