Indo article on not so positive IE groupbooking experience

Rashers72

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/the-kids-were-all-over-the-place-screaming-childrens-special-needs-group-left-crammed-into-corridors-for-threehour-train-journey-home-after-zoo-trip-34988772.html

The comments afterwards are semi interesting.

Del.Monte

Rashers72 wrote: »

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/news/the-kids-were-all-over-the-place-screaming-childrens-special-needs-group-left-crammed-into-corridors-for-threehour-train-journey-home-after-zoo-trip-34988772.html

The comments afterwards are semi interesting.

Well, if you read the chip wrapper that's the level of comments you should expect. As regards the experiences of those on the group booking - what can I say....after decades of experience dealing with CIE top to bottom nothing ever changes - does it. I'll say no more but at least I got my spoke in before the apologists arrive.

savagethegoat

I agree with you anyway. IEs booking system is a total farce. The only cure is to have every seat booked and no walk on tickets.

n97 mini

IE's explanation is their seats were reserved, but they got into the wrong carriage.

Either way it seems like IE were totally unprepared for this group. It'd be like PPARS trying to find someone responsible...

end of the road

even the lines CIE do wish to operate aren't safe from anything are they? those people will go by road in the future unfortunately but nobody cares, do they?

Walter2016

I read that yesterday and it seemed to me that the organisers stood around expecting to be noticed and lauded over.

Why didn't they go to someone and inform them that they were there? Why did the stand about for 30 minutes waiting for a platform number to appear?

My wife used to do trips like these with disabled people, she reckons the parents and organisers are primarily to blame. She says the norm for a good size group such as this is to have a contact name and number or at the very least, find the station management. But to stand around in a busy station hoping they'll be noticed is ridiculous.

tabbey

Walter2016 wrote: »

I read that yesterday and it seemed to me that the organisers stood around expecting to be noticed and lauded over.

Why didn't they go to someone and inform them that they were there? Why did the stand about for 30 minutes waiting for a platform number to appear?

My wife used to do trips like these with disabled people, she reckons the parents and organisers are primarily to blame. She says the norm for a good size group such as this is to have a contact name and number or at the very least, find the station management. But to stand around in a busy station hoping they'll be noticed is ridiculous.

No it is not!

These people had reserved seats, the reservations were not honoured.

They were at the barrier an hour or more before scheduled departure.

When the platform was announced, they went to the appropriate vehicle, when their reservations were not to be found, they checked the adjacent vehicle.

Irish Rail knew for months that a large group of disabled people were booked on this train. There was no all Ireland final or bank holidayweekend, so no shortage of serviceable stock. With so much motive power and rolling stock in store or languishing in sidings, there was no excuse whatever for not providing additional accomodation, given that the group were going west in the evening peak.

Had Irish Rail looked after this group decently, they would have gained brownie points, leading to increasing passenger business.
Because of their indifference, they have shot themselves in the foot, and deservedly have lost business.

savagethegoat

It's no good blaming the customer, because all that achieves is they become an ex-customer.