BusConnects Dublin - Bus Network Changes Discussion

Pale Red

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123175759#Comment_123175759

When is the B likely to happen. Even "not before 2026" would be better info than trying to get an official answer.

Arhanedus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123177494#Comment_123177494

The O route and F spine are currently expected to launch in 2025.

If they return to the previous pace of two phases per year, then I would imagine that the D and A spines would launch in 2026, and the B spine would launch in 2027.

LXFlyer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123177494#Comment_123177494

The B Spine is not going to happen until at least 2026.

AX636

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123175550#Comment_123175550

Next year

A2000

Observed the L14 on bray seafront today. About 30 pax leaving the station. Cars parked in bus stops along the sea front. Very slow moving bus due to people trying to reverse park into spaces that they couldn't fit in. Also people with all 4 car doors open causing an obstruction. The last stop on the prom had a coach parked in it. So not only could the bus not pull in but it couldn't pass either. Some traffic enforcement needed. The fact that parking is free on Sundays probably didn't help either.

Arhanedus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123178812#Comment_123178812

This is the main thing I find weird about the route - while it could be handy to have a bus that serves the beach, it will definitely be a complete traffic nightmare come summer…

mikeybhoy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123179082#Comment_123179082

Bray in general is a complete traffic disaster. The L12 and L14 are basically just Bray town routes.

loyatemu

From what I've read on FB, it's the cycle lane on the main street that's to blame for all traffic problems in Bray.

Citrus_8

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123180478#Comment_123180478

Of course. Cyclists and cycle lanes are always at fault in people's minds.

Burt Renaults

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123180478#Comment_123180478

That's the problem with Facebook nowadays. It's become a weird online graveyard where thick, overly confident elderly people, who left school at 12, and never developed any curiosity about anything thereafter, go to complain about cyclists and any form of change.

Even elderly people aren't the same as they used to be.

Stark

Yeah they put a cycle lane on the footpath outside Supervalu shopping centre in Palmerstown and despite the road itself not being touched, suddenly it's to blame for all the traffic problems in the village.

Annasopra

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123178812#Comment_123178812

The Council parking wardens don't work on Sundays - some communication/collaboration needed there between council and gardai

BusGuy

Has anyone noticed that GAI had started allocated 117's on S routes?

bikeman1

I was looking at the 19 timetable and the early morning departures could be missed by a member of the public not as familiar with timetables as some of us on here.

I get with the 24 hour routes, cutting them off at 04:30 for the next day, but the first departures on the 19 are at the “end” of the day previous. And that’s after a 4 hour gap from 23:30 to 03:30.

How about TFI / BÁC or whoever adopts a internationally recognised date and time concept that midnight is the start of a new day.

The timetable should list down from 00:00 to 23:59 on all routes in order of that time. Keep it simple and straightforward.

john boye

I just looked at it too and I noticed that most of the new departures from Merrion Square to Wadelai are timed to run a minute or two ahead of the existing departures from Parnell Square. Not great but it's only a temporary timetable I guess.

bikeman1

More strange timings that I noticed;

The overnight E1 is given 45 minutes from Bray all the way to Parnell Square. But the 19 is given 49 minutes to do Parnell Square to the Airport.

Now I’m fully aware of the 19 route, but that seems excessive. A glance in the other direction allows 57 minutes from the Airport to Parnell Square.

At that time you could reverse a bus into town faster!! Who makes these times up?

john boye

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182482#Comment_123182482

I was told recently that some of the overnight E2s can regularly have 50+ minutes layover time at each terminus. Not so bad at the Harristown end I suppose. Is the Dart station break room open at that hour for drivers at the Dun Laoighaire end?

DUBLINBUSGUY

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182536#Comment_123182536

Yes it is open 24/7.

xper

AX on the S6 route this morning. When did Go Ahead get these yokes? The paint job is approximate at best

LXFlyer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123183152#Comment_123183152

They are in use for the school term services that they operate - its mid-term break so they can float onto other routes.

loyatemu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182536#Comment_123182536

if there's that much slack in the timetable, would it not make sense to add extra runs? Better to have the buses on the road than sitting around at the terminus half the night.

Looking at Bustimes, the night E1 has a 35 minute layover in Bray - send it to Greystones and back!

TranslatorPS

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123182249#Comment_123182249

The public timetable in this case is a reflection of how the working timetable is constructed – those 3-4am departures are worked by finishing duties that started as part of the by-then previous day. An argument has been presented here by @DUBLINBUSGUY at one stage, except that argument realistically only applies once in the route's existence, so it's kind of applicable but not necessarily.

You'll find that some scheduling software, especially bus-oriented software, doesn't treat the day as 0-24, but rather as a rollover for as long as necessary, so more like 0-30 (while railway-oriented software tends to have a clean midnight cutoff). It doesn't help that Dublin Bus can't ever get identical overnight timings for all three schedules (MF/Sa/Su), so for example there is a 4-minute variation in the arrival times into the Airport depending on the schedule, the fastest being on Sa/Su nights, then Mo/Tu-Fr/Sa nights two minutes later, then Su/Mo nights 2 minutes later yet again. Two to four minutes isn't too much, but on longer routes the variations may be of up to 5 minutes, so having a later timing show up in the Saturday column when it actually applies to Sunday mornings could be a little nasty for the potential passenger who'd only get to see the taillights, if even. (The problem would be moot if the timings on night-time departures were cleaned up and unified across the week, but one can hope.)

p_haugh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123183156#Comment_123183156

To add to this, they don't usually stray outside of the school routes, but with the mechanics issues it seems the NTA has allowed GAI to utilise them since they'd be sitting up for the week otherwise.

LXFlyer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123183406#Comment_123183406

There is also the issue that the fare capping day runs from 04:30 to 04:29, rather than what is considered a day in normal parlance.

Agreed on the scheduling - it’s clear that no one is really taking an overview of the process in terms of delivering standardised and integrated schedules.

thomasj

Would be a good time for the NTA to adjust the fare capping rules when the new fare bands come in in the summer.

p_haugh

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123183489#Comment_123183489

I will admit, that was very handy back when the nitelink was 5 euro, but still part of the fare cap scheme!

LXFlyer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123183504#Comment_123183504

Well it is set up that way to allow for people going on a night out to use the same day capping.

It’s the same set up in London.

If you change it far more people will end up paying more in fares than saving money through the cap being applied.

The majority of people using buses between midnight and 04:29 aren’t starting their day off I’d suggest!

A2000

Anyone any idea what happend to the airport hopper? It seems to have quietly vanished into thin air. Someone put up a picture of the depot where the buses were kept and it's empty. All the website says is trips can't be booked at the minute. Also air coach have cancelled all services from bray and greystones due to low numbers. I thought those services would have fit in nicely with the bus connects in bray and greystones. New connections possible.

devnull

See the appropriate threads here:

Airport Hopper (see later posts)

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058048557/dublin-airport-bus-service-changes-discussion

Aircoach

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058359965/aircoach-route-changes-and-general-discussion

bikeman1

Fare capping and schedules are two different things.

The schedules are a complete mess and detail a complete lazy attitude to how they form them in the first place. We don't even do that job and don't have the data and software that they have, and can pick holes in them very easily. I understand that bedding in time will be needed, but some of the mistakes are glaringly obvious. Some of the new times are way too slow or way too fast.

Also, I've noticed some very long layovers on the 19, E1 and E2. These are not breaks, but just between services. We have a driver shortage and having drivers burning the midnight oil at Northwood and Bray and Parnell Sq. using up more drivers than is needed is ridiculous. They can do more at night with a lot less drivers. The roads are empty.

The 41 which they have worked out nicely runs out at :00 and :30 and the same the opposite end from the Manor. They have to keep moving fairly sharpish to stick to the times. Effectively 25 minutes to the airport and 25 minutes to the Manor. Quick turnaround and back working the opposite way within the hour. That's the way to do it. There is zero traffic to contend with.