The Dublin Coach Experience

AX612

I believe Dublin Coach operates under the NTA yes.

The 07 single deckers would've been on the 310 service in Limerick that's why they've a TFI logo

bk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121860884#Comment_121860884

Well the Coach services would be licensed by the NTA, like all bus and coach services are, but I don't think I'd call it operating under them.

The 310 on the other hand is a PSO route, thus contracted directly by the NTA/TFI to run for them:

https://www.transportforireland.ie/news/new-pso-route-310-in-limerick-city-will-operate-7-days-a-week/

devnull

Does anyone know why Dublin Coach in the last few years have been moving vehicles and licences around various different Ltd companies?

They were always under Last Bus and CitiBus, but they have moved licenses and vehicles are now under Moorhill Capital Ltd or Kyanitedale Ltd.

Is there some benefit they are extracting from registering new companies and then moving licenses to them rather than using the existing ones like virtually every other operator?

AX612

Apparently the 300 service is up for tender.. no idea how true that is don't quote me on it!

Honestly no idea what their logic behind the difference legal lettering is. If you search a reg plate up on RTOL the Scania Ayats are on a completely different list to the rest of the fleet. The Ayats are under Citi Bus Limited while everything else is under Kyanitedale Limited..

dublinman1990

I've certainly never heard of other bus operators switching licences around for different bus fleets made under different bus manufacturers.

Is this supposed movement of moving licences around for different buses actually legal while under the remit of the NTA?

The address for Citi Bus Limited & Kyanitdale Ltd are both listed here.

https://www.solocheck.ie/Irish-Company/Citi-Bus-Limited-372341

https://www.solocheck.ie/Irish-Company/Kyanitedale-Limited-602792

Jameslee23

I Just hope they keep the 726 going as a lot of people use every day

bk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121868622#Comment_121868622

Can I ask what you mean by tender the route? Do you mean DC is looking for another company to buy the 300 route license from them? Or they are looking for a sub contractor to operate the coaches on the route while retaining ownership of the license, like Citylink does on their routes?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121869171#Comment_121869171

I don’t see any risk of it going away, far too busy and likely profitable route to go away. In the very unlikely case that DC dropped it, someone else would quickly jump in.

AX612

Not 100% which one it is, I was just told up for tender

Currently on the white King Long on the half an hour late 18:30 726!

AX612

Well.. do I have a story for all you Dublin Coachers!

So last night, I was planning to get the 18:30 726 from Portlaoise to Red Cow. Of course, the bus was late getting in and out of Portlaoise. The white King Long showed up and it was clear as day why it was late getting in aside from the unreliably of the 726.

We set off anyways, get a good bit down the route and the bus shuts off.. driver starts it back up again and we're off again. The bus basically kept going out of gear which is why this occurs. This happened about 10-12 times during the whole journey to Red Cow with the bus developing a funny and unpleasant smell in the interior around Kildare/Newbridge. The driver phoned someone (presumably someone from the depot) at Naas Cinima. It took 2 hours to get from Portlaoise to Naas which usually at best takes 1 hours 30 mins and the whole route is supposed to be 2 hours!

The bus was also swerving very badly on the N7, I felt quite uneasy at this point. I eventually got to Red Cow after breaking down just outside it too. Of course and unsurprisingly the bus continues route with a different driver and was sent back to Portlaoise too! this has to be the worst Dublin Coach journey I've ever taken and the worst coach journey I've taken full stop.

Word of advice, if anyone here uses the 726, avoid that white heap of sh*t if you value your safety and actually wanna reach your destination!

Rant over

Jameslee23

Sadly, that bus is not gonna be going anywhere for the next couple of years, cause the oldest coaches. They are going to be using from later this year onwards will be the 10 coaches

devnull

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121877573#Comment_121877573

That's absolutely diabolical.

The standard of vehicles this operator turns out really doesn't do a lot for the commercial bus sector. So many of the other larger private companies manager to keep their vehicles in pristine condition and properly maintained and this sort of carry-on drags everyone down.

What also gets to me is an operator like this, that we know has been operating with vehicles that are, lets say very tired, for a number of years, now is running a PSO service in Limerick. I really don't understand why that route was not tendered.

Realistically there needs to be far more stringent requirements in terms of the condition of vehicles in this country. The NTA have to be doing more and if they cannot do more, there needs to be an authority that does.

91wx763

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121880407#Comment_121880407

Could Dublin Coach afford a big fine if it all went wrong ? BE had to pay €2 million for the Navan school bus crash.

devnull

You'd wonder what their insurance costs are like.

Would it be the case if a companies insurance went up, setting up another company would mean that the previous companies record would not be taken into account as technically they are different entities?

ULEZ23

That’s not how insurance works for group companies. Fairly speculative post that bears very little to the reality of operating a company and shows naivety on your part.

having previous knowledge of how aircoach worked under JOS ownership(3rd party unconnected view) I’d imagine that Dublin coach also “self insure” up to €50k therefore they would actually have very little to do with insurance companies other than big claims.

AX612

They need to up their game on Portlaoise anyways.. service is p*ss poor on it especially lately!

Jameslee23

They’re definitely getting more coaches this year, but will have to wait and see if there’s any double deckers, including in that as well I was talking to one of the driver today and they said one the 12 double deckers. Is in getting fired now there one on the road

Vote4Squirrels

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121899772#Comment_121899772

I’m getting an early flight next month and I’d rather get the 3am from Portlaoise and be at the airport three hours ahead; than get the Dublin Coach - it’s an awful service!

mikeybhoy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121880407#Comment_121880407

It was originally a commercial route that DC operated and ceased at short notice. I'm guessing the NTA had little choice but to award the route to DC in order to get the service back up and running as soon as possible.

This should change once Bus Connects Limerick is up and running when the service is replaced by new BC routes. I'd imagine it'll be retendered with newer vehicles owned by NTA.

devnull

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121909699#Comment_121909699

This is where I am uncomfortable with the whole way the system works.

Some commercial operators know now if they cease a service and there is no other alternatives the NTA has little choice but to turn the funding tap on and they may get several years of public money out if it. In my view we need to disincentivise that by saying if operators do that, the rolling over into a PSO contract should only be for a short period of time as possible to prevent abuse of the system.

p_haugh

As far as I remember, the NTA gave them a 2 year emergency PSO contract (with some exeptions, i.e. being able to use their own rolling stock)

Edit: news article about it here https://www.limerickpost.ie/2022/10/08/new-limerick-bus-service-will-increase-frequency-and-reduce-fares/

The contract will run for two years and the National Transport Authority has indicated that the longer-term needs of the area will be considered as part of the planning for the Limerick Shannon Metropolitan Area Transport Strategy.

Although said contract will be expiring this October assuming it only lasts 2 years, so it may be extended until whenever bus connects rolls out in Limerick.

devnull

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121910064#Comment_121910064

Personally I think two years is too long, and there is always a chance that will get extended as well.

Needs to be clear guidelines that if a route is rolled over to a PSO operation then the process of starting the tender should be expedited and processed as quickly as possible in order to stop operators from essentially turning on the public funding tap.

Kaisr Sose

I used the Dundrum to Airport service on Feb 27. Instead of normal coach, it was a minibus and it bypassed Red Cow going straight to Airport. This was a first time for both of the above.

The bus slowly crawled up the ramp to M50. It was essentially at max speed and full revs going by sound of engine. The back door was also rattling the whole time .Have they any vehicles in good order?

AX612

The Dundrum-Airport service now has a black sprinter and a brownish colour coach which has a tour spec interior!

The other gold springer is now on the Kildare-Portarlington route

Jameslee23

Probably the first of the new coaches they’re getting

AX612

No the brown coach is a 2008 reg so its just an existing bus they had but repainted, not sure why in that colour though!

The 2 vans are 132 and 161 reg

At the time of typing the newest buses they have are the Scania Ayats which are a 22 reg

Jameslee23

They’re supposed to be getting out a 192 Reg van as well from Kildare Village that they’re going to use on either the 750

AX612

Friend of mine was telling me he got the 726 home the other night and it was the King Long, ended up breaking down unsurprisingly and apparently he was waiting over 2 hours for a replacement bus on the side of the N7 with a bus behind driving straight past and the one after that being cancelled!

Jameslee23

I’ve just seen some pictures there on Facebook of some of the depot and they have a scrapped 142 Mercedes there, but they’re still gonna be around for a few more years

AX612

There's only 3 or 4 of the 142 Tourismo's left out of the original 10 which is madness considering they're only 10 years old. I think out of the 30 Tourismo's there's only about half left working

Jameslee23

Maybe they replaced them with The new version that’s why there’s five secondhand double-deckers coming on the route this year, so they’ll have seven in total for the airport