David McWilliams article on transport infrastructure

El Stuntman

:mad:

‘I can always tell the weather in Dublin by the annoying sound of wipers, swishing back and forth incessantly. It drives me mad’’.

So began a conversation with a businesswoman in Cork on Thursday night as we exasperatedly swapped traffic hell stories. She was explaining that practically all her calls to work in Dublin are taken by colleagues who are stuck in traffic, hence the wipers being the perennial background noise. ‘‘It should be the company theme tune.”

Granted the weather was appalling last Thursday; but it is Ireland, it is winter and we are likely to get rain. Yet, despite being forewarned for 20 generations, one bad morning causes havoc on the roads. In my case, this was only the start of a transport nightmare which was not straight out of west Africa, but west Europe. My objective, in the richest country in Europe - with the largest budget surplus in history - was to get from Dublin’s southside to the northside and then back into town to catch a train to Cork. Should have been relatively simple, don’t you think?

‘‘Let’s wait till about 9.30am, the taxi driver said. ‘‘By that time the traffic will have died down and we’ll get from Dun Laoghaire to Swords easily in an hour.” We stopped moving almost as soon as we started. Trucks, buses, juggernauts, cars and vans all piled up behind each other - and that was in the bus lanes. Where were the gardai, the marshals of operation free-flow?

It took two horrendously frustrating hours. We’ve all been through it. We’ve all lost the rag, missed meetings and shouted and roared at others who are in the same bind as us. This is an enormous added stress of living in a country where the state is so appallingly inefficient that it makes you wonder why there isn’t a tax revolt every Monday morning.

Last Wednesday, we had a finance minister who has been gifted, by us, the most enviable budgetary largesse and last Thursday we all faced the reality of Ireland’s transport infrastructure.

The economic inefficiencies created by poor infrastructure are enormous. The hours wasted, the environmental damage, the overtime charges - these costs must run into billions per week. What about the stress and anxiety caused to thousands of working parents who live in fear of their kids being last to leave the creche looking up with big sad eyes at mum saying: ‘‘I thought you weren’t coming.” These are real psychological and emotional costs which, if nothing else, reduce people’s quality of life.

So I made the meeting - an hour late. Apologies all round. Then the taxi driver suggested - given the dreadful traffic - that we should give it at least an hour to get down the bus lanes to Heuston Station. It took almost an hour to get from Dorset Street to Benburb Street.

Yes, I know I should’ve walked, but when you’re in that position, you tend to think that just past the next lights there’ll be progress. So I missed the train. Not to worry, CIE had another ‘special’ train that was to leave at 2pm. All was not lost. Now the fun really started. I had been kicking myself for not taking the Dart (although there is no station at Swords), but at least it would have prevented all the fuming. I began to curse myself and laud Irish Rail, vowing never again to drive anywhere. Relaxing, I thought, I’ll get on the train, have a snooze, something to eat and we’d be in Cork in no time.

Platform 8, the guard said and off I went with almost a spring in my step, prepared to put the morning’s horror behind me. Until I saw the special 2pm train to Cork. It was possibly the oldest rolling stocks till in use in the western world. The carriages were from the 1950s, possibly even older. The windows were wedged open. The wind howled through the rickety doors. The place was filthy. The loos were a disgrace, pestilent and hazardous. There was no running water. There was a thick film of black grease and dirt on the sills. This train had never been cleaned.

Worse, on probably one of the coldest days we’ve had all winter, there was no heat! Those passengers lucky enough to have muffled up earlier sat bewildered, with hats, scarves and coats buttoned up, shivering. It was almost comical. By Kildare, white smoke had started to emerge from the vents, terrifying my neighbour who thought the place was on fire. This eerie cloud enveloped the carriage that most of us had migrated to, on the basis that it was the only one whose doors actually closed tight.

I experienced a sensation that I haven’t had since I was a child. Let’s call it the ‘7A shoulder’. As a kid, I always remember coming home with one shoulder of my duffel coat sodden. The shoulder that was leaning against the bus window was always soaked from a combination of condensation and leaks.

It happened to me again on the 2pm special train to Cork on Thursday - 30 years later. Of course there was no food trolley. There wasn’t even a bar to get a cup of tea on the main ‘intercity’ service between Ireland’s two largest cities, the day after the finance minister told us that we were the most successful economy in Europe and a beacon for the whole world. What type of company treats its customers like that?

How dare they? What sort of management deems it professional to have such a train still in use? One passenger was so frustrated he went around the train getting a petition signed. All but the employees of the company signed. In fairness to Irish Rail, the Craven Car 1950s model was a mistake. They refunded everyone’s cash and apologised profusely. The train journey back up the next day from Cork was a pleasure and the new stock, just delivered from Spain, is state of the art. But this little story of everyday hassle in Ireland underscores the real inflation in our economy. We are stretched to the limits of our capacity. Inflation is not just a monetary phenomenon, it rears its head when there is far too much demand and not enough supply.

We need to get our act together and we have years to go in the area of public infrastructure before we even come close to European standards. For this, someone has to take the rap. Despite all the bluster of Wednesday’s budget, the buck has to stop with the government.

Kashkai

I like McWilliams usually, comes across as a nice enough guy, if a little smug sometimes. But what was he thinking - getting a taxi to cross Dublin in rush hour (which we all know lasts from 6am until 8pm with no slacking off period). He could have and should have gotten the Dart from Dun Laoghiare to Malahide, walk 100 metres down the street and then gotten a hackney to Swords. Similar return trip to town and then get the LUAS to Heuston for his train to Cork. No hassle, no traffic jams and no irritating taxi driver to listen to.

The dilapidated train to Cork may be the exception nowadays (IR are "getting there" you know!!) but they were the norm not so long ago.

MrPudding

Prosperous Dave wrote:

But what was he thinking - getting a taxi to cross Dublin in rush hour (which we all know lasts from 6am until 8pm with no slacking off period).

Yeah, what an idiot. Imagine taking the advice from a taxi driver who drives in the city everyday. I mean come on, how would a taxi driver know how long it would take to get from a to b?

MrP

Slice

If he was so close to the airport he should have just flown down for not much difference in price...

He's not saying anything new; the most surprising thing about the article is that the experience seems to be a surprise to him.

bk

My parents were on that train (in the same carriage as David).

It was one of the most horrifying experiences they have ever experienced. People were calling it the Siberian Express. It was incredibly cold and my parents are retired and the cold isn't good for older people.

David called IE and compalined, which is why an IE exec meet them at Hueston.

While people got refunds, but my parents got nothing as they are retired and traveled for free.

eth0_

MrPudding wrote:

Yeah, what an idiot. Imagine taking the advice from a taxi driver who drives in the city everyday. I mean come on, how would a taxi driver know how long it would take to get from a to b?

MrP

Wow, taxi driver in lying to get a fare shocker! They're not going to suggest you take an alternative mode of transport!

Maybe he was senile but everyone in Dublin knows that at 9.30am the traffic is still horrendous and you'd be extremely unlikely to get from Dun Laoghaire to the city centre in under an hour!

Hannibal_12

El Stuntman wrote:

:mad:

‘I can always tell the weather in Dublin by the annoying sound of wipers, swishing back and forth incessantly. It drives me mad’’.

So began a conversation with a businesswoman in Cork on Thursday night as we exasperatedly swapped traffic hell stories. She was explaining that .....

There are no "quiet times" anymore, the traffic never dies down, it is chronic and and very disparaging. You can never allow enough time for Dublin, I'm not sure if it was a lack of foresight, intelligence or a combination of both that has us in this situation and to be honest I really don't care.I''d love to get out of this city and may do as soon as circumstances allow because I'm frankly sick of it.

sceptre

Hannibal_12 wrote:

You can never allow enough time for Dublin

Indeed. The Thursday before last it took me as long to drive from the Red Cow to the Green as it took me to drive from Limerick city centre to the Red Cow. In retrospect it would have been a better plan to park around Heuston and either walk to central Dublin or take the Luas. Or better still, park at the Red Cow and take the Luas straight from there. However, I'm not a big fan of "in retrospect" and what I shouted in the car as I drove up Kildare Street wasn't too nice.

A Dub in Glasgo

This is one of the reasons I did not move back to Dublin last year, the other is housing

MrPudding

eth0_ wrote:

Wow, taxi driver in lying to get a fare shocker! They're not going to suggest you take an alternative mode of transport!

Nor would I expect him to. I would, however, expect him to give a more realistic estimate of the time required for the trip.

And besides, surely 1 hour would be time enough if the bus lanes were clear? No?

Is it time for motorcycle taxis liek they have / had in London?

MrP

El Stuntman

Hannibal_12 wrote:

.I''d love to get out of this city and may do as soon as circumstances allow because I'm frankly sick of it.

just get a job in the Civil Service and the government will grant your wish for you....:)

Tom Dunne

Hannibal_12 wrote:

There are no "quiet times" anymore, the traffic never dies down, it is chronic

Myself and my wife were just discussing this the other night - it isn't just the city center. We were amazed at the amount of traffic on the N4/M4 at 8,9 and even 10 o'clock at night. It seems to be a continuous stream.

Captain Trips

It's interesting what he said because my own perspective is that the city centre (e.g., around south circular, the green, etc., ) usually is okay, and that it's the "artery" roads that are clogged, because the design of the big roads is not good.

E.g., M50 in the morning, or N11. Once I have got to the city centre, I rarely have a problem and this makes me think that a congestion charge for priv ate cars doesn't make sense as the most congested roads are *around* the city and not in it, IMHO.

Took a twenty minutes from Tallaght to Blanch Centre today at midday by the M50, and I came back seeing if the smaller roads (e.g., Castleknock Tower road, down by walkisntown roundabout, etc., ) were better - took 55 minutes! All in the space of two hours at lunchtime.

Wishbone Ash

tom dunne wrote:

We were amazed at the amount of traffic on the N4/M4 at 8,9 and even 10 o'clock at night

Christmas late night shopping may account for some later traffic these days.

Captain Trips wrote:

the city centre usually is okay, and that it's the "artery" roads that are clogged

I agree. The Swords Road/Drumcondra usually moves very slowly but then the traffic frees up significantly on Dorset Street/King Street/Smithfield etc.

The Swordsman

Prosperous Dave wrote:

But what was he thinking - getting a taxi to cross Dublin in rush hour (which we all know lasts from 6am until 8pm with no slacking off period). He could have and should have gotten the Dart from Dun Laoghiare to Malahide, walk 100 metres down the street and then gotten a hackney to Swords. Similar return trip to town and then get the LUAS to Heuston for his train to Cork. No hassle, no traffic jams and no irritating taxi driver to listen to.

I'm not sure how much time taking that route would save. You would have to assume McWilliams lived near the Dart Station, got a Dart straight away (Darts to Malahide are not that frequent and IR timetables are not always reliable), got a cab straight away and traffic between Malahide and Swords was clear.

On a normal day, there would not be much to choose between the two options (though an hour by taxi seems a little optimistic). If I had some baggage such as an overnight bag and perhaps a laptop and a briefcase, I think I would be inclined to take the taxi option.

I think you're being a bit unfair on the chap. (God, have I just defended David McWilliams - must be the season of good will :eek: )