New Carrigaline-Ballincollig Bus Service

mikeym

http://www.eveningecho.ie/2014/09/26/bus-delays/

COMMUTERS from Carrigaline and Ballincollig are experiencing delays of up to 30 minutes on the new Bus Eireann 220/220A bus route which links them to the city centre.
The route, an amalgamation of the defunct 222 and 232 services which was introduced last month, travels from Ballincollig to the city centre, then on to Douglas and Carrigaline.
However, passengers are reporting significant delays during morning and evening rush hour from Ballincollig and Carrigaline, saying some services have failed to show up entirely.
Tom Hickey, who travels to and from Ballincollig everyday, said that since the new route came in his bus journey was now 15 minutes longer, and he was unable to make a connecting bus.
“It now takes 30 minutes to get through Ballincollig,” he said.
The new timetable is more regular than before, with buses marked in for every half hour.
However, this is putting more pressure on the early morning trips.
“People now have to take the 7.30am bus instead of the old 7.45am,” said Mr Hickey.

He said the bus was now packed, with many people standing and others unable to get on at all.
“Because it’s just a single decker, it’s slowing everything down,” he said.
Sarah Morrissey, Carrigaline, commutes to the city at different times depending on the day.
“I’m finding that because the bus is hitting the colleges on the way back, they are nearly full by the time they get to the city so there isn’t room for everyone going on to Carrigaline,” she said. “My friends are having problems with buses that are time-tabled and just not showing up, and the supposed real time at the bus stop is always completely wrong,” she said.
She said the new route had added nearly 30 minutes to her journey every time.
The Ballincollig-Carrigaline Municipal District committee has requested a meeting with Bus Éireann to discuss the route.
County Councillor Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire said: “A lot of this is due to under-investment in public transport in recent years. There is a number of bus routes that have the same complaints.”

It seems that its been a disaster so far affecting the morning commuters going into Cork City.

Steve666

Absolute disaster. This morning it took me one hour and forty minutes to get from Ballincollig to town.

I went for the 9 bus, which didn't come. The 9.30 bus didn't come, despite a bus passing the other way at about 9.15. The bus that eventually picked me up, at 9.45, wasn't even one of the scheduled 220/220A busses - it was a country bus, maybe coming from Crossbarry or somewhere, which luckily stopped for all the annoyed waiting crowds at all the stops in Ballincollig.

I've been getting the bus to and from work 5 days a week for the last 14 years. I get an annual pass through work every year, which costs like 700 bucks or something (my employer pays half of that). Next year I reckon I will cancel that, and avail of the bike-to-work scheme instead. It's either that or lose my job.

honerbright

To be honest I found the old town to ballincollig and back service to be terrible. haven't had any problems with the new service yet.

Steve666

The old service wasn't great, in the way the German bus service is great, but I found that even if a bus was late, it would always turn up. In the last month, I've been at the bus stop for an hour maybe 6 or 8 times. And those mornings, usually it's a country bus passing through that saves the day.

mikeym

Some of the bus drivers that drive into Cork City dont pick up the UCC students wanting to go to Crosshaven/Carrigaline on the Western Road.

It takes longer to travel in the morning into town from Carrigaline/Crosshaven because the bus always goes through Maryborough Hill, people have to get an earlier bus to be in for 9am.

At least when the bus left the bus station it left on time. But they dont leave on time departing Grand Parade.

Bus Eireann have screwed it up big time.

The new timetable looks good on paper but not in reality.

hoodwinked

mikeym wrote: »

It takes longer to travel in the morning into town from Carrigaline/Crosshaven because the bus always goes through Maryborough Hill,

The bus is meant to go through Maryborough hill, unfortunately on Maryborough hill it's now mayhem thanks to the wisdom of Cork County Council deciding that when the children went back to school was the perfect time to make a busy hill one lane only with a stop go system, after a summer doing no work what so ever.... :mad:

Cool_CM

Getting a bus in is generally grand, but it is impossible to get a bus out of the city back to Carrigaline after work. They either show up ridiculously late or get bored of waiting and leave early.

kcb

The bus service in Cork in general to me seems awful. They may aswell do away with timetables; they mean nothing. I love the way the put down times such 1534 but then a bus could show up any time from quarter past three to four, or not at all.

I've seen buses come 10 mins early and I've had buses not show up at all.

Then to make matters worse the drivers (in general) make no attempt to apologise or explain and if you question them you'd swear you had burnt down their house the way they react. It would be laughable except that it's so annoying!

Cool_CM

Quarter to 6 bus to carrigaline still hasn't shown up on the south mall yet.

And now 2 show up at once...

Sephiroth_dude

Last bus out of town never showed last night, absolute joke of a service.

Cool_CM

Sephiroth_dude wrote: »

Last bus out of town never showed last night, absolute joke of a service.

That's ridiculous

KCAccidental

Sephiroth_dude wrote: »

Last bus out of town never showed last night, absolute joke of a service.

write to BE to complain. They are bit more proactive about consumer issues these days.

Sephiroth_dude

KCAccidental wrote: »

write to BE to complain. They are bit more proactive about consumer issues these days.

Might just do that to be honest, the service wasn't actually all that bad before they merged the two routes, it had gotten somewhat better.

KCAccidental

Sephiroth_dude wrote: »

Might just do that to be honest, the service wasn't actually all that bad before they merged the two routes, it had gotten somewhat better.

you might get a couple of tickets out of it anyways. The service has been appalling since they merged the two routes, you'd think that a route like that would be a cash cow if they got it right.

mikeym

KCAccidental wrote: »

you might get a couple of tickets out of it anyways. The service has been appalling since they merged the two routes, you'd think that a route like that would be a cash cow if they got it right.

If a private company was allowed operate on the two routes it would give BE a run for their money.

V.W.L 11

mikeym wrote: »

If a private company was allowed operate on the two routes it would give BE a run for their money.

Are some routes not being opened up to the private market

hoodwinked

mikeym wrote: »

If a private company was allowed operate on the two routes it would give BE a run for their money.

if a private company was allowed operate on the route it probably wouldn't even be run as a route, there would be more profit in the shorter busier routes in the city alone.

KCAccidental

hoodwinked wrote: »

if a private company was allowed operate on the route it probably wouldn't even be run as a route, there would be more profit in the shorter busier routes in the city alone.

The population of Carriagaline and Ballincollig together tops nearly 40,000. A good reliable bus service would clean up on commuting profits alone. The 103 in Dublin is a good example to follow.

thomas anderson.

Got this bus from the South Mall last night. Bus driver started to give out to a woman in front who wanted to stop in Maryborough Hill. He asked her to get off the bus and get the 223 instead as the 220 prioritised Carrigaline passengers first. She refused to get off. #

I walked up next and said "Maryborough Hill". He nearly lost his sh1t.

On the way out he then wouldnt stop for any passengers that were waiting at the next stops. One woman in particular was standing out on the road waving at him to stop but he just drove on by.

Sephiroth_dude

Some of the bus drivers can be extremely grumpy ****s.

V.W.L 11

Sephiroth_dude wrote: »

Some of the bus drivers can be extremely grumpy ****s.

I wouldn't blame them at times some of the hassle they get is uncalled for

hoodwinked

KCAccidental wrote: »

The population of Carriagaline and Ballincollig together tops nearly 40,000. A good reliable bus service would clean up on commuting profits alone. The 103 in Dublin is a good example to follow.

firstly the population of the town won't even come into it, because more of those people in a commuter town like ballincollig or carrigaline will have cars and drive, but also they wouldn't be put together if a private service was assessing them as a route, traffic to/from both would be a factor in this, each individually again you might at best with a private operator get two runs in the morning, two runs in the evening,

but if any bus isn't full on a run you can be sure a private operator will cancel that timetabled bus, rather than lose money

they will be all about profit's as opposed to B.E. which is(or at least was) obliged to provide a service

i think too many people are under the misconception that a private service would be infinately better than B.E, but too many people live off the more popular routes (where a private operator would be more interested) and thus in reality worsening their current service...(e.g the bus that used run to mahon point if that couldn't make a profit), what if after a month of running to Ballincollig they decide it's not profitable enough and stop it altogether?

KCAccidental

hoodwinked wrote: »

firstly the population of the town won't even come into it, because more of those people in a commuter town like ballincollig or carrigaline will have cars and drive, but also they wouldn't be put together if a private service was assessing them as a route, traffic to/from both would be a factor in this, each individually again you might at best with a private operator get two runs in the morning, two runs in the evening,

but if any bus isn't full on a run you can be sure a private operator will cancel that timetabled bus, rather than lose money

they will be all about profit's as opposed to B.E. which is(or at least was) obliged to provide a service

i think too many people are under the misconception that a private service would be infinately better than B.E, but too many people live off the more popular routes (where a private operator would be more interested) and thus in reality worsening their current service...(e.g the bus that used run to mahon point if that couldn't make a profit), what if after a month of running to Ballincollig they decide it's not profitable enough and stop it altogether?

Privatisation of bus routes are usually done using something called 'Bundling'. This means that companies have to take on less used routes as well as the big profitable routes that they actually want. In these contracts certain services have to be kept even if they are quieter than rush hour services for instance.

As for Carraigaline and Ballincollig, you're right that most people drive, but if a reliable and frequent service was started, you would see many people decide to commute by public transport. Parking and petrol costs are something which many are sensitive to. I know a good few of my neighbours in Ballincollig would be happy switching to bus if they knew it would get them to work on time, guaranteed.

Personally, I'd prefer for BE to run it.

KCAccidental

thomas anderson. wrote: »

Got this bus from the South Mall last night. Bus driver started to give out to a woman in front who wanted to stop in Maryborough Hill. He asked her to get off the bus and get the 223 instead as the 220 prioritised Carrigaline passengers first. She refused to get off. #

I walked up next and said "Maryborough Hill". He nearly lost his sh1t.

On the way out he then wouldnt stop for any passengers that were waiting at the next stops. One woman in particular was standing out on the road waving at him to stop but he just drove on by.

you should write to BE to complain. Maryborough hill is part of the 220 service. It even has it on the display at the front of the bus.

Leaving passengers at stops is inexcusable, although I can imagine the drivers are under immense pressure to try and stick to the timetable at the moment, it is completely counter productive to leave potential customers high and dry at bus stops.

mikeym

thomas anderson. wrote: »

Got this bus from the South Mall last night. Bus driver started to give out to a woman in front who wanted to stop in Maryborough Hill. He asked her to get off the bus and get the 223 instead as the 220 prioritised Carrigaline passengers first. She refused to get off. #

I walked up next and said "Maryborough Hill". He nearly lost his sh1t.

On the way out he then wouldnt stop for any passengers that were waiting at the next stops. One woman in particular was standing out on the road waving at him to stop but he just drove on by.

Doesnt the 216 serve Maryborough Hill anyway?

The 223 passes Rochestown Road not Maryborough Hill.


Maybe it was a relief bus to Carrigaline only im only guessing.

The bus driver had no right to give out to you or the woman before you because Maryborough Hill is part of the 220 service.

thomas anderson.

mikeym wrote: »

Doesnt the 216 serve Maryborough Hill anyway?

The 223 passes Rochestown Road not Maryborough Hill.


Maybe it was a relief bus to Carrigaline only im only guessing.

The bus driver had no right to give out to you or the woman before you because Maryborough Hill is part of the 220 service.

The 216 goes down the Rochestown road where it stops for 15min and then goes back up mount oval and down Maryborough Hill.

Cool_CM

I've gone for the last bus for the last 2 nights and the real time display shows a bus that's not on the timetable leaving for Carrigaline at half 11, does this actually exist?

Edit: just told to hop off the bus we were on and get onto a bus on hire to bus eireann because the one we were on wasn't going anywhere. This is a complete fücking shambles...

Viper_JB

What's great about this bus is that they also increased the fair from Ballincollig to Town for this new amazing bus service they're offering...one more reason to drive I guess...

honerbright

Viper_JB wrote: »

What's great about this bus is that they also increased the fair from Ballincollig to Town for this new amazing bus service they're offering...one more reason to drive I guess...

What's the fare now? It was €3.70 last time I got it (€3.44 on the leap card iirc).

Viper_JB

honerbright wrote: »

What's the fare now? It was €3.70 last time I got it (€3.44 on the leap card iirc).

€4.00 (for a single) was waiting for change from the bus driver after I got on last time only to be met with a strange look and a "that's how much it is now".

honerbright

Viper_JB wrote: »

€4.00 (for a single) was waiting for change from the bus driver after I got on last time only to be met with a strange look and a "that's how much it is now".

Ah for crying out loud. I work in ballincollig and live in togher so it's going to cost me €5.90 without the leap card one way and not much less with it :-(. Time to learn to drive, me thinks.

Viper_JB

honerbright wrote: »

Ah for crying out loud. I work in ballincollig and live in togher so it's going to cost me €5.90 without the leap card one way and not much less with it :-(. Time to learn to drive, me thinks.

Funny thing is probably next year the numbers using the service will drop again and the first thing they'll do to counter act it is raise prices again, like people will hear there's been a price raise and come flocking back to public transport, they really can't do anything right in this country.

munchkin_utd

Service 220
4.10 : Adult Single
7.30 : Adult Return
2.30 : Child Single
4.60 : Child Return
4.00 : Student Single
7.00 : Student Return
34.50 : Adult 10 Journey
7.30 : Adult Day Return
20.00 : Child 10 Journey
4.60 : Child Day Return
28.50 : Student 10 Journey

heres the estimated fares for the 220 service off the bus eireann website through an external service : http://www.busfare.co.uk/eireann.html.

To be fair, if you buy a return or a 10 journey ticket you do make a fair saving on the fare.
Also, thats the cash fare, so if you get a leap card then its another way to save on the fare.

If you choose to pay cash rather than choosing 10 journey or leap card, then you pay more.
I cant see the problem, especially if you are a regular user where a 10 journey would be great value.

Viper_JB

munchkin_utd wrote: »

heres the estimated fares for the 220 service off the bus eireann website through an external service : http://www.busfare.co.uk/eireann.html.

To be fair, if you buy a return or a 10 journey ticket you do make a fair saving on the fare.
Also, thats the cash fare, so if you get a leap card then its another way to save on the fare.

If you choose to pay cash rather than choosing 10 journey or leap card, then you pay more.
I cant see the problem, especially if you are a regular user where a 10 journey would be great value.

My problem is the price is constantly increasing where as the service never really has.

Sephiroth_dude

munchkin_utd wrote: »

heres the estimated fares for the 220 service off the bus eireann website through an external service : http://www.busfare.co.uk/eireann.html.

To be fair, if you buy a return or a 10 journey ticket you do make a fair saving on the fare.
Also, thats the cash fare, so if you get a leap card then its another way to save on the fare.

If you choose to pay cash rather than choosing 10 journey or leap card, then you pay more.
I cant see the problem, especially if you are a regular user where a 10 journey would be great value.

Absolute disgrace , How can they get away with those prices?

LXFlyer

munchkin_utd wrote: »

heres the estimated fares for the 220 service off the bus eireann website through an external service : http://www.busfare.co.uk/eireann.html.

To be fair, if you buy a return or a 10 journey ticket you do make a fair saving on the fare.
Also, thats the cash fare, so if you get a leap card then its another way to save on the fare.

If you choose to pay cash rather than choosing 10 journey or leap card, then you pay more.
I cant see the problem, especially if you are a regular user where a 10 journey would be great value.

That's actually a Bus Eireann service - they are using an external company's software to do it.

The cash fares that you quoted are from Ballincollig West to Cork. The service is not flat fare, but is based on fare stages - so it depends upon where you're travelling from and to. From Ballincollig some of them are slightly less:

Service 220
4.00 : Adult Single
7.30 : Adult Return
2.30 : Child Single
4.60 : Child Return
3.80 : Student Single
7.00 : Student Return
33.00 : Adult 10 Journey
7.30 : Adult Day Return
19.00 : Child 10 Journey
4.60 : Child Day Return
28.00 : Student 10 Journey

LEAP would be €3.36 single or €6.72 return, €8 for a 24 hour ticket and €35 for a 7 day ticket. The latter two offer unlimited travel on all Cork city and suburban services and are not limited to the 220/220A.

Also, additional services are being added from next Monday from Ballincollig to Cork on route 233:

http://buseireann.ie/news_timetable.php?id=1602&month=Oct

Bus Éireann wishes to advise customers that as part of the ongoing review of services in County Cork, Route 233: Macroom – Cork will be altered on and from Monday, 20 October 2014.

An interim Route 233 will operate from Ballincollig West (EMC) to Parnell Place Bus Station via Carrigrohane Road. Interim services will depart Ballincollig West (EMC) as follows:-

• 07.45 Monday to Friday
• 08.15 Monday to Friday * (08.00 ex Srelane)
• 08.45 Monday to Friday
• 09.15 Monday to Friday

The 07.55 Srelane Cross-Cork service, will now be amended to depart Srelane Cross at 08.00, Ballincollig (EMC) 08.15 and will operate via Carrigrohane Road to Parnell Place Bus Station.

KCAccidental

The 233 route is a positive development at least. I've often said that the Carraigrohane Straight bus lane is scandalously under utilised. For people working in the city centre, using the 233 route over the 220 will cut commuting times by up to 20 mins in the mornings.

mikeym

http://www.eveningecho.ie/2014/11/19/online-campaign-to-save-ballincollig-bus/

A CAMPAIGN to change the controversial Bus Éireann 220/220A Ballincollig-Fountainstown route has been launched online.
In recent days posters have appeared along the route, urging people to visit www.fixthe220.ie.
The website lists a series of problems with the service – which passes through Carrigaline, Douglas, and the city centre – and hosts a petition calling for change.
Jacob Murphy, Fountainstown, set up the website a fortnight ago, after spending months writing letters and emails to Bus Éireann and local TDs, which he believed got him nowhere.
Mr Murphy has based his campaign on six points. He claims that Bus Éireann did not carry out consultation with customers before changing the route at the end of the summer, and wants engagement with locals to discuss the problems.
He also claims that buses are “chronically unreliable” and he also takes issue with lengthy journey times.
The site also lists the lack of safe pedestrian crossings at bus stops in Carrigaline, and takes issue with the extension of the route to Fountainstown, claiming that it is frequently empty.
Mr Murphy uses the Fountainstown service on a daily basis, but said that there were too many buses during the day, and not enough in the morning.
“The services that people need, the services to get you to work on time, are completely unusable,” he said. He added that in order to be in the city for 9am, he has to get a 6.30am bus, his journey now lasts an hour and a half longer than before. Mr Murphy said that people along the route were reacting positively to his campaign.

KCAccidental

Bus Eireann didn't design the route though, the NTA did. BE just operate it.

LXFlyer

I find it difficult to believe that a trip from Fountainstown to Cork is now taking more than 90 minutes longer than before.

mikeym

lxflyer wrote: »

I find it difficult to believe that a trip from Fountainstown to Cork is now taking more than 90 minutes longer than before.

The bus has to go through Lisbourne and Maryborough Hill.

And as far as I know it picks up Douglas passengers too which adds to the journey time.

LXFlyer

mikeym wrote: »

The bus has to go through Lisbourne and Maryborough Hill.

And as far as I know it picks up Douglas passengers too which adds to the journey time.

Yes, but 90 minutes???

mikeym

lxflyer wrote: »

Yes, but 90 minutes???

Its a bit unrealistic.