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"Leap" into the unknown: The feedback thread

Flukey

I am just about to bring my new Leap card into the strange world of public transport to test it. There are already several Leap threads going and we've already had some points about its usage raised in them. Maybe we can keep this thread for more specific feedback by the people who have actually got a card and leave the more general discussions on it to the other threads. So if you have some specific feedback from actually using the card put it in here, as briefly as possible. Then we can all use it when we are feeding back our experiences in the questionnaires we are all supposed to be getting. If anything arises here that people would like to discuss in more detail, switch to one of the other threads which already have a broad range of discussion about it that is likely to be relevant. Anyway, my Leap card and I are about to head out. Wish us luck!:D

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Lemlin

lxflyer wrote: »

If you want to get a monthly/annual ticket, you need a personalised card.

For full information on LEAP functionality, have a look here:
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057381954

Why buy a monthly or annual ticket if you have a Leap card though?

G_R

Lemlin wrote: »

Why buy a monthly or annual ticket if you have a Leap card though?

The "ticket" gets put on the leap card, so when you swipe the leap, it validates that there is a valid ticket on the card

Victor

Lemlin wrote: »

Why buy a monthly or annual ticket if you have a Leap card though?

With monthly and annual tickets, you can avail of the Taxsaver system.

LXFlyer

Lemlin wrote: »

Why buy a monthly or annual ticket if you have a Leap card though?

As above you load the monthly/annual ticket onto the LEAP card - paper monthly/annual tickets have been done away with.

LEAP is a card that can hold up to five different tickets while also acting as an epurse.

Go to the link that I quoted above for an explanation.

If your employer participates in the taxsaver scheme then you can save tax, PRSI and USC on the cost of the ticket.

Full details at www.taxsaver.ie

Lemlin

Victor wrote: »

With monthly and annual tickets, you can avail of the Taxsaver system.

I can't avail of this until I am made permanent in the new job.

LXFlyer

Lemlin wrote: »

I can't avail of this until I am made permanent in the new job.

Well he was responding to your general question as to why you would buy a monthly or annual ticket rather than using LEAP epurse.

It should be noted that the monthly and annual tickets offer greater discounts than weekly ones even without taking into account the taxsaver element.

Lemlin

lxflyer wrote: »

Well he was responding to your general question as to why you would buy a monthly or annual ticket rather than using LEAP epurse.

It should be noted that the monthly and annual tickets offer greater discounts than weekly ones even without taking into account the taxsaver element.

According to my station combination of the M3 Parkway to Pearse:
Adult Day Return €6.65
Adult 7 Day Rolling Rail €32.70
Adult 3 Day Rolling Rail €19.00
Leap Card / Iarnrod Eireann Smart Card €2.87

So would the Leap not work out cheaper as it costs €28.70 as opposed to the weekly ticket of €32.70?

Victor

That will somewhat depend on how many journeys you make per week.

Note that the weekly ticket covers all trips between those stations and all points between for the week. So if you want to head into the city or Blanchardstown at the weekend, the weekly ticket covers it at no extra cost, but you would have to continue paying on a Leap Card, until you hit the €35.50 weekly cap for Irish Rail.

Lemlin

Victor wrote: »

That will somewhat depend on how many journeys you make per week.

Note that the weekly ticket covers all trips between those stations and all points between for the week. So if you want to head into the city or Blanchardstown at the weekend, the weekly ticket covers it at no extra cost, but you would have to continue paying on a Leap Card, until you hit the €35.50 weekly cap for Irish Rail.

99% of weeks I would only be using the train to go in and out of work. I'm living in Cavan so the train isn't something I'll need for an everyday hop into town!

Even then, the weekly ticket wouldn't suit because I may be working from home or staying in Dublin a night the odd week.

Cian59

Hi all,

Quick question. Just started using an annual rail ticket on my leap card. I'm just wondering if there's any need to tag off when leaving. When the station. Is closed, there's a queue for the machine so just wondering if there's any need?

Van.Bosch

Cian59 wrote: »

Hi all,

Quick question. Just started using an annual rail ticket on my leap card. I'm just wondering if there's any need to tag off when leaving. When the station. Is closed, there's a queue for the machine so just wondering if there's any need?

Officially yes, in reality I don't

ordinary_girl

Anyone know how to claim back the 5 euro deposit from an adult leap card?

LXFlyer

From the LEAP website FAQs:

I have an adult or child Leap Card that is not personalised and I want a replacement or a refund. What do I do?
You can apply for a replacement or a refund by logging in to your online account. Click here to log in.

If you do not have an online account you should register the card that you want refunded or replaced. Then log in to your online account to make your request.

Please note; refunds can only be transferred to bank accounts within the European Union (including Iceland, Norway and Switzerland). If you do not have a bank account within these zones, click here to download a paper refund form.

Click on Lost/Stolen cards from the left hand column.

ordinary_girl

So if I apply for a refund will I be refunded the amount I have left on my Leap (an adult rambler ticket) + the five euro deposit I paid for the card? I can't get the 5 euro back separately?

LXFlyer

ordinary_girl wrote: »

So if I apply for a refund will I be refunded the amount I have left on my Leap (an adult rambler ticket) + the five euro deposit I paid for the card? I can't get the 5 euro back separately?

Not sure about a ticket product. You may need to use those days. I'd be surprised if they were refundable.

You would certainly get any cash balance in the epurse and the €5 deposit back in one piece.

AlekSmart

It's worth publicising that Dublin Bus has installed a Leapcard Reader in the front window of it's HQ,59 O'Connell St.

It can be used,from outside the window, to check Leapcard Balances,as a Load Point to collect credit,and to enable Taxsaver Collections.

I put this on Lxf's sticky,but I noticed that this thread has far more action ongoing,so take note and spread the word.....Oddly enough both BAC and the NTA appear mute on the innovation....another grand "Soft Launch" I suppose..????

shodge

Why did the NTA not have a LEAP scanner built into all those new Real Time Display polls that have sprung up all over Dublin?
It does not have to be a fancy screen just a load point that beeps to let you know it worked.
LEAP is a real mickey mouse operation, they dont make it easy to top up and the ticket machines are slower than paying cash. In any other operation heads would roll.

Victor

I had suggested this early on. However, it isn't a 'free' solution.

1. One would need to develop the equipment. As they are at risk of theft or vandalism, is there a card reader suitable for unsupervised 'street' use?
2. One would need to install the equipment at several hundred locations.
3. RTPI uses GRPS (mobile phone technology) to update the system. Adding Leap card might need to upgrade that.
4. The preference is to move people to auto top-up.

AngryLips

Victor wrote: »

1. One would need to develop the equipment. As they are at risk of theft or vandalism, is there a card reader suitable for unsupervised 'street' use?

I think their presence at all Luas stops answers this question adequately

Dravokivich

AngryLips wrote: »

I think their presence at all Luas stops answers this question adequately

Broombridge may be an outlier, but it could very well be a reason for not putting out such accessible equipment due to vandalism. In saying that though I've seen pictures going around of a validator that is meant to be there now. No word on if it is active yet though.

Also another thing thing to consider is not just vandalism, but theft of the card reading equipment.

LXFlyer

AngryLips wrote: »

I think their presence at all Luas stops answers this question adequately

Each LUAS stop has several CCTV cameras.

Bus stops do not have that facility.

Victor wrote: »

4. The preference is to move people to auto top-up.

That might be the preference, but it will never happen unless Leap/NTA management get real and reduce the top-up amount to €10.

Dravokivich

Well, their auto top-up amounts are based on how much they'd expect someone to use within the time frame of receiving an auto top-up and when they can receive their next auto top-up. 10euro can be done in 2 days meaning the user will have to go and purchase more top-up at a shop, ticket vending machine or online. Makes that amount even more hassle really.

Daith

Dravokivich wrote: »

Well, their auto top-up amounts are based on how much they'd expect someone to use within the time frame of receiving an auto top-up and when they can receive their next auto top-up. 10euro can be done in 2 days meaning the user will have to go and purchase more top-up at a shop, ticket vending machine or online. Makes that amount even more hassle really.

Ok but what's the issue with giving people the choice of €10? Personally I don't use Bus or Rail that much and €10 would stretch for a few weeks sometimes.

I would have thought regular users load weekly/monthly tickets on their card?

LXFlyer

As I recall the issue is that there is a limit on the number of times that such a request can be made on a bank, and that as many users would reach the Dublin Bus weekly cap of €27.50 they set the basic top-up amount as just above that.

There would be quite a large number of people using the e-purse and availing of the weekly caps (there are no weekly bus tickets any more).

To be honest those are all just excuses.

If Victor is right and they really want everyone using auto-topup, then it simply isn't going to happen. €40 out of your bank account is simply far too much for the vast majority of people.

They really need to get realistic about this if take-up of auto-topup is their goal.

Also technically there is no reason why you should have to wait 48 hours for the bank details to be processed. The buses are linked in almost real time via mobile data to the DB depots for RTPI. So clearly the technology to do it exists and is there. The problem is that the DB ticket machines aren't linked to this mobile data link and are too old and out of date to handle it.

Again the solution is to replace the ticket machines with new, more powerful models, that are linked to this data link, so that they can immediately process auto-topups and apply online topups.

antoinolachtnai

Victor wrote: »

I had suggested this early on. However, it isn't a 'free' solution.

1. One would need to develop the equipment. As they are at risk of theft or vandalism, is there a card reader suitable for unsupervised 'street' use?
2. One would need to install the equipment at several hundred locations.
3. RTPI uses GRPS (mobile phone technology) to update the system. Adding Leap card might need to upgrade that.
4. The preference is to move people to auto top-up.

I seem to recall (and I could be wrong) that there is also a planning issue. Informative signs are not 'development' in the planning sense. smart card reader/writers, on the other hand, are development.

shodge

antoinolachtnai wrote: »

I seem to recall (and I could be wrong) that there is also a planning issue. Informative signs are not 'development' in the planning sense. smart card reader/writers, on the other hand, are development.

If thats the reason its a pathetic excuse, it can be changed with the stroke of a pen.

Carawaystick

shodge wrote: »

If thats the reason its a pathetic excuse, it can be changed with the stroke of a pen.

The people who stroke the pen probably don't get the bus though.

ASOT

Quick question I just got a new job so will be moving from driving to work to taking the bus instead due to parking fees in town, il be getting a bus in and out of town 5 days a week,, what's the cheapest way to go about this? It's been a long time since I used public transport regularly!