I've got the timetable book from August 2007 and for each route it clearly shows the list of fare stages and the number of each stage. So even then you could work out whether your fare was 1-3, 4-7 or 8-13 stages.
The timetable books did have it in, but they haven't been produced for years and very few people would have a timetable book since they could only be obtained from Dublin Bus HQ.
The other weird thing with Dublin Bus is they have several different timetable sheet designs, ones which were used in bus shelters another one which were used on stops without bus shelters, and ones which are used on trueform style bus stops. The former (but not the later two) did carry stage names for a while, but at that point there were few bus stops with shelters as it was a few years ago.
Then when Dublin Bus changed it's corporate colours to yellow and black a few years ago, they removed stage names and numbers from these style timetables as well and ever since there has been no sign of them on any on street displays or timetables of any kind, save for a couple of early trial yellow and black designs in bus shelters that have since been replaced long ago.
If you go on any respectable Irish transport forum, you will see many threads on this, from both staff and passengers alike.
I don't see that as a bad thing as it slows down boarding. The British tradition since deregulation of buying weekly or even monthly tickets on the bus is frankly nuts. And now with the Leap card there is no need as there is daily and weekly capping.
Believe me dwell time is awful in Dublin as it is on a large number of routes, thanks to the fare system, people not knowing their fare, slow ticket machines which needed replacing long ago, huge tri axle double deckers with one door, and drivers on double door buses refusing to use the middle doors, since they "Don't agree with them" or view them as unsafe, despite having many modifications made to them to try and overcome this.
Routes are generally frequent enough that you normally don't need a timetable. Because there is no deregulation, you don't have to worry about frequent timetable changes.
The top 20 routes or so would be frequent enough, but there are a good few routes that would operate half hourly or even less often, as well as many high frequency routes that would operate every 30 minutes off-peak and as little as every 60 minutes at weekends despite their high frequency weekday peak frequency.
Dublin Bus also have a history of not keeping timetables up to date at stops also. Only a couple of months ago Dublin Bus introduced temporary summer timetables, and instead of printing the new timetables for the stop, affixed a note to the old timetable saying something along the line s that the above timetable is not valid for two months a year, and to go online to see the actual timetable for the route.
Also RTPI screens only cover about 10% of the network, and even then only at the most popular stops with the highest frequency services. So whilst RTPI negates the need for intermediate point timetables somewhat, where the need for intermediate times is needed more, is by and large where real time information is not available on street.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
There are a couple of ways around this though. Either Tag in/out. (This would require a return to central door buses, with enforcement of exiting through the centre doors, something Dublin Bus Drivers never seemed to want to do).
That would require replacing and investing in modern on bus ticketing equipment which is sadly, never going to happen at least in the short term.
Or use the single stage (one fare) principle for any length of Dublin Bus Journey.
It's believed that this has been ruled out since the company fears it could have a negative effect on overall fares collected.
