Surveys taking place without permission?

[ThomasJ]

There is a notice on cis screens informing passengers that people not belonging to irish rail are carrying out surveys and requesting personal information. The notice says that under on circumstances should information be given and should be reported straight away

[Derek Wheeler]

Its not us.

[Mark Gleeson]

If we knew where they where we could at least find out what was going on

We have a total alter ego for these situations

[philip]

Scienticians methinks.

[KSW]

The Nerve!!. If its not Iarnrod Eireann then who is it? Its probably the Rail G catering people to see how many complaints there are for the price of there snacks ->(just joking)

[ThomasJ]

There is a mention of a survey in the enterprise forum in the intercity section it is very recent. Might that have something to do with it?

[Mark Gleeson]

Doubtful, the Enterprise survey is carried out with the companies permission, they are paying for it. On rare occasions there are surveys on intercity trains though I've never come across them. There is also the DTO November Tuesday survey

With the exception of the DTO survey which asks some questions about where you live work etc the questions are all fairly general opinion based nothing personal

[Oisin88]

Every passenger on the last carriage of the 08:20 Dublin-Westport on Last Friday (12th)

These were the questions (apologies for the typos):

Customer satisfaction survey: Intercity Routes, september/October
Details of day and date. Includes info on how late the train was.
How often do you travel
How did you get to the station
Where did you board
Where are you leaving
Was there any alternative?
How would you rate the trip v car
Speed
Value for money
Convenience
How relaxing
Same questions v bus
What class of ticket
Who reserved the seat?
Was it by internet or telephone?
What type of ticket
Are you satisfied with the range of tickets?
Where did you buy your ticket
How long before travel did you buy your ticket
Booking office or vending machine?
What are two or three main changes or improvements that you would like to see irish rail introduce to make the service more attractive to customers like yourself?

1-7 importance, 1-7 satisfaction, 0 for don’t know

· Speed and ease of buying a ticket
· Provision of telephone bookings
· Provision of telephone information about services
· Trains run at the time you need them
· Availability of information when planning your journey
· How frequently the service runs
· Ticket cost
· Value for money of tickets
· The availability of timetables and schedules
· The level of information provided at stations
· The availability of onward transport at stations (taxis and buses)
· Availability of staff
· Staff helpfulness
· Staff knowledge
· Availability of carparking
· Cost of carparking
· Keeping you informed of delays in services
· That the train leaves and arrives on schedule
· The comfort level at stations
· Protection from the weather at stations
· The cleanliness of stations
· How safe you feel while travelling
· Toilet facilities on board
· How relaxing the journey is
· Quality of onboard catering
· Value for money of on-board catering
· Getting a seat
· That the trains are clean on the inside
· Quality and clarity of public announcements
· Level of information on board the train
· Heating lighting and ventilation on board
· Quality/clarity of public announcement systems on board
· Quality of the trains

How satisfied are you with the train service today? Please consider all aspects of the service, from buying your ticket through the train journey to arriving at your stop. (same 7 point scale)

Catering facilities
Have you used the catering facilities on board today?
Do you plan to?
Why not?
Trolley or bar
At seat or in car?
How do you rate:
Range
Quality
Value for money
Helpful staff
Cost compared with train and ferry companies
Quality compared with train & ferry companies

Information

Where would you go about getting info?
Irish rail info number?
Phone Local station
Visit local station
Website
Timetable book
Timetable leaflet
Newspapers
Radio
TV
Phone talking timetablet
Other
Don’t know

Same anwswer options, but where would you find fares
Same answers, delays to the service
Promotions and special offers
Changes to advertised timetables
Have you ever phoned info number
Have you ever phoned talking timetable?ease of use..
Have you ever applied for compensation?
How do you rate staff?
Ever tried to speal to a manager
How satisfied?
Ever complained?
Face to face, letter or what
How was it handled?u
What did you expect to happen?
Do you have a disability
How do you rate (1-7) IE’s efforts to make stations accessible?
How well is the smoking ban enforced?
Do you use the internet?
What for?
What about IE website
Ever book tickets?
Do you have a credit card
Would you consider buying ticket on website?
Any suggestions for improvement
What was this trip for: business, shopping etc.
Country of residence
Where were you born
Address
Interviewers signature

I asked for id, but I was rushing to get off the train, so I didn't write it down.

[ciaram]

Originally Posted by Oisin88

Every passenger on the last carriage of the 08:20 Dublin-Westport on Last Friday (12th)

These were the questions (apologies for the typos):

I got the same survey on the 13:40 Rosslare-Dublin on the 2nd. The interviewer said she was from Behaviour & Attitudes www.banda.ie
Since the survey took a while she was asking people where they were getting off and leaving survey forms accordingly

[Derek Wheeler]

Got the same questions from B&A on a westport train in May 2005. A lady left the sheet and collected it before I got off. It must be a rolling contract that never leads to improvement.

[PaulM]

Does anyone know about this on the Luas? I have had plain clothed people ask to see my ticket and where I'm going (they have RPA badges but I could make one too). Since I have a smart card they ask for the serial number, I have refused this as if the RPA want it, surely their "smart" card readers can give it. However they took it down once while I wasn't paying attention. I'm not entirely certain this is legit...

[CSL]

I tell them I'm Chairman of the RPA

[Thomas Ralph]

Originally Posted by PaulM

Does anyone know about this on the Luas? I have had plain clothed people ask to see my ticket and where I'm going (they have RPA badges but I could make one too). Since I have a smart card they ask for the serial number, I have refused this as if the RPA want it, surely their "smart" card readers can give it. However they took it down once while I wasn't paying attention. I'm not entirely certain this is legit...

Sounds a little bit fishy but the worst I can think of that they can do with the smart card number is register it (if you've not bothered to do so yourself) then report it stolen and have it cancelled and a new one issued.

[James Shields]

THat does sound fishy - as far as I know, RPA have no business checking tickets or revenue protection. That's an operational matter for Connex, I mean Veolia.

[Mark Gleeson]

Veoila are agents for the RPA, the RPA can check

“authorised person” means any officer, employee or agent of an operator acting in the execution of his or her duty upon or in connection with a light railway or any member of the Garda Síochána whose attendance is requested on a light railway by an authorised person;
“operator” means the Railway Procurement Agency or such other person with whom the Agency has made arrangements under section 43(6) of the Transport (Railway Infrastructure) Act 2001 to operate a light railway;

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2004/en/si/0100.html

[Colm Moore]

Originally Posted by CSL

I tell them I'm Chairman of the RPA

They'll ask for your ID.

Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson

the RPA can check
http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2004/en/si/0100.html

Sure, but there is a suggestion it might not be RPA people.

Did I here correctly that the RPA do have a few people in their own revenue protection unit? But that there are only a few people in it.

[Colm Donoghue]

Luas smartcard terms and conditions can anyone see a ickle problem between condition one and condition two

1. Ownership of this SmartCard
Your SmartCard belongs to us at all times. If a person authorised by us asks to inspect it (and keep it if necessary), you must give it to them.

2. Cost of this SmartCard

€3 of the €10 you pay when you buy your SmartCard is the cost of issuing it to you. You will not get this amount back unless your existing card fails, depending on condition 6 d. Child SmartCards cost €7 to buy; there is no €3 cost for issuing Child cards.

from the FAQ

What if a Customer Service Officer asks to see my ticket?

If you are asked to show your ticket to a Customer Service Officer (CSO) simply hand him/her your SmartCard. Each CSO will have a handheld inspection device which will read all Luas SmartCards and will show the exact time and location the SmartCard was TAGGED ON or TAGGED OFF. If you do not TAG ON (and receive an audible confirmation of a successful validation) before getting on the tram you are not travelling with a valid ticket.

My reading of this is that if the person asking to check your smartcard does not have a handheld inspection device, they are not a ticket checker. Also the whole Idea of a contactless smart card is the fact you should not need to produce it to read it. It can be in a wallet with several other contactless smartcards and only one card is read. this is what happens with mine when tagging on or off at a stop.

[Thomas Ralph]

Well, aside from the fact that I have only once ever encountered a CSO with a smart card reader (the other times I just showed them the card and they moved on), I think that a common sense reading of the rules says that if a CSO or someone from the RPA wants to see your card you should show/give it to them.