Can anyone explain Weekender fares?

[childss]

I was delighted to discover recently that the Weekender tickets offered great discounts on the train to Galway -- the ticket costs 29 compared with 44 normally -- a saving of 35%. However on the Limerick route which I get more often, the Weekender is 44 and the full price is 50 -- a saving of only 12%. Why is there such a difference? (I won't ask why the Limerick route costs more in the first place than Galway and Sligo which are further away.)

Also, why is the Weekender ticket not promoted in any way? I've told loads of people about it and no-one has ever heard of it. Even on the under-discounted Limerick route it almost pays for itself first time out.

[Mark Gleeson]

We have the simple explanation here http://www.platform11.org/passenger_...discount_cards

I have seen notices at stations in the last year and it is in the back of the printed timetable

It took IE a few weeks to invent the excuse but it goes like this

There are two classes of route, the double track, frequent, reliable and the single track slow unreliable. So Tralee, Cork, Limerick and Belfast fall under the fast and frequent while Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Waterford and Rosslare fall into the slow single line camp, different cost per mile applies depending on the route you travel. Now thats reasonable enough, the discount level is murky and seems to be driven by business factors to maxmise revenues.

Euro standard practice is to offer a fixed discount of 25% or even 50%, but Irish Rail are far from doing things the industry standard way.

The first issue at hand is not the discount per say its the slightly werid pricing of certain journeys. There be two fares Bray Belfast, 15.50 the difference same trains same day same booking office but different fares, it depends on the intelligence or lack thereof of the clerk on duty. There are adult fares which are cheaper than the discounted ones

Your next trick is to buy a Dublin City Centre to Limerick return ticket which is 2.40 more but valid on the Luas and 90/91/92 to reach Heuston from the city

[2Funki4Wheelz]

Got weekender passes on Friday evening in Heuston. Even got my mugshot in the booth at the station which resulted in a nice terrorist style shot.
So €7 Weekend pass, €6 for 4 photos. So total cost €8.50.

Travelling from Portarlington to Athenry, return on Saturday, back on Sunday.
Went to ticket office -
'Two Weekenders to Athenry please'.
'€62.'
'No, Weekenders' pushed IDs under the partition.
'Sorry' - consults bit of green paper sellotaped on wall '€34'.

So that's a 45% saving. I've already made the cost back and more and its valid for a year.
And no one I've spoken to yet has ever heard of these. This is a disgrace, I know the onus is always on the customer to find the best deal but this offer is buried.

[Mark Gleeson]

Its a wicked deal on certain routes, the crew going home for the weekend know about it

They have a nice big poster up in Thurles which is hard to miss and they are available online, the IE website has details somewhere but I can't find it

Of course Mark's best trick is how to travel and get your money back in full but its only short notice

[2Funki4Wheelz]

And here it is...

I can't see why a few ads aren't pasted up around Heuston/Connolly, they advertise some of the other limited specials enough - this is an ongoing offer

[Mark Gleeson]

Enjoy the cu na mara experience?

You can even upgrade to first and it ends up less than the normal adult fare in second

[Garrett]

Speaking of IE ticket prices, what is their standard Intercity pricing structure/matrix. The "P11 Guide to Ticketing" does not seem to have it. Surely this should be available under FOI?

As an example, here's the standard pricing structure used by the SNCF in France (not including special offers):
http://intra.ac-nantes.fr/eple/DAF/f...p/sncf0703.PDF (found using Google, not easy to find on SNCF website)

Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson

We have the simple explanation here http://www.platform11.org/passenger_...discount_cards
There are two classes of route, the double track, frequent, reliable and the single track slow unreliable. So Tralee, Cork, Limerick and Belfast fall under the fast and frequent while Galway, Mayo, Sligo, Waterford and Rosslare fall into the slow single line camp, different cost per mile applies depending on the route you travel.

I would regard that as discrimination. It's not the public's fault that some routes are single-tracked while others are double-tracked.

[Mark Gleeson]

Originally Posted by Garrett

Speaking of IE ticket prices, what is their standard Intercity pricing structure/matrix. The "P11 Guide to Ticketing" does not seem to have it. Surely this should be available under FOI?

But IE are not under FOI

Best we have at the moment is http://www.platform11.org/passenger_...res_matrix.php

Originally Posted by Garrett

I would regard that as discrimination. It's not the public's fault that some routes are single-tracked while others are double-tracked.

SNCF are guilty of the same, you pay more you get a better service its a fact of life

[Garrett]

Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson

SNCF are guilty of the same, you pay more you get a better service its a fact of life

Come on Mark, that excuse can't be used for IE. Double tracked lines aren't better service: they should be considered a standard service! Single-tracked lines are below par standard (service-wise). "Double-tracked passengers" shouldn't pay more because of a "better" service. They should pay a reasonable price for a standard service. Okay, I admit I'm not as knowledgeable of IE fares as the rest of you, but still, please don't be so defensive of IE fares. My experience of them has rarely been pleasant.

Also, regarding the SNCF.
If the TGV is too expensive then you can take the slower intercity trains, although I admit that I always pay the extra amount to arrive in half the time! But that's the point: I pay about 30% extra to arrive in 50% of the time!

Taking a naive approach (i.e. tourist approach, not knowing all the nuances of IE tickets) to reserving a train here's what I find:

Dublin-Limerick
120 mi (190 km) (road distance using http://local.live.com)
Road: 2 hr 13 min (estimate using http://local.live.com)
Train: 2 hr 15 min
= 53.3 mi/hr or 85.33 km/hr
Standard Adult Weekday Single Fare: €43


Dublin-Galway
130 mi (210 km) (road distance using http://local.live.com)
Road: 2 hr 31 min (estimate using http://local.live.com)
Train: 2 hr 43 min (rough average)
= 47.9 mi/hr or 76.6 km/hr
Standard Adult Weekday Single Fare: €30

Now, I realise you're gonna slam me with all the reasons I'm wrong, but honestly, and maybe naively, the 43% difference between those two fares ain't justified by a 11% increase in speed. I realise there is way more choice on the Limerick line but that should keep fares down, not increase them.

[Mark Gleeson]

Firstly the fares are set by the DoT not IE

Limerick enjoys a fantastic service 15 down/14 up all have first class and all carry catering and all are reservable also is the most punctual route in the country by a 4% margin

Galway gets seven each way, journey times are overstated by 15 minutes owing to the single track and passing other trains. First is not available on some trains and not all are reservable. Its not unnoticed that only route IE operate where serious bus competition is in place, Limerick run is still a Bus Eireann monopoly more or less.

Sad fact is the price will be higher where the service levels and quality is better, you have to remember Irish Rail are playing a game here to maximise revenues

And BTW the weekday return Limerick Dublin is €41

We can't change the werid prices but we can force a change where the fares are wrong, for instance there are certain station combinations where the adult fare is less than the weekender fare