Ceannt Station Galway

You can still support Leap and QR reading without gates, there are multiple train stations in the Dublin region with no gates, but Luas style leap card validators.

Passenger counting can also be done on trains with cameras or sensors at the doors. Some really flashy systems these days that can even count number of wheelchair users, kids, etc. Such systems have the advantage that is accurately counts the numbers getting on/off at smaller stations with no gates.

I’d question if IR’s approach to fare evasion works given it has significantly higher levels of fare evasion then Luas.

BTW I’d also say QR tickets suck and I’d rather see them move to NFC tickets, much more reliable

“Barriers are grand in Leap zones but you don't need them elsewhere.”

Personally I’d like to see them move to the Luas model for DART/CACR. There are already some DART stations where they have removed gates and just have Luas style validators instead. To be honest I’m less bothered about it for Intercity services.

It is grand, but I do think it could be better. Cork isn't as busy as Dublin, getting out of Howth on a sunny summer weekend is a nightmare, picture hundreds of people gathered around just two Leap card readers, trying to tag off, where each card is pretty slow to read! Pretty frustrating.

It could be like Switzerland where there are no gates at all. Picture just walking straight on and off the train with zero barriers or delay. No need to tag-on/off a Leap card, most people there just buy a ticket on their phone and show the ticket inspectors on the train on their phone if asked (helps that Switzerland has various monthly passes, etc. that people tend to buy).

Much less friction and also much easier for wheelchair/buggy/luggage people. And also it doesn't cost tens of millions per year to buy, install and maintain all those gates!

It is all public transport in Switzerland, all trains both intercity and commuter, trams, Metro, etc.

It isn't exclusive to Switzerland, same in Germany, even S-Bahn/DART, most German speaking countries and much of the Northern European countries and much of "Eastern Europe" too.

Yes, enforcement is done by ticket inspectors on trains, similar to how it is done on Luas.

But it doesn't necessarily mean it costs more, people don't realise just how expensive those gates are to buy and maintain, they are big complicated pieces of equipment with lots of moving parts. They cost 10's of millions per year to buy and maintain.

And despite that IR still needs to pay a person to stand their manning the gates and still needs a ticket checker on the intercity trains as many of the intermediate stations don't have gates. And increasingly they have to have security staff on trains due to anti social behaviour.

I do wonder if they just scrapped the gates and instead put the money saved from them into more ticket checkers, would it actually end up being a net benefit for the same cost. With the added benefit of easier to use rail system for the public and more staff presence on trains which is good to reduce anti social behaviour, it could be overall a better experience.

It would also make the next gen ticketing project much easier and cheaper to deliver. No need for new gates and all the delays they are going to cause.

Ah, in Switzerland there are two different ways to pay.

You can pay by contactless card, which yes, requires you to tag-on/off on validators on the platform.

The other way to pay is by app, you buy the ticket in the app, no need to validate. The way the app works is you tag-on before you board and then tag-off after you get off and it works out the cheapest fare for the trip. At the moment you have to swipe in the app to tag-on and off. However they are currently trialling auto tag on, where you don't have to do anything it happens automatically.

Most locals tend to use the app.

We have the strict enforcement on Luas, that is why they have much lower fare evasion levels then IR.

As for "citizens with honour", clearly you haven't spent much time in Eastern Europe. Avoiding paying fares is a game there :)

Yes, exactly, while you probably would have a ticket checker on every intercity train, on services like DART and Commuter you just need more random checks. A €100 fine isn't worth it to save €2, ticket checkers on every 10 to 20 journeys and you will pay more in fines.

I'd also say if you brought something like the 365 tickets they have in some German cities most people wouldn't bother risking it. Basically €365 for an annual ticket for unlimited travel in zone 1, basically €1 a day. Of course that would require more government subsidy, but I'd be in favour of that.

The idea is to make public transport as frictionless and convenient as possible and as affordable as possible. Few are going to bother risking getting a fine if fares are cheap.