DUBLIN - 2
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Ashbourne Co Meath Ireland
Age: 73
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The whole terminal access system at Dub is a disaster, not just T2
The entire access system at Dublin is a disaster, not just T2. The T1 departure set down road is a shambles, anyone dropping off children takes their life in their hands every time they go in there, it would make a lot more sense to make the centre road of the 3 the through route with no stopping on it, and have the no 1 and No 3 lanes as the set down lanes, as they would then both have paved walkways adjacent to the vehicle, and no vehicles would have to cross other traffic lanes to park or leave the area. The other thing that would make a huge difference would be to get rid of the pedestrian crossing in the middle of the departure road, and segregate vehicles and pedestrians so that they are not mixed as at present. If necessary, put the pedestrians on a bridge over the departure roadway, the traffic flow for both vehicles and pedestrians will be MUCH safer.
The concept of having nowhere to collect passengers from without paying to park is offensive and inappropriate. Passengers have paid to use the airport. I for one am not prepared to pay an exorbitent charge to collect an inbound passenger who is waiting to be collected. There are signs all over the T1 departure road saying that collecting passengers is not allowed. At one time, it was not a problem to collect passengers on some of the roadways behind the multi storey car park, but DAA have now put railings all over the place to make that impossible.
T2 is even worse. There is a set down road, a bus lane, and nowhere to collect people. and the road that is supposedly for arrivals leads to the T2 multi storey car park that has no avoidance, so if you end up on that road, you have to go through the car park to get out, and the signposting of the exits is about as clear as the rest of the DAA signposting, in other words, a shambles.
The majority of passengers these days have mobile phones. It is thus very simple to communicate with them and confirm that they are in a location to be picked up. Loading passengers takes about as long as unloading them. That needs to be facilitated, and the requirement to use and pay for a car park to collect someone that's waiting to be collected is unacceptable, both in terms of time, and cost. The most recent "improvements" at Dublin make it even harder than it used to for people to be picked up.
Ok, there have been problems in the past with pre booked taxis and the like blocking the set down road when waiting for passengers, but that's easy enough to deal with, move them on if the passenger is not there, or make them use the car park, they at least are being paid for the service they are providing, so they can charge for the service.
Maybe things will be easier and better once the Metro is built, but somehow I doubt it, given the inability of DAA to listen to the users and act accordingly. For the forseeable future, road transport is the only way to get all of the passengers to and from their flights, so making that process as simple, easy and fast as possible should be their first objective, but they seem determined to ignore the passengers that are arriving, probably because they are earning next to nothing from them on the way in, so they don't care about making their experience a pleasant one.
The airport used to be a pleasant and enjoyable experience. Now, with the problems of getting in and out, the hassles of security that can't make their mind up what the rules are, or which ones they are going to enforce today, the huge distance out to the D pier, and the very limited number of seats compared to passenger numbers when you do get there, the experience is far from pleasant, especially with small children, or for the old or infirm, or even those that have any form of mobility problems. Then of course there's the Ryanair scrums at the gate, which are a disaster in the making for families trying to stay together.
Trying to get to the aircraft early enough in boarding to get a row of 3 seats together as a family are all pressures that are unhelpful, and even paying for "priority boarding" is no guarantee of getting a row, and why should if be necessary to pay extra to facilitate family safety with small children? with small children, it's often a good plan to take them to the toilets as boarding starts, to try and make the flight as easy and comfortable as possible, but with "free boarding", this doesn't work, with pre allocated seats it does.
Ok, this last point is not altogether DAA's problem, but for sure the rest of it is. It's the final straw in what has become a much less than enjoyable process that should be as stress free as possible. Most of this is under DAA's direct control, and if they had any real interest in passenger satisfaction, it would have been addressed a long time ago.
The concept of having nowhere to collect passengers from without paying to park is offensive and inappropriate. Passengers have paid to use the airport. I for one am not prepared to pay an exorbitent charge to collect an inbound passenger who is waiting to be collected. There are signs all over the T1 departure road saying that collecting passengers is not allowed. At one time, it was not a problem to collect passengers on some of the roadways behind the multi storey car park, but DAA have now put railings all over the place to make that impossible.
T2 is even worse. There is a set down road, a bus lane, and nowhere to collect people. and the road that is supposedly for arrivals leads to the T2 multi storey car park that has no avoidance, so if you end up on that road, you have to go through the car park to get out, and the signposting of the exits is about as clear as the rest of the DAA signposting, in other words, a shambles.
The majority of passengers these days have mobile phones. It is thus very simple to communicate with them and confirm that they are in a location to be picked up. Loading passengers takes about as long as unloading them. That needs to be facilitated, and the requirement to use and pay for a car park to collect someone that's waiting to be collected is unacceptable, both in terms of time, and cost. The most recent "improvements" at Dublin make it even harder than it used to for people to be picked up.
Ok, there have been problems in the past with pre booked taxis and the like blocking the set down road when waiting for passengers, but that's easy enough to deal with, move them on if the passenger is not there, or make them use the car park, they at least are being paid for the service they are providing, so they can charge for the service.
Maybe things will be easier and better once the Metro is built, but somehow I doubt it, given the inability of DAA to listen to the users and act accordingly. For the forseeable future, road transport is the only way to get all of the passengers to and from their flights, so making that process as simple, easy and fast as possible should be their first objective, but they seem determined to ignore the passengers that are arriving, probably because they are earning next to nothing from them on the way in, so they don't care about making their experience a pleasant one.
The airport used to be a pleasant and enjoyable experience. Now, with the problems of getting in and out, the hassles of security that can't make their mind up what the rules are, or which ones they are going to enforce today, the huge distance out to the D pier, and the very limited number of seats compared to passenger numbers when you do get there, the experience is far from pleasant, especially with small children, or for the old or infirm, or even those that have any form of mobility problems. Then of course there's the Ryanair scrums at the gate, which are a disaster in the making for families trying to stay together.
Trying to get to the aircraft early enough in boarding to get a row of 3 seats together as a family are all pressures that are unhelpful, and even paying for "priority boarding" is no guarantee of getting a row, and why should if be necessary to pay extra to facilitate family safety with small children? with small children, it's often a good plan to take them to the toilets as boarding starts, to try and make the flight as easy and comfortable as possible, but with "free boarding", this doesn't work, with pre allocated seats it does.
Ok, this last point is not altogether DAA's problem, but for sure the rest of it is. It's the final straw in what has become a much less than enjoyable process that should be as stress free as possible. Most of this is under DAA's direct control, and if they had any real interest in passenger satisfaction, it would have been addressed a long time ago.
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: The Nether Region
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Why are point-to-point passengers not allowed to use flight connections at Dublin anymore? I connected from Aer Lingus to BMI last month, but this month it was strictly forbidden.
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Dublin
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T2
This may not be a popular thing to say given the general statements on T2 but I like the place! Recent flights with Etihad & Aer Lingus have been through T2 and I have had no problems. Being dropped off & collected at the terminal & the overall experience through the terminal have all been good.
For the last number of years there were so many complaints about overcrowding in what is T1, so I welcome the fewer numbers in T2. I know it's not ideal for the retailers, but it does make for an easier experience.
While I'm at it, I wonder sometimes about those who complain about the distances to walk - even between the two terminals - have ever been through other international airports such as KUL, AMS, LHR, BKK to name but a few...now those are airports which would test your shoe leather!
For the record, I don't work for any airline, I am one of those SLF that seem to get in everyone's way
For the last number of years there were so many complaints about overcrowding in what is T1, so I welcome the fewer numbers in T2. I know it's not ideal for the retailers, but it does make for an easier experience.
While I'm at it, I wonder sometimes about those who complain about the distances to walk - even between the two terminals - have ever been through other international airports such as KUL, AMS, LHR, BKK to name but a few...now those are airports which would test your shoe leather!
For the record, I don't work for any airline, I am one of those SLF that seem to get in everyone's way
Join Date: Nov 1999
Location: Ireland
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AMS: 44 million
LHR: 66 million
BKK: 41 million
DUB: 21 million
It might be fairer to compare DUB with other airports of a similar size (in traffic terms). It's not unreasonable to expect that an airport with e.g. twice as many passengers as DUB may have longer distances to walk (note may - clean-sheet design, more integrated travelators and/or a different widebody/narrowbody mix also come into play).
Examples of airports within 10% of DUB's passenger numbers in 2009: ZRH, STN, CPH, LGA.
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Ashbourne Co Meath Ireland
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If you think it's bad now.........
It's not unreasonable to expect that an airport with e.g. twice as many passengers as DUB may have longer distances to walk
The very original concept was that the station for the rail link would be in the basement of T1. At some stage that idea went out of the window, and then they built T2. Now, the plan is that the Metro station will be "close" to the Great Southern Hotel, which is about as far away from the terminals as they could put it without going outside of the major roads that circle the airport. From Pier D to T1 is bad enough, the extra distance to the Metro will at least double the distance. That is not an issue for a resonable number of people, but consider the significant number of disabled, very young and elderly people that for good reasons are not able to walk long distances that will probably include steep slopes, if the present scenario is anything to go by. In theory, there will probably be travelators, which is fine when they work, and a total pain when they don't. Denver has an underground link from the main check in area to the remote piers that in total covers less distance with 4 stops than the distance people will have to walk at Dublin.
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: London (Babylon-on-Thames)
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The distance to Pier D is less than from the lounge to Pier 3 ( ex Gatwick Satelite) at Gatters, or from the lounge over the bridge at the North Terminal. It's really not that far unless the Irish have particularly wee legs!
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Denmark
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The metro will be located between the Aer Lingus head office building and the terminal, just east of the church in the airport, and close to the current short term carparks, but lets not let the facts get in the way of a good old bitch about Dublin airport by the usual suspects.
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Dublin
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If you constantly benchmark an airport against LHR or LGW then the result is you'll never have an airport with a good passenger experience.
You spend that much on DUB T2 and expect pax to walk to T1 to get a bus. Which airport gave them that idea?
You spend that much on DUB T2 and expect pax to walk to T1 to get a bus. Which airport gave them that idea?
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Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Dublin
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Sunwing airlines to start DUB - Toronto on 17 June. Once Weekly with a B767.
YYZ - DUB - depart 21:30 fri arrive 09:15 sat
DUB - YYZ - depart 11:55 sat arrive 14:30 sat
YYZ - DUB - depart 21:30 fri arrive 09:15 sat
DUB - YYZ - depart 11:55 sat arrive 14:30 sat
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Dublin
Age: 39
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Terminal 2
Flying for the first time from T2 next week - looking forward to seeing it after reading all about it here.
Just wondering if there is a smoking area beyond security like the great one in Terminal 1?
Great being able to go through in good time and have a cigarette while waiting on a flight instead of going outside after checking in
Just wondering if there is a smoking area beyond security like the great one in Terminal 1?
Great being able to go through in good time and have a cigarette while waiting on a flight instead of going outside after checking in
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Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Dublin
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I took my first flight from T2 on Feb 17 and returned on Feb 20 and it was a great experience. Was dropped off and there was no problem. It was an early morning flight. Checked in and cleared security in about 20 mins. All in all it was very quick and easy. On my return we were a while waiting for baggage but in future Aer Lingus will be my first choice when flying from DUB.
Join Date: Dec 2010
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just a question guys im going on trip on 19 April from ORK-DUB-STN-DUB-ORK and im wondering when i become airside in T1 are you able to walk into T2 departures? or is completely seperate? because i thought even though T2 was opened T1 Pier B could be used as overflow?