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Belfast to Rosslare (hypothetical) missed connection questions

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StarCrossing

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Hi folks,

I'm looking at making a journey from Belfast to Rosslare, which involves a 30 minute connection in Dublin onto the last train of the day to Rosslare.

Questions:
  1. Can I buy a single ticket that covers the entire journey, or will I need to buy two tickets - one from Translink and one from Iarnród Éireann?
  2. If the first train is running late (let's say 40 minutes late), would the train to Rosslare likely be held to allow the connection to be made?
  3. What are my rights if I miss the connection, noting that I may not have a through ticket (depending on the answer to #1)?
Thanks in advance for any responses.
 
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berneyarms

berneyarms

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You can buy a through ticket from the booking office at Belfast Grand Central but it will cost more than buying separate singles for each leg online.

The Rosslare train would not be held for a late running Belfast service - they are not viewed as guaranteed connecting services.

You could apply for a refund setting out the circumstances, and I suspect that at Connolly you would be advised to take a Bus Éireann Expressway route 2 service from nearby Busaras Bus Station or Wexford Bus route 740 from Georges Quay to Wexford.

From there Local Link route 387 operates to Rosslare.

All of the bus services operate late into the evening. Timetables are as below.


Timetable Home - Wexford Bus

bookings.wexfordbus.com bookings.wexfordbus.com

 
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rvdborgt

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berneyarms said:
The Rosslare train would not be held for a late running Belfast service - they are not viewed as guaranteed connecting services.
Click to expand...
Irishrail show it as a connection. If you have a through ticket and you miss it, they have to provide alternative transport or overnight accommodation at no additional charge.
 
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berneyarms

berneyarms

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rvdborgt said:
Irishrail show it as a connection. If you have a through ticket and you miss it, they have to provide alternative transport or overnight accommodation at no additional charge.
Click to expand...
I said that it’s not a guaranteed connection. Expecting the Rosslare train to be held for a late running Belfast service is not realistic - the Rosslare service has a set window to get from Connolly to Greystones and it sticks to it.

I don’t think Irish Rail’s CoC extend to providing overnight accommodation anywhere - show me where that applies in Ireland? I’ve never come across that. Given that there are plenty of coaches operating from Dublin to Wexford the need doesn’t arise.

As I said above, practicalities would set in, and someone would be far more likely to be directed to take the Expressway 2 from Busaras while getting a full refund.
 
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Sealink

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There is a confusing wording on the Citizens Information page in Ireland.

Care and assistance​

If it seems likely that your train will be more than 60 minutes late, the train company must provide ‘care and assistance’ free of charge. This can include:

  • Meals and refreshments (for example, teas, coffees and non-alcoholic beverages) that are suitable for the waiting time and if available on the train or in the station
  • Accommodation, and transport between the station and accommodation, where a stay of more than 1 night is necessary.
  • Alternative travel arrangements

My question is what if it just a one night stay required?

And special conditions apply to the Enterprise, as it is an international service.

  • assistance for passengers (including refreshments, accommodation and alternative travel arrangements where necessary) in the event of delays exceeding 60 minutes
 
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rvdborgt

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berneyarms said:
I don’t think Irish Rail’s CoC extend to providing overnight accommodation anywhere - show me where that applies in Ireland? I’ve never come across that. Given that there are plenty of coaches operating from Dublin to Wexford the need doesn’t arise.
Click to expand...
EU Regulation 2021/782 applies. Irish Rail can of course opt to provide alternative transport, if they can get their passengers at their destinations not too late.
 
berneyarms

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Folks I think you to use some common sense here.

The last train to Rosslare is at 18:33 (slightly later at weekends).

There won’t be a need for any overnight accommodation given the plethora of coach services available.

There would be virtually no locations where that would be required in Ireland given the coach options and very few late evening connections that could be missed in the first place.

People need to be practical about this rather than going off into extreme tangents that don’t apply here.
 
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rvdborgt

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Sealink said:
If it seems likely that your train will be more than 60 minutes late, the train company must provide ‘care and assistance’ free of charge. This can include:
  • Meals and refreshments (for example, teas, coffees and non-alcoholic beverages) that are suitable for the waiting time and if available on the train or in the station
  • Accommodation, and transport between the station and accommodation, where a stay of more than 1 night is necessary.
  • Alternative travel arrangements
My question is what if it just a one night stay required?
Click to expand...
This seems like an incomplete/incorrect interpretation of EU regulation 2021/782, see article 20. There is no limitation that accommodation for a single night doesn't need to be provided, if that becomes necessary (which I expect would not be often). The regulation explicitly says "one or more nights".
Sealink said:
And special conditions apply to the Enterprise, as it is an international service.
  • assistance for passengers (including refreshments, accommodation and alternative travel arrangements where necessary) in the event of delays exceeding 60 minutes
Click to expand...
That's not specific to international services, it also follows directly from EU regulation 2021/782, for which Ireland does not have any exemptions, as far as I can see.
 
berneyarms

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rvdborgt said:
This seems like an incomplete/incorrect interpretation of EU regulation 2021/782, see article 20. There is no limitation that accommodation for a single night doesn't need to be provided, if that becomes necessary (which I expect would not be often). The regulation explicitly says "one or more nights".

That's not specific to international services, it also follows directly from EU regulation 2021/782, for which Ireland does not have any exemptions, as far as I can see.
Click to expand...
Again I don’t see where a single night’s accommodation would ever arise as a need in the first place in Ireland, and certainly not any more than that due to a missed connection. It is a non-issue.

People need to apply some practical common sense to this.

In practice these things would be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, but in the vast majority of cases someone in this scenario would be told to apply for a full refund and will be redirected to the applicable alternative coach service.
 
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rvdborgt

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berneyarms said:
Again I don’t see where a single night’s accommodation would ever arise as a need in the first place in Ireland, and certainly not any more than that due to a missed connection. It is a non-issue.
Click to expand...
It was a theoretical question, so I gave the theoretical answer.
Under normal circumstances, I agree that overnight accommodation would hardly ever be needed. However, if your first train is severely delayed by e.g. the track being blocked, then you might arrive with a delay of several hours, and there may not be a possibility to arrive at your destination by midnight. At that point, overnight accommodation should be considered.
berneyarms said:
In practice these things would be dealt with on a case-by-case basis, but in the vast majority of cases someone in this scenario would be told to apply for a full refund and will be redirected to the applicable alternative coach service.
Click to expand...
Unless that would be cheaper (and then still), that is not how it's supposed to work. Alternative transport must be provided free of charge.
 
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