LUAS operators criticised over peak-time fare increase

[Brian Condron]

Originally Posted by Unison.ie

LUAS operators criticised over peak-time fare increase
13:10 Thursday January 4th 2007

The operators of the LUAS tram system in Dublin are being criticised for introducing higher fares at peak times.
From Monday, all rush-hour commuters using the trams will have to pay 10 cents extra for their ticket.

The higher fare will operate between 7.45am and 9.30am from Monday to Friday.

The LUAS operators say it is designed to alleviate rush hour congestion by encouraging people to use the service at different times.

However, Fine Gael TD Olivia Mitchell has accused the company of targeting its most loyal customers.

She says extra trams should be introduced to reduce rush-hour congestion instead of a penalty on people who use the LUAS.

My understanding of this is that Smart Card users will not be charged the peak time fare, and that users with weekly / monthly tickets can use either peak / off-peak services with no price variations. How is this targetting the most loyal customers? Headline grabbing again, it must be an awful job to be an opposition spokesperson on something. It looks like the peak fare is to dissuade non-regular users from taking journeys during rush hour that they could take half an hour later, and the intention is to cut down on over-crowding at peak times. Seems pretty straightforward in theorey, but in practice I doubt that it will make much difference. I tend to avoid using the Luas at peak times unless I absolutely need to, and I imagine the majority of non-regular users would do the same!