Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 29 September 2004
1007 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Transport if he has received a report from the railway inspecting officer into a rail accident (details supplied) in County Longford; the action which will be taken to ensure that such an incident is not repeated; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22505/04]
View answerOn 10 August 2004, the 6.20 a.m. passenger train from Longford to Pearse Station struck the closed level crossing gates at Ballymahon, County Longford, breaking both gates. An inspector from the interim Railway Safety Commission visited the crossing on the day of the incident and inspected the signalling and other infrastructure in the vicinity of the crossing. The inspector followed up his visit to the site by putting a detailed set of questions to Iarnród Éireann which is conducting an inquiry into the incident and as part of this inquiry is examining all the issues raised by the inspector. Preliminary indications are that a fault in the signalling equipment at the location may have been the cause of the incident but it would be premature to take a definitive view on this until the Iarnród Éireann inquiry is completed. Iarnród Éireann has examined all signalling equipment on its network which is similar to that at Ballymahon and is satisfied that it is operating satisfactorily.
