The Bigger Picture

The benefits to the commuter outlined in the accompanying post are many. Departure time is assured, route is direct and efficient, transport is localized. However the new routing system cannot work independently. Lets imagine the people of Firhouse/Ballycullen are happy with their new faster route to the city, there are however other commuters who are not being served by the new route. These people need to get to Tallaght to the west or Terenure to the East (both previously served on the original route). This problem is addressed by the introduction of a transfer based ticketing system. Many cities around the world currently use a transfer system, either using a time sensitive model or finite transfer system.Dublin is gridded with routes travelling roughly North/South and East /West. A town like Firhouse/Ballycullen might be sistered with a Northern equivalent, an example might be Finglas. Here's how a common journey might take place;
A commuter needs to get from Cabra to Tallaght. He/she simply takes their locally based North/South route, traveling south via the City Center, until they reach an appropriate East/West juction. They disembark at the juntion, with their still valid transfer ticket, and travel in a roughly straight route west to their intended destination.A gridded route system would be highly understandable and digest able for the traveller who does not wish to travel to the City Center only.