It is a requirement to hold a student travelcard to avail of student fare on Irish Rail, anyone over 16 in full time second or third level education can get a student travelcard. Similar rules/schemes apply in Northern Ireland, UK, Germany, France etc. School/College ID is not accepted
When booked online the following message appears in a box which cannot be hidden/avoided unless you click to accept that you understand
Quote:
The following information is relevant to the ticket(s) you have selected.
* You have chosen a Student ticket. To travel on this ticket you must have either a valid Iarnród Éireann Student TravelCard or a valid Translink Student Discount Card in your name. No other student ID or travel cards are valid on Iarnród Éireann services. For details about accepted travel cards go to www.studenttravelcard.ie or www.translink.co.uk/Students/Discount-Card/.
Failure to produce a valid ticket, appropriate ID or Surcharge where necessary will result in the passenger being issued a fixed penalty of €100 together with the relevant unpaid fare.
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When purchased at a ticket machine or booking office the card number is printed on the ticket. Given these measures Irish Rail has given reasonable notice of the requirement to a student travelcard so the claim of "I didn't know" cannot be sustained.
I'm afraid there is no possible appeal for the case you describe. The student travelcard must be present with the ticket. Later production of the ID card is unlikely to result in the fine being struck out as it will be clear that it was issued after the date of the incident. Cheapest way back is to pay full fare as an adult and the choose a noff peak train which might be less than the normal 37 euro single fare