Better than we think? - Public Transport in Ireland

Public Transport – It’s always a bit of a hot topic here in Ireland. Everyone seems to have an opinion on it, and it’s usually negative. I myself have hardly been a cheerleader of Irish public transport in the past. However, is that really the case? Is Ireland as bad with regards to public transport as everyone makes it out to be? Or is it hugely overblown, which wouldn’t be out of the question in a country whose public opinion vacillates between fire-and-brimstone damnation and unquestioning adulation, with no space for nuance or grey areas?

A recent opinion piece in the Irish Times certainly would seem to suggest the latter. And while my first reaction as a long-suffering Bus Éireann passenger was to think that the “expert” quoted in that opinion piece had been hitting the paint thinner pretty hard, upon second reading, the article made some valid points. For example, the article correctly points out that Ireland kept up public transport funding during the pandemic, even increasing it in some areas. The government also kept up public transport infrastructure projects, even pulling some forward when funding from the EU recovery fund became available.

I hadn’t considered this, but all of this is demonstrably true. Buses kept running right through the pandemic. I still remember watching the 220 buses running regularly from my home office window through the darkest days of the pandemic. Even beyond that, the list of projects greenlit and/or financed during the pandemic is surprisingly extensive. Here in Cork, work on double-tracking the Cork-Middleton commuter line began, as did work on a new through-platforms at Kent Station, the first steps towards a future rail rapid transit system in Cork. In Athlone, the National Transport Authority and Bus Éireann began setting up Ireland’s first all-electric bus services, while a number of regional cities received local bus services for the first time in their history. 

Even long-term projects, such as the expansion of the DART system in Dublin, BusConnects, again in Dublin, a separate BusConnects project here in Cork, as well as plans for a LUAS light rail line in the Rebel City all kept moving ahead slowly, with slowly being the key word here. Seriously, I’ve seen continents move faster than these projects. Then again, given the number of genetic cul-de-sacs and exhaust gas inhalers that are doing their level best to kill these projects, it’s probably for the better. The same goes for the expansion and modernisation of Irish Rail’s fleet, although that seems to be picking up a bit more speed. Finally, the government has also cut public transport fares by a significant margin, making public transport more affordable and cutting the price of my monthly bus ticket by nearly 20€. The result of that is that Ireland is one of the few countries where public transport ridership is actually up compared to pre-pandemic levels.

So, on the face of it, the opinion piece is actually pretty accurate. But how are things from a passenger’s perspective? Surprisingly good if the system works as intended.

The Positives

Ever since my employer’s offices in the city reopened, I’ve been commuting to work for at least two to three days per week. Prior to my hospital stay, this usually meant taking the 220 bus from Ballincollig to Grand Parade in the city, followed by a TFI Bikes ride to the offices near Kent Station. Following my recovery, my current commute consists of the 220 to Shears Street and an onward connection on the 205 to Kent Station. There have also been occasional trips to Dublin, mostly to deal with administrative issues at the German Embassy in Booterstown. And overall, there are as surprising number of good, if not great elements already in place. 

Let’s start with ticketing. Even almost a decade after its introduction, I feel that a lot of people still don’t grasp just how convenient Leap Card, Ireland’s contactless public transit card, actually is. The card works on most local bus services, LUAS and most local train services, and while bus passes, like the one I use here in Cork, are often tied to one particular operator, the credit you can load onto the card works on every bus or train that accepts Leap Card. This meant that when I had to go to Dublin to get my new passport, I would use my Leap Card on the buses to and from Kent Station, as well as on the LUAS between Houston and Connolly and the DART between Connolly and Booterstown without having to buy separate tickets. I did have to get a separate ticket for the Cork-Dublin intercity train, which is fair. What’s more, prices for Leap Card holders are discounted compared to the regular price, so everyone still paying cash pays a 27% idiot tax as far as I’m concerned. This offer is made even more compelling by the fact that Leap Cards are easily topped using your smartphone, with top-up apps available for Android and iOS.

Current Cork public Transport Network. Taken from: https://www.transportforireland.ie/getting-around/network-maps/cork-city-bus-services/ 

Speaking of apps, that brings me right to the National Transport Authority’s latest digital creation, TFI Live. Designed to replace a whole suite of apps currently offered, this new one stop shop is supposed to combine real-time departure information, journey planning and static schedule information into one single app. TFI Live even supports real time position for trains, buses and LUAS. It is a great concept in theory, and would be even greater if it weould integrate with the TFI-operated bike schemes Dublin Bikes & TFI Bikes and the LEAP top-up app. The app also has some other shortcomings that I’ll come to later.

Then, there’s the network, which in theory is pretty extensive, with surprisingly frequent services on a number of main axes. In addition, several points of the network offer themselves as natural transfer points. As mentioned above, I’ve been using one of these stops, Shear’s Street, to transfer between my local line, the 220 and the 205 service to the train station on a regular basis. Patrick Street, Cork’s high street, is another natural transfer point. Oh, and while we’re on the topic of the 220, that service is actually a 24/7 operation, whilst running at fifteen-minutes for most of the day.

Places such as Patrick Street are natural transfer points on the network. There are surprisingly many such points here in Cork.

The majority of these, such as her at Kent Station, are equipped with Real Time Passenger Information, or RTPI displays.

Finally, let’s talk buses. For all my frequent, and vocal complaining, on the face of it, Bus Éireann’s fleet of city buses here in Cork is actually pretty modern for the most part. All city buses are low-floor and have a ramp for wheelchair access, although the more recent additions to the fleet have significantly more space allocated to that. In addition, many buses have now been equipped with passenger information screens showing the next couple of stops on the line, which is a major benefit for any non-locals that use these services. The addition of USB charging points on many of the newer buses in recent years has further increased the attractiveness of the fleet in my eyes, and of course, all buses are now equipped with free Wi-Fi. This might not seem like a major item in the days of data flat rates, but it’s always good to have a backup.

Most modern buses on the network now sport these board information displays, in addition to USB chargers at every seat and onboard WiFi.

This Wright double decker bus operating on the 205 route from Kent Station to MTU is emblematic of the new double-decker buses that have entered service here in Cork in recent years. Variants with exit doors in the middle of the vehicle are also in operation, mostly on the 220.

Mercedes Citaro buses, such as this one operating a 216 service, are among the latest additions to the fleet.  They're the most modern single-decker bus operating on city routes, though their number is unfortunately rather low.

So, with all these positives, modern buses, cashless ticketing, real-time information on buses and at bus stops, and an extensive network why does it feel like there’s a massive “but” hanging over the last few paragraphs?

The Downsides

That’s because the system often does not operate as intended, as anyone who’s seen my passive-aggressive comments, or furious Twitter rants, will undoubtedly know. Buses are either late or simply don’t show up at all, information on passenger information screens doesn’t match what’s displayed online or in TFI Live, and so on. And to be fair, some of these issues are truly outside of Bus Éireann’s control. Ireland has never been great at infrastructure, and many roads haven’t been widened since the 1960s, or indeed ever. Bus lanes are few and far between, and often, buses are mixed in with regular traffic, leaving them susceptible to both regular traffic jams and the “amazing” driving skills of many Irish motorists. Even where there are bus lanes or other bus priority measures, they are pretty much useless, as buses aren’t prioritised at traffic lights. As for the bus stops themselves, they are often blocked by entitled motorists “just hopping out for a minute”. Anyone got a spare RPG-7 that I could borrow?

But to be honest, even with that, the hard product is actually pretty okay here in Cork. The drivers are also pretty good, they’ve certainly gotten a whole lot more friendly since I first moved here ten years ago. No, the real issue in my eyes is with information, or rather the lack thereof. There simply aren’t enough bus stops with real-time passenger information screens throughout the Cork Bus network. There are precious few bus stops that even have an up-to-date schedule, indicator of which lines stop there, or even the name of the stop.

Shear's Street bus stop, outside the Mercy Hospital. Pop Quiz: Can you tell just from the image which services stop here?

"Information" display outside of Kent Station's new south entrance. I could have sworn that the schedule at Cork was more extensive than that.

I already alluded to it a bit earlier, but the accuracy of the real-time passenger information (RTPI) displays can be questionable, to put it mildly. There’s an ongoing issue with “phantom buses” that show up on these displays, and while the issue has gotten better over recent years, the explanations provided by the NTA seem extremely flimsy to me, and not credible at all. Unfortunately, the same issue also affects the real-time apps such as TFI Live, although not to the same extent as the RTPI displays. And to be fair, TFI Live, the new app I mentioned earlier, is pretty accurate when it works. Unfortunately, they're re till some pretty notable issues. The app loads slower than some high-end games, is equally sluggish in its use and the interface is pretty unintuitive. 

There is one other issue with the “hard product” information situation. The onboard passenger information displays. Most newer buses on the Cork network have these, and they are a real help for passengers that are unfamiliar with the area, displaying the next couple of stops along the line, together with the approximate journey time. Unfortunately, the system that runs these displays is about as reliable as my blogging rhythm. More than once, I’ve found these displays to be either blank, display some DOS prompt, a Windows 7 home screen (always reassuring to see an OS that is out of support), or just freeze up or glitch.

Can anyone tell me if this bus stops in Carrigaline? - To top it off, this was the state of affairs on the display all the way from Ballincollig to Grand Parade, where this photo was taken at 9:23 AM.

Then, there’s the social media side of things, and if you thought that things were bad in the buses and the app, well buckle up. Because, quite frankly, the social media accounts of both Bus Éireann and Transport for Ireland (TFI), the NTA’s “customer-facing” brand, are a pure dumpster fire and a prime example of how NOT to run corporate social media accounts. To put it bluntly, both their Facebook and Twitter accounts are basically useless. Rather than providing information about service outages, delays, cancellations or similar matters, both accounts are chock full of advertisements, self-aggrandisements and recruiting posters. Things get even worse when you actually reach out to these accounts, as nearly every single enquiry is answered with the same canned response redirecting users to an anonymous web form on either the TFI or Bus Éireann website, with the occasional mealy-mouthed pseudo-apology thrown in.

But wait, there’s more! A lot of the bus routes in Cork run well into the evening, as do city services in other provincial cities. My local bus route, the 220, even runs 24/7 as mentioned earlier. Yet for some reason, the TFI social media team calls it quits at 17:00, while the Bus Éireann team throws in the towel at 19:00. Apparently, passengers who travel outside of regular working hours matter even less than regular passengers, so fuck ‘em! With this kind of limited scope and next to no use to the traveling public, both organisations would be better off without any social media presence at all.

Final Thoughts

All of these issues could be fixed with relatively minimal investments. Indeed, a program to upgrade the RTPI system backend is apparently already underway. With on-board displays working, RTPI displays reliably showing accurate data and similarly up-to-date information being pushed out to TFI Live and to 3rd-party apps via API, a lot of the dissatisfaction with the current service could be addressed. This is all the more the case if service cancellations can be displayed ahead of time. And while I admit that it might take a bit of time to post up-to-date schedules at every bus stop on the Cork network, his is by no means an insurmountable task, especially when you consider that many stops have already gotten new signs in recent years and just need to have schedules added. As for the social media side, just increasing the size of the teams, and giving team members the ability to investigate reported issues on their own rather than just redirecting customers to some web form would go a long way towards turning these teams into an actual asset.

Unfortunately, the leadership at both Bus Éireann and the NTA are both suffering from the same issue, a seemingly unshakeable addiction to high-gloss brochures and headline-grabbing projects. There is simply no will to connect the dots and put in the legwork to bring the disparate elements of Ireland’s public transport system together into one coherent whole. Given how many of the building blocks for a truly effective public transport system are already in place, this lack of joined-up thinking is all the more frustrating, as it all but ensures that public transport in Ireland will always fall short of its potential.