Recently I took the train from Thurles to Dublin. I do not, as a matter of course, carry a lot of cash around as I do not think it is a good idea. When I arrived at Thurles railway station, there was a queue at the ticket desk and by the time the train arrived I still had no ticket. I got on the train and when the ticket collector came around, I tried to buy a ticket with a card, only to be told that they did not take plastic – in 2003.