Reserved Seating

[Mark Gleeson]

Here is yet another werid one

This is the 7:00 Cork Dublin tomorrow
This is coach C, note its a Mk4 layout

There are 68 seats in a Mk4, note coach D has 70 seats (2 already booked so its 72)

So coach C is a Mk4, coach D a MK3 love to see that work out since the seat res is going to go nuts on the train

[Thomas J Stamp]

Any snipers out there - Gleeson is on Seat C19 7.00 am train tomorrow.

Whos joining me out at the hatch?

Lock and load.

[2Funki4Wheelz]

Originally Posted by Thomas J Stamp

Any snipers out there - Gleeson is on Seat C19 7.00 am train tomorrow.

Whos joining me out at the hatch?

Lock and load.

I'd hang out my bedroom window in Port to catch a glimpse but I think he's on the wrong side

[Mark Gleeson]

That be a window seat facing Dublin on the Inchicore side

Seriously though I'd be in seat D 72W since it doesn't exist and then complain bitterly until I was moved to first but that requires the train to be full to standing

I might as well publish my guide on how to travel first for free when seat res goes wonky

[Brian Condron]

'tis a pity all the seats around you are booked, surely once Irish Rail spot the name, it will be their policy to ensure that nothing bad happens within eyeshot of that seat. Those passengers will be the best treated on the whole netwok!

[Mark Gleeson]

I can confirm my name is not on a internal hit list, in the last few months there has been a few incidents on train where my name is known to the staff, ie seat res, ticket not forgetting the train manager/ticket checker has a list of everyone booked and I wasn't the person who secured the first class seats on my last trip

BTW I'll be asleep in a bed in Dublin at 7am tomorrow

[2Funki4Wheelz]

Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson

BTW I'll be asleep in a bed in Dublin at 7am tomorrow

'a bed' - have you not decided which one?

(no more o/t Friday giddiness from me I promise)

[portarlington_user]

Originally Posted by MrX

Just one gripe, and I have raised this with IE twice now to no avail.

My Chip & PIN AIB Laser/Maestro card will not read in their ticket machines for purchasing a ticket or for collecting a reserved ticket while my old non-chip and pin card did.

I assume there's some technical glitch as I've seen other AIB Laser/Masetro card holders also having their cards refused at the machines.

Hi
I regularly use my AIB chip & pin card to purchase tickets without a problem. Maybe for once it's not actually a problem on their end, after all there's a first time for everything!

[Mark Gleeson]

Originally Posted by 2Funki4Wheelz

'a bed' - have you not decided which one?

I was trying to convey not being asleep on the train, people always assume something

Its possible to have a lot of fun without buying a ticket on the IE site, haven't got the time to check every train but there are clearly a lot of avoidable errors

[StephenM]

Originally Posted by portarlington_user

Hi
I regularly use my AIB chip & pin card to purchase tickets without a problem. Maybe for once it's not actually a problem on their end, after all there's a first time for everything!

I'm one of the students to manage to book my ticket online, but due to my AIB Maestro card I cannot collect them at a machine so I have to go to the ticket office anyway. Same with LUAS it wont accept my Maestro card. (Tried last year and gave up)

[MrX]

Can you log a complaint about that with Iarnrod Eireann and RPA (www.luas.ie)

More the merrier!

[packetswitch]

What is the status of the passenger who wishes to get a seat reservation for the first leg of a return trip, but does not know when they are coming back?

I assume that normal 'return' tickets as sold by IÉ are what would be 'open returns' in the UK - that is to say, the price or T&Cs are not relevant to the second leg, apart from a one-month timeout.

So (as our example) we take the college student Ms. McGillyhooley. She's in Dublin during the term but is heading home (to...Limerick Junction, for example). So she wants to book an online ticket (remember that student-fare tickets can't be bought from a walk-up ticket machine - you can either buy online-collect from machine, else you are stuck with the booking office). She knows what train she will travel on this week, but has no idea when she's coming back in January.

However, the system (it seems) will require her to reserve a seat for the return leg, otherwise the booking cannot be completed.

My questions:

a) What does she do when she actually picks the train she wants to travel back to Dublin on - who does she ring and how much information is IÉ supplying on how to do this? (i.e. let's assume she picks a random train and time for the return but then wishes to change this when she gets sick of Mammy and Daddy some time around New Year's Eve)

b) if these are in fact open returns, why not have an option to purchase without making a seat reservation for the return leg - even if reservations are mandatory, give the passenger an opportunity (by telephone or indeed by the website once more) to make a reservation for leg 2 at a later date.

[Mark Gleeson]

All IE tickets are deemed open, valid any train provided the outwards trip occurs on the valid from date and before or on the valid to date

There is no charge for a reservation on IE unlike in the UK where a nominal charge applies with nearly all operators

The online system will always issue the lowest fare for the given combination of trains

There is provision in the system to book one leg and a 'Ticket Only reservation' on the other where you can travel any train on the date printed

It appears a reservation is linked to a ticket sale and can't be added retrospectively, well you coul call Abbey Street 01 7034070

The bigger problem is that more often than not even with a reservation you don't get the seat you booked

[kevin]

Can you get a refund of a reserved ticket if you surrender it before the train is supposed to depart?

[Mark Gleeson]

T & C's are as follows

Terms of Use for the Iarnród Éireann online booking service.

In addition to the terms below, your use of the Iarnród Éireann online booking service is subject to the Terms and Conditions of Use applicable to this website. By using the Iarnród Éireann online booking service, you are agreeing, and you are signifying your agreement, to be bound by the terms below and the said Terms and Conditions of Use.

Bye-laws and Conditions of Carriage.

All tickets are issued subject to the Córas Iompair Éireann Bye-laws and Iarnród Éireann's Conditions of Carriage. For a copy of these documents please write to:

Iarnród Éireann Travel Centre
35 Lower Abbey Street
Dublin 1

Online bookings.

Online bookings may only be made for certain Iarnród Éireann-operated journeys. You can book online for up to six passengers per booking provided that all passengers, including the credit card holder, travel as part of the same booking.

Provisional Bookings.

Provisional bookings cannot be made using the Iarnród Éireann operated journeys. It can only be used for purchasing tickets.

Ticket Rules.

By using the Iarnród Éireann online booking service, you will be subject to the ticket rules applicable to the particular ticket purchased.

Where a reservation has been made a customer must travel on the train that they have reserved on.

If a First Class or Citygold reservation has been made a customer may travel in standard class on another train that day as long as the journey is similar and the replacement train is not fully reserved.

Ticket Only reservations are valid on other services up to the end date of the reservation except in the case where other services are fully reserved.

The following refund rules apply:

Cancelled up to day before travel - 80% refund.
Cancelled on day of travel - 50% refund.
All cancellations must occur before time of travel to be considered eligible for refund.
Tickets must be presented for cancellation.
Changes and cancellations

Please call the Iarnród Éireann Travel Centre at 01 7034070 if you wish to request any changes to or cancellation of a booking made on this website. Depending on the conditions applicable to the ticket purchased, changes to or cancellation of your ticket may not be permitted and/or change/cancellation fees may apply.

Copy of the conditions of carriage
http://www.platform11.org/passenger_info/legal.php

[packetswitch]

Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson

There is provision in the system to book one leg and a 'Ticket Only reservation' on the other where you can travel any train on the date printed

Is this possible from the website? I've just checked it again and it doesn't seem possible to move to the next page without picking a specific train for both legs of the journey. Or do you mean that there is provision at a system level, but it's not actually available to the public?

[Mark Gleeson]

The system has a ticket only reservation capabilty, problem is with Dublin Cork all trains have reservations, the ticket only reservation was a cop out when you had to travel on a train which did not have reservations

[packetswitch]

Right. So an intending passenger on (for example) Dublin to Cork who doesn't know when they are coming back should pick a random day/time-train for the return leg, then ring IÉ Abbey St for a new reservation before they travel, after they have chosen a return day/time-train. Correct?

If anyone from irishrail.ie is reading this, you could always put a note to this effect on the site. Would do no harm

[Mark Gleeson]

Thats more or less the case, if it works

It should be extremely easy to allow alterations online of course that would have to be done before the tickets are printed, the ticket issued has the outbound and return portions on the same ticket

Once the ticket is issued how do you get it back?

[kevin]

Originally Posted by kevin

Can you get a refund of a reserved ticket if you surrender it before the train is supposed to depart?

Filled out the paperwork at the customer service desk in Heuston. There was no mention of 50% so I guess I'll see what turns up in a few weeks.

thanks

kevin