Anyone Taken a Bike on Bus Eireann Lately?

Thargor

They were already pretty hostile with the 10 Euro fee but now I don't think the drivers are handling cash either and there's no way to book it online, anybody with any recent experience?

NamelessPhil

How recent? I took a bike on the bus from Dublin to Belfast return with Bus Eireann at the end of July with no problems. I did the same thing from Dublin to Cahir and the beginning of July with no issues either.

There was space in the luggage compartment both times. I didn't pay extra for the bike.

KevRossi

Never had an issue with a boxed bike on any bus to or from Dublin or the Airport.

€10 every time.

I have taken it without a box once and was allowed, did not book in advance, baggage area wasn't too full. But they refused another guy whose MTB was filthy, and I mean caked in mud. (I can see their point).

Thargor

Cheers both.

NamelessPhil

My bike was unboxed both times.

Wishbone Ash

KevRossi wrote: »

Never had an issue with a boxed bike on any bus to or from Dublin or the Airport...

I'd imagine that 99% of cyclists wishing to transport a bike on BE will be doing so unboxed.

a148pro

Never heard of the ten euro fee before. Brought on buses a few times but I think they might all have been dublin coaches, no problems at all just rocking up, but think dublin coaches stopped running after covid.

Thargor

So I got the Expressway Service from BusAras to Limerick today, was getting nervous because all the Expressways heading to Cork/Tralee/every other place while I was waiting were all those long distance doubledeckers that GoBus and Citylink first introduced with tiny luggage compartments so didnt know what the story was there but anyway the Limerick bus came and it was a bog standard single decker Bus Eireann with the big compartment in the middle, still a tight enough squeeze though, if a second cyclist had turned up we might have had a problem.

I asked the driver to open the luggage door for me to put it in and he said kind of laughing "Im supposed to charge you for that you know...", I explained there was no way to do that online like you can on trains and he just said ah you're grand and waved me on.

After a horrific 3.5 hour journey (Expressway is a lie) we got to Limerick and I finished my business then it was back to Limerick Bus Station for another Expressway to Galway, a different outcome this time, he sounded like he was in physical pain when he saw I had a bike, I showed him my ticket on my phone and he wanted to know where my bike ticket was, explained again its impossible to do online and he said "Well it has to have a ticket", so he tapped away at the ticket machine for 10 minutes and eventually printed a second ticket that just said "Bicycle Ticket €10" on it and I handed over cash which I thought they weren't supposed to handle but he took it off me anyway.

Cant wait for the day Citylink/GoBus/Dublin Coach are back to a full service.