Vol. 424 No. 6
11 Mr. Harte asked the Minister for Tourism, Transport and Communications if she has satisfied hereself with the level of safety being exercised at present at manual railway crossings; and if she will outline their safety record within the past ten-year period.
I am satisfied with the level of safety being excercised at present by Iarnród Éireann at manuallyoperated railway level crossings. Over the past ten years, the annual total of level crossing accidents notified to my Department by the company has decreased from a peak of 60 in 1982 to an average of 26 for the ensuring nine years.
Iarnród Éireann have a programme for reducing hazards at these crossings and inspections are carried out at regular intervals by the company's staff. Users of accommodations and occupation level crossings have also been issued with guidelines for safe use of these crossings and meetings between Iarnród Éireann and the IFA and the ICMSA are held regularly. Initiatives taken in the past few years to increase safety at manually operated level crossings include; ten crossings on DART system automated and provided with warning lights and bells and full barriers; 18 crossings, system-wide, automated and provided with warning light and bells and half barriers; three crossings, system-wide, automated and provided with warning lights and bells; eight crossings, system-wide, provided with warning lights and bells and manually operated barriers; and the designation, layout and system of operation of about 50 attended public road level crossings have been altered.
Safety at level crossings generally is monitored by a working group who met under the aegis of my Department. The group also have representation from the Department of the Environment, the Garda Síochána, Éireann and Dublin Corporation.
Finally, I have been informed by the Chairman of CIE that Iarnród Éireann will continue to take all necessary action to eliminate identified hazards at manually operated level crossings with the objective of further reducing the level crossings accident rate.
I thank the Minister for her reply. Will she accept that the manual level crossing is inherently dangerous? How many manually operated crossings are on our mainline rail services between Dublin-Cork, Dublin-Limerick and Dublin-Sligo? Will she agree that it is extremely important, not only that periodic checks take place, but that a system of advance warning lights and bells is installed on every manual crossing, having regard to bad weather conditions in winter, particularly fog, and the inherent dangers for farmers who do not have any other option in many instances but to take their animals over mainline rails operated by manual crossings?
There are about 2,700 manually operated gates at level crossings, I am referring to public roads on the Iarnród Éireann system. There are attendants at many of the 300 crossings on the public roads and the gates about which Deputy Flanagan is concerned at the 2,400 accommodation crossings must be opened and closed by users. Of course I am concerned and that is why Iarnród Éireann have worked so closely with the two main farming organisations — the ICMSA and the IFA — to ensure that they get the message in relation to safety and the importance of closing the gates immediately after using the crossing. That is why it is so important to have continuing dialogue. I am happy to have been able to report to the House the various improvements which have taken place up and down the country in Iarnród Éireann.
Will the Minister agree that a manually operated crossing on a national primary road is antediluvian? Some of them are very dangerous. I refer in particular to one which I traverse at least twice every week, Annacotty, outside Limerick. Will she agree that consideration should be given in relation to crossings on national primary routes, to either introduce bridges or flyovers?
The company's concern in relation to the level crossings is to improve and upgrade the facilities every year and to try, as far as possible, to reduce the number of accidents. As I said there has been a considerable reduction over the past couple of years. I will bring the concerns of the Deputy in relation to the specific level crossing she mentioned to the attention of Iarnród Éireann and report back to her.
Having regard to the overall concern of the Minister to reduce the number of accidents, will she put a plan in place which would reduce the number of manual crossings?
I do not have plans in relation to level crossings, that is a matter for Iarnród Éireann, and I was very happy to report today a very substantial, comprehensive plan which Iarnród Éireann put in place over the past number of years and which they will continue to operate in future.
