Travel pass on Aircoach.

AlekSmart wrote: »

I can only surmise that Foggy_Lad has been away for a while,or perhaps in his quest to lay all blame for all ills at the Bus Drivers feet has just failed the acid test.

The Forged DSP passes in circulation today are of a VERY high quality,and as with the fake Driving Licences,only identifiable under magnification.

So because a small number of forgeries are good quality ye don't bother checking any of them?

Dublin Bus revenue teams are confiscating DSP passes on a daily basis,usually due to discrepancies concerning ID or due to illegibility.

Why is it left to revenue teams to do this which is in reality the work of drivers who are the first line of defence?

However the DSP themselves appear less than willing to support Dublin Bus efforts by mounting joint operations similar to the Revenue/NTA/Garda Taxi stings which cause such uproar amongst the iffy elements of that trade.

If CIE staff did their duty effeciently and properly there would be no need for joint operations costing the taxpayer thousands in overtine and mileage allowances and expenses.

Why is Photo ID not mandatory for ALL DSP Free Passes ?

Ask the DSP?

It is perfectly valid,I believe,to seek an explanation from the DSP as to why it has consistently refused to embrace Fraud resistant technology such as Smart-Cards,in favour of a Free-Pass of such a basic and easily forged design ?

My own belief is that the DSP Free Travel scheme,all 726,000 elements of it is but one of this Governments schemes to keep people sweet....carry them around the place for free and they'll not be too angry..start charging them a fare and they'll go ballistic !

Perhaps when the relevant responsible agencies have been grilled,can Foggy_Lad come a huntin for Busdrivers scalps....:o

I agree and that is why the pensioners junkies and headbangers may put up with having their medical cards means tested but they won't allow their free travel to be touched!

AlekSmart wrote: »

With 726,000 legitimate Free Travel passes in circulation,I'm suggesting that Foggy_Lad would only go ballistic at the level of delay which would occur should I decide to check EVERY DSP scrip flashed,tapped or advised to me....I suppose Foggy would then accuse me of "Working to Rule"

I note that when the same "CIE" Staff do actually act robustly in the furtherance of their duties,Foggy_Lad is usually,and often, to be found in the Vanguard of the highly offended

There is a difference between doing your job as laid down in the list of duties notified to each and every employee of Dublin Bus and overstepping the level of authority which comes with the job. A Garda can't pick people up off the street and lock them away in Mountjoy for a few years as they do not have that authority, just as a bus driver or Irish Rail employee does not have the authority to demand photographic or any identification apart from a sample of the signiture of any holder of a free travel pass.

AlekSmart wrote: »

Just to add,I have adopted this on occasion and continue to do so,particularly when I note a spouse/partner entitlement being offered to some lucky stranger.....some will brazen it out,whilst others will admit and pay.

However, it ALWAYS causes a considerable delay to the journey and therefore to those who are being asked to finance the entire thing by paying a fare,so I choose to adopt this approach sparingly...whether it meets Foggy_lad's approval or not ! :rolleyes:

The easiest and most practical change that can be made to the system is to make possession of photo id(passport, Driving licence or Gardai age card) mandatory for everyone using the free travel pass, this would take a while to introduce but if announced now and introduced in two or three months that would be plenty of time for genuine pass holders to get themselves the required photo id. The Photopass required for some pass holders is too easy to get hold of so should be abolished! because all you need is the slip of paper from the pass and a bill and PPS card of the real holder and you can get your picture on someone elses photopass so that they report their pass missing but give it to you and they then get a new pass in the post.

I am agreeing about photo id being needed but it should not be demanded by CIE staff because there is legally at this time no obligation for pass holders to provide photo id.

CIE could of course insist on getting photo Id from Every single pasesenger as a security measure but they would have to check every single passenger and this would just not work.