Real Time Displays at Kilcullen Bus Stops

Image © Google Maps

I asked the NTA for information on whether real time passenger information displays could be installed at bus stops. This was the response:

Case #402630

Dear Eugene,

 

I refer to your recent correspondence regarding the provision of an RTPI (Real Time Passenger Information) unit at the following bus stop locations, images attached, which was forwarded to the National Transport Authority (NTA) to respond to you:

 

• stop number 136431, Kilcullen (Opposite Service Station), Castlemartin, Co. Kildare; and
• stop number 132641, Kilcullen (Outside Service Station), Castlemartin, Co. Kildare.

 

At present there are over 12,000 bus stops in Ireland serving a variety of bus services including local, urban, and regional bus services across a variety of operators.  Because of the costs associated with the provision of on-street RTPI signage, it is not feasible to provide Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI) signs at all bus stop locations. 

 

One of the main reasons for these costs is the need for an independent power supply for RTPI signs.  These signs require an electrical supply in order to operate and there is a prohibition under statutory regulation, derived from European legislation, that prevents the NTA from taking an electrical connection from an existing public lighting power supply, even where convenient and adjacent.  Instead, separate independent electrical connection is required from ESB Networks, which can often necessitate extensive trenching, road crossings, and major reinstatement work, all contributing to significant costs.  As a result of these costs, and to ensure value for money, it is intended to only provide RTPI as an integrated sign within a new bus shelter or, depending on suitability, within an existing bus shelter that already has an independent power supply and has been designed to accommodate an integrated RTPI sign.  In that way, a cost-effective single integrated power supply can be provided, powering both the bus shelter lighting and the RTPI sign. 

 

Regarding the aforementioned bus stops, we note that currently there are no plans to install bus shelters at the bus stop locations. As part of a past programme of shelter installations throughout County Kildare the feasibility of installing shelters at both stops was assessed. However both locations were discounted for technical reasons, such as sight line safety issues relating to stop number 132641 and insufficient footpath space relating to stop number 136431. Additionally, we note that the bus stops are not ducted and connected to the ESB network.

 

Notwithstanding the constraints and limitations outlined above, it is worth noting that all of the information available on such RTPI Displays is also available through the NTA’s app for RTPI. The “TFI Real Time Ireland App” and the RTPI The App is available free on Apple App store and the Google Play store and combines all real time information services from Bus Éireann, Dublin Bus, Go-Ahead Ireland, Iarnród Éireann and Luas.  All bus stops have a number at the top of the bus pole indicating the particular bus stop number.  Simply inserting that number into the App provides the RTPI information on bus arrival times at that stop. The App and the RTPI units are supported by the same back of house data feed. There is no difference between the information contained on RTPI units and App. We would encourage travelling passengers to download and trial the app to get familiar with all the real time information available to passengers at each bus stop. Additionally, we also note that when passengers scan the QR code contained on the timetable panel it should bring them to that particular stop number within the TFI Live app.

 

We regret that we are not in a position to provide a more positive response to this request at this point in time for the reasons outlined above. We trust that the above information is of assistance and clarifies the matter.

 

This mailbox has a no-reply functionality so, if you have any further questions on this, or anything else, please don’t reply here, instead, please email info@nationaltransport.ie, quoting this reference number : Case #402630, to ensure a response.   

  

We’re here to help. 

 

I hope that this is helpful and wish you safe onward travels 

  

Kind Regards 

Josephine

National Transport Authority   

Chapel Lane, New Ross

Image © Google Maps

Unlike the UK, where medieval houses are plentiful, we have relatively few pre-18th century houses in Ireland. There are castles dating back to medieval times, but there are few, if any, "ordinary" houses from the medieval period, as we would think of a house today. However, fortified tower houses exist. One probable reason is that there was no substantial middle class who could afford "proper" houses, built from timber or brick and most people were poor and lived in mud cabins. Or maybe the climate was hostile to the half-timbered houses like those that still exist in the UK (if they even existed here), and they decayed over the centuries. Most of the houses in the country date no further back than the Georgian era, which extended from 1714 to 1837. There are some examples of Queen Anne style architecture, such as the Red House in Youghal, Marsh's Library in Dublin and The Rubrics in Trinity College. These were built in the 1710s and have a distinctive "doll's house" appearance. A few Tudor-era buildings exist, such as Rothe House in Kilkenny; Ormond Castle, a manor house in Carrick-on-Suir; and Myrtle Grove, Sir Walter Raleigh's home in Youghal. It's possible also that some houses were later "Georgianified", their older fabric concealed beneath a more modern facade. That's the case with some of the so-called "Dutch Billys" in Dublin, a pre-Georgian architectural style brought by the Huguenots, Protestants who fled persecution in France around the end of the 17th century. So to cut a long story short, I came across this some time ago. I think it was Colm Moriarty, a Wexford-based archaeologist who mentioned the street in New Ross in a social media post. The facades at the front are plain-rendered, but the back of the terrace of houses reveal the medieval origin of at least one of the buildings.

 

Google Maps link to Chapel Lane in New Ross here 

Maps for Council Workers

Image © Google Maps

Apparently when we report road or other issues on the KCC portal and specify the location of the problem, repair crews just get a description, but not the map pinpointing where they have to fix them (there's an option to tag the position on a map when making a report on the portal). I had a long discussion with a repair crew a month or so ago and got a great insight into how they feel about this and other things. If someone reporting a problem doesn't clearly specify road numbers and distances from landmarks, obviously it can be difficult for a repair crew to find the problem. Saying that it's "just down the road from Johnny's house" or similar isn't very helpful. A point on a map would be more logical (assuming the person who made the report zoomed in sufficiently to accurately place a tag). Reading a map is hardly rocket science and I'm sure KCC can train workers to do so.

 

Maybe someone can let me know whether the tarmac is broken up and gone from around this drain opposite LaTouche Cottage in Brannockstown so I can report it? I make mental notes of these things when I'm out and about on the bike, but I've got a head like a sieve and forget where I've seen the defects. I don't want to make a false report. A cyclist could easily lose control if they hit this. It was ok last August when the Street View imagery was taken, but as far as I recall, the tarmac fill around the drain has now disintegrated.