Quote:
Originally Posted by Mark Gleeson
Despite the minister claiming otherwise, you can expect problems when using Dublin Bus. The RUI test group hit problems on a number of buses on Friday afternoon. Driver training in Dublin Bus is in our opinion weak and many are not confident in using the system. Its improving but it will take time.
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I think you're being very polite about the Dublin Bus problems. Boards.ie has been alight with poor opinion and experience with regard to operation of the Leap Card on the Bus.
From a basic UX perspective it's a disaster of a system. It takes twice as long on average to pay as the cash system so increases rather than decreases dwell times. The drivers screen switches from cash mode to luas mode which from a UX point of few disorientates so adds a few seconds for driver to click button. Then there's a awkward pause waiting for small green light to display. Beep is nearly never there and when it is it's so faint it's barely audible. The passenger screen is tiny, at a weird angle for most people (unless you're 6ft 7 perhaps) and is so dim it's near impossible to read. I've full hearing and sight BTW. How this system passed basic accessibility requirements I'll never know.
Really it should be flat fare. Given they don't seem to want that for fare protection and revenue loss purposes it should be tag-on/tag-off on the right hand side. Not all smart card systems are like this but plenty are so it is technologically possible with the right equipment.
Also the idea to support charging of multiple fares on the same card (when the other modes don't support it) qualifies under the law of unintended consequences. It provides limited benefit but leads to most of the errors. It should be done away with (if they insist on sticking with driver system).
Getting a refund is difficult as in presupposed driver knows how to perform complex operation under pressure when there's a long queue of passengers waiting to pay.
I know this is a rail users groups so I've mainly posted my gripes on boards.ie but if you've any influence over the powers that be, please feed back about the complete and utter disgust with this element of the system amongst most of the test group.
I got no survey to complete this time round and I hadn't used the bus when we did the earlier phase of testing and I completed survey.