[Letter] Train fares North and South

[Colm Moore]

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/letters/2010/0122/1224262842902.htmlTrain fares North and South

Madam, – I am a regular user of the Enterprise train service between Dublin and Belfast.

It is a cross-community service, involving the same train, regardless of whether tickets are bought in the North or South.

However, at the time of writing, it costs €27.50 for a single ticket from Dublin to Newry, while from Newry to Dublin it costs the equivalent of €20.85.

For a return trip, it costs €39 when the journey begins in Dublin, but the equivalent of €22.30 when you buy the ticket in Newry. When I complained to Iarnród Éireann, I was told it advertises cheap deals on its website.

However, these deals are available for one-day customers only: if, like me, you often need to stay for a day or two, the ticket costs the prices outlined above.

Yet again, the people of the Republic are being clearly ripped off. – Yours, etc,

JAMES O’REILLY,
Dublin.

[Mark Gleeson]

20 euro return is current best offer and it does not require a return on the same day, if it is booked online up to 1 hour before departure

NIR have some cheaper deals but must book 3 days ahead and day return only

An integrated booking system is on the way to eliminate these issues

[Colm Moore]

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/letters/2010/0128/1224263288358.htmlTrain fares North and South

Madam, – Shortly before Christmas I went to purchase a day return ticket to Drogheda. The sales assistant at Connolly station in Dublin was kind enough to inform me that a day return to Drogheda would cost €22 or I could purchase a day return to Newry costing €10 and simply alight at Drogheda. You can guess which I opted for.

I am glad to see Irish Rail doing its bit for cross-Border shopping! – Yours, etc,

ALLAN J CRANN,

Wilson’s Place, Dublin 2.

[Thomas Ralph]

So even IÉ is telling its customers to break the law.
When the fare to an intermediate station exceeds the fare to a more distant station, no person shall, for the purpose of travelling to such intermediate station, take or use or attempt to use a ticket for the more distant station with intent to avoid payment of the additional fare to such intermediate station. The liability to or infliction of any penalty incurred by the contravention of this Bye-Law shall not prejudice any right of the Board to treat such ticket as forfeited and to recover the full fare for the distance actually travelled by the offender.

[Mark Gleeson]

But Irish Rail cannot enforce that on an intercity journey as the T&C's permit the breaking of journey en route, so you legally can get off at Drogheda and board there again for the return. There is no way Irish Rail can prove a breach and even if they did I'd be interested to see what a judge thinks

That said that passenger is then entitled to their full rights under EC 1371/2007 as they are in possession of a ticket sold as an international journey!

[Colm Moore]

So, what of Athy v Kildare?

[Thomas Ralph]

I suppose you could have to prove a genuine intention of travelling on to Athy. The only way that they could really prove you were breaking the conditions is if you came off at Kildare on the last train to Waterford.