Reserved Seating

[MrX]

I've found that increasingly the seat reservation system on the CAF coaches is switched off. I don't believe that it's a technical fault, I think it's just pure incompetence or some kind of refusal to upload the names.

In the last 6 trips to Cork, my reserved seats have only worked twice.

Then again, I wouldn't expect anything more from Irish Rail, they've never been anything other than incompetant and inconsistant.

I don't even bother getting annoyed anymore, I just accept that they're always going to provide poor, sloppy and patchy service.

My AIB Laser card has never been able to be read by the ticket collection machines, so I have never been able to use them. I have made countless complaints about this and nothing was ever done to resolve the issue.

Complete joke of an organisation. I'm amazed they manage to rememer to put diesel in the trains sometimes!

For a business user (and many of them don't opt to use city gold due to price). It makes IE a waste of time. I mean, if you reserve a seat and the end up having to stand from Limerick Junction to Heuston what's the point?!

It's ridiculous that you have to turf people out of your seats, many of whom don't even believe that your seat's reserved as there are no longer ANY signage in the coaches indicating anything other than "Book Your Seat Online at www.irishrail.ie". I've had a few instances where people have point blank refused to move and I've ended up having to scramble for a seat in another carriage.

On top of that, if you book a seat (even in First class/City Gold). You can't board the train without queueing for ages, particularly in Heuston (Dublin) and Kent (Cork). At busy times, these queues can go right outside the station !!

Again, makes booking online utterly pointless and a waste of time and energy.

To be quite honest, after my last experience with them I will be flying from now on.

1) No seat
2) Huge queue
3) No food in CityGold other than a very bad quality, overpriced toasted sandwich.

I don't for one min. believe that it's a technical problem. Similar seat reservation systems are used all over the world, it's not that hard to get them to work, if you're a customer-focused organisation that actually gives a toss!

What it comes down to is that a large part of Iarnrod Eireann clearly have no interest in customer care or quality of service. All they care is that a train goes from point a. to point b. and you should be thankful if you get to stand beside the toilet all the way.

[Mark Gleeson]

A bit out of date but still

So June 22nd I took a trip to Newry to collect something

So I book a seat in both directions

Show up in Connolly for the 13:20 to Belfast, located carriage D and walk through it twice, some genius had left the seat reserved cards from the 7:35 Dublin Belfast service in place, of course no one bothered to place the seat reserved cards for the 13:20 service.

So on the return trip I boarded the 17:00 Newry Dubin, which by chance was the same set of coaches and the seat reserved cards from that mornings 7:35 where still in place

So the train ran

7:35 Dublin Belfast
10:30 Belfast Dublin
13:20 Dublin Belfast
16:10 Belfast Dublin

All with the 7:35 seat reserved cards in place.

[freeluas]

I only go on by IE to use the free travel. Wouldnt like to have to pay regularly for the experience. Unlike Switzerland where I gladly paid for a weeks Swiss Pass to have a good travelling holiday and admire how a railway should be run!