BusConnects Dublin - Big changes to Bus Network

Much like the idea of feeder routes didn't have people happy during BC consultations, splitting the extremely successful cross-city routes again into separate one-side-only services will not only not be popular with passengers, but will also be an infrastructural distaster, with less and less space compatible for termini.

There is a reason why DB had wanted to join the 27B and 79s together into a single route.

Fun fact regarding terminus handovers: in Kraków, all handovers are scheduled at termini, and the rosters follow this. Drivers, however, often enough agree to hand over somewhere closer to the city (depending on convenience for getting from/to the depot to get their car or something), either on the trip before or after the scheduled handover, for the sake of convenience (Kraków follows the typical Polish model of breaks built into the vehicle diagrams so that they're split into two duties rather than the Western European model of multiple drivers handing over every 3-5 hours).

I approve that. At least it's not official.

Switching drivers mid-route isn't popular with passengers either. Especially in a city with such variable traffic and a severe lack of bus priority.

There's merit if it results in a better service overall . If you consider the axis Ambassador Cinema/Rotunda -> College Green and turned all buses short of that and let the trams connect the routes then the buses dont' have to force through bottlenecks and have a much better chance of maintaining service. As it is the two modes and SPSVs are fighting each other 18 hours a day. with largely a lot of empty space in those Green line trams going across the Liffey , compared to when they get to Stephens Green going south.

(as distinct from the Red line, which is weaved in very well I think)

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Are cross-city routes really popular? Of course they can be great if you happen to be doing a trip such as Blanchardstown - UCD (39a), but most people aren't doing that. They are only needed because the city centre isn't exactly well planned for bus termini.

Yes, they are absolutely definitely popular. Routes like the 13, 14, 15, 16, 27 come to mind and are always busy for cross city.

If anything, I'm gonna miss the vast choice I currently have for cross city travel when it's replaced with one primary route. I'm more than happy to change though. The ease of learning the new system will be fantastic.

I hear you, but the choke points can be improved. Taxis are a major part of the issue at College Green and OCS / Parnell. Before suggesting drastic changes to bus routes, we should introduce taxi surcharges for crossing these choke points?

If people want / need a cab, that's fine but they should pay for it in fees or extra time.

I speak from experience, it's easier to take a cab into the city on a Friday night (with 2 or 3 friends) or if you're working and have a business account, you're extremely unlikely to hop on public transport, as taxis are way quicker and relatively cheap.

Why cars still use the quays is beyond me. It's my quickest way (as the crow flies) when I'm in the car but I avoid it like the plague and it's definitely quicker using other routes.

It's time people realised Dublin is a big city and not a wee town anymore. Get your car out.

We should also consider to ban non-local buses using a bus lane. If you spare an hour and watch it, you can see anyone is using it: passenger vans, hire vans, tourist couches etc. It should only be ok for those which work under the TFI logo, plus private regular intercity, international and Dublin region buses.

And CG should probably be even more narrowed down banning intercities, if they even use it. However, the problem with taxis is that they should only use a bus lane when passengers are in the vehicle, but I often see taxi drivers ignore this and use a bus lane alone. This has never been properly addressed nor strictly enforced. I'd say, some taxi drivers might not know that they mustn't use a bus lane when empty.

Absolutely, the whole thing could be so much better if these spines still didn't maintain the "An Lár" mentality requiring all spines to go near O'Connell Bridge. The whole point of the new system and ticketing is to facilitate interchange, surely then utilising orbitals means the spines can take varied routes through the city?

"surely then utilising orbitals means the spines can take varied routes through the city?" not really - we've been good at closing most of the parallel routes . Parliament St/Capel St has been locked out, trying to run up Gardiner St would mean rerouting via Westland Row/Pearse St which is where we've chucked most of the private cars northbound and trying to run that route southbound comes back to a single lane at City Quay again, so no improvement .

Jervis St/Bolton St might have been a pressure release but the dogs dinner made in the last couple of years means also not many buses want to turn left going into town, they all want to turn right at OCS . Also Church St perhaps but thats back to effectively a single lane as well and is one of the main private car arteries

On that subject, I mistakenly ended up in the match traffic yesterday evening and the traffic was completely at a standstill. I had completely forgotten that it was on, but the one thing that really grated me were the amount of cars that were clogging up the bus lanes trying to get out of the city. Absolutely no enforcement. Why would anyone use buses when you'd end up part of the bumper to bumper traffic jams anyways.

if taxis are cheaper and safer, why discourage them? electric cars should be fine.

Some people need taxis and dont have a bus route that is convenient for them.

its not really fair to expect them to pay more, just because they dont have a bus route to take them home.

Ehhhhhhhhhhhh. How about they take a city centre bus or Luas Cross City to a convenient place to get a taxi.

Right now, those "necessary taxi journeys (?????)" clog up PT lanes and slow things down for everyone.

get a bus to get a taxi? and what if there are no taxis at the rank when you get off the bus? get another bus back again?

its hard enough getting a taxi on a weekend night in dublin, i wouldnt want it to be made even more difficult by introducing additonal fees.