Waterford Suir Valley Railway (WSVR) is Ireland’s longest narrow-gauge railway. Based in Kilmeaden, Co. Waterford and located just 10km from Waterford city, it runs beside the Waterford Greenway and along the banks of the River Suir. This unique visitor attraction celebrates the importance of railways in Ireland and their contribution to education, industrial development, tourism, and social life.

In early 2020, the team at WSVR were looking for an integrated online ticketing and capacity management system that would seamlessly integrate into its own website, providing customers with a quick and easy customer purchase journey, but more importantly providing WSVR with an easy to use booking management system that gave them the autonomy to manage all aspects of their events, ticketing, pricing, reporting and more. 

One of the biggest tests facing WSVR was how they could operate in a safe yet effective way through the challenges presented by Covid-19. They needed to ensure they met the relevant social distancing guidelines and guarantee the safety of their staff and visitors. It was decided that while operating during the pandemic they would facilitate just one family group booking per compartment, whilst offering multiple ticket options to their customers. To facilitate this the future
ticketing system allows WSVR to close off a compartment which has a capacity set against it on one single booking. WSVR through their dashboard can set the parameters around the capacities and where the booking can close a slot.

Customers are encouraged to select their date of choice from the Future Ticketing enabled event calendar before choosing their carriage and departure time. Once their personal information is submitted and their order confirmed the customer receives their e-ticket with their order confirmation email. On the day, customers gain entry with their eTicket which they can chose to print or via a digital ticket on their smart phone. Future Ticketing provided WSVR with a solution that allowed them to operate in line with all the relevant Covid -19 regulations and guidelines. It has enabled them to provide their staff and visitors with a safe and controlled environment.

Some of the key features that have worked successfully for WSVR include;

Online and offline advance sales booking system
Timed entry slots
Capacity management
The ability to close compartments on one booking
Real-time, live sales reporting and accountability