Irish Rail insult the intelligence of a truck driver

**Timbuk2**

From Irishrail.ie
DART services are currently suspended between Lansdowne Rd and Dun Laoghaire, due to a truck causing major damage to Merrion Gates and overhead wires.

Dublin Bus will accept rail tickets for customers whose travel is disrupted.
Iarnród Éireann apologises for the inconvenience caused. DART services are operating from Howth/Malahide to Lansdowne Road, and from Greystones/Bray to Dun Laoghaire.

Unfortunately, it is not expected that services will return to normal before 6pm this evening.

The genius truck driver in question had a lifting arm on the back of the truck which pulled down barriers, and extensive overhead wiring (as well as phone wiring in the area), and he subsequently fled the scene. Prosecution will follow.

Link: http://www.irishrail.ie/news_centre/travel_alerts.asp?action=view&news_id=602

Dravokivich

it takes a lot of smarts to cause such destruction....

Wonder why he needed to take out the phone lines...

- Drav!

Pushtrak

Sounds like something you'd find on a parody site. Especially that "prosecution will follow" part.

jenizzle

Haha... someone was having a bad day in that press office, but they're right! It really did take some genius to pull down the barrier like that.

I just passed it though, the Gardaí are about and one of the gates is totally mangled.

microgirl

The one bloody day I need to get the Dart to Greystones! Argh! Getting the bus from town, even as far as Dun Laoghaire, will take forever

trad

Considering there is no advance warning of the height of the cables maybe IR are partly to blame. It's happened on a regular basis over the years so maybe a few signs might be in order or some barrier prior to the level crossing ( East Wall Road Bridge)

Stark

microgirl wrote: »

The one bloody day I need to get the Dart to Greystones! Argh! Getting the bus from town, even as far as Dun Laoghaire, will take forever

You could try getting the 145 to Bray. It's probably faster than the Dart these days.

CatFromHue

thats a good point about the height of the cables and no signage.

i still blame the driver though.

faceman

Im sure the truck driver didnt intend to do it and no one was hurt so there is no need to abuse the bloke.

MagicMarker

What I don't get is why he ran away!

I can just imagine some lonely truck driver wandering the streets of Dublin evading the authorities!!

This isn't the first time IR have made a comment like that. I'm 99% sure they made virtually the same comment a while back when a similar thing happened (could have been at Grand Canal Dock).

faceman

The "geniuses" at irish rail could do with having someone actually answer their customer service emails. also the same "geniuses" could also have someone work on the timing of their automated crossings so that people arent waiting for upto 5 minutes from when the barriers go down to when the train passes

pljudge321

All the press releases from irish rail are done by the one guy.

The frequency of bridge strikes is ridiculous though, even on some of the bridges with big flashing lights that warn trucks that they are too big.

Stark

Stark wrote: »

You could try getting the 145 to Bray. It's probably faster than the Dart these days.

+1
The 145 flies out of town.

What time are you heading out at?

pljudge321

faceman wrote: »

The "geniuses" at irish rail could do with having someone actually answer their customer service emails. also the same "geniuses" could also have someone work on the timing of their automated crossings so that people arent waiting for upto 5 minutes from when the barriers go down to when the train passes

The five minutes thing is so when people get stuck in between the barriers, a surprisingly frequent occurrence, the train has time to stop.

El Weirdo

Deleted User wrote: »

+1
The 145 flies out of town.

What time are you heading out at?

Stalker alert!:p

spurious

Genius is a kind word for someone who causes such damage and legs it.

funkyjebus

spurious wrote: »

Genius is a kind word for someone who causes such damage and legs it.

I believe they call it sarcasm.:p

El Weirdo

El Weirdo wrote: »

Stalker alert!:p

orrrr, very nice person who was going to offer assistance alert :cool:

El Weirdo

Deleted User wrote: »

orrrr, very nice person who was going to offer assistance alert :cool:

Yeah, yeah. Of course. Assistance. Gotcha.;)

Dardania

El Weirdo wrote: »

Yeah, yeah. Of course. Assistance. Gotcha.;)

Judging from your username, you may have a different outlook to other people...

That is a classic bit of corporate communications all the same...I might guess that the writer will be adversely affected by the cutting off of the dart line!

microgirl

Ooh, 145 you say? Any idea how long it takes to get to Bray? Had sorted with my Dad that t'other half and I would just drive, and forgo the Chateau Collapso at the other end, but if I can get away with public transport.....

We've to be there for 14:30. Must just go look at the timetable.

DublinWriter

More likely their senior PR bod is off on holliers and is now screaming can't I leave the f*cking office for a few days?!? at a cold turkey.

faceman

pljudge321 wrote: »

The five minutes thing is so when people get stuck in between the barriers, a surprisingly frequent occurrence, the train has time to stop.

If that were true, then all automated barriers would take the same amount of time, which they dont.

Fulton Crown

No sympathy for the truck driver(s) to be frank.

Looks like the gimp got the full enchillado...gates, power wires, telephone wires ...the freekin lot.!

In fairness that takes some genius.

Look out for some knuckle draggin, bull necked bone head skulkimg throug the leafy lanes trying to affect a D4 accent...like

"The fookin gates were..like...totally throshed man...legend !"

AnonoBoy

I can well understand their frustration. Idiots who do damage like that and then leg it are just that idiots.

Little Alex

It said on the news just there that they have the registration number of the truck from CCTV footage, so it sound like he drove off. My mind's eye loves Fulton's version, though.

Draupnir

faceman wrote: »

If that were true, then all automated barriers would take the same amount of time, which they dont.

It is true, automated barriers take different times depending on the section of the track and speed at which trains can be travelling. The express train through Merrion Gates can be moving at a fair rate of knots at times.

Just be thankful you aren't waiting on the lazy git in the box at Castleknock to come out and open the gates. You can be there for 25 minutes sometimes.

pljudge321

faceman wrote: »

If that were true, then all automated barriers would take the same amount of time, which they dont.

I can check but I imagine the barriers are dependant on which section of the track the trains are in. On higher speed lines the trains will take a longer time to stop, though conversely they should move through the section quicker. I'll ask and get back to you.

Edit: Beaten to it.

CatFromHue

has this turned into a slag off irish rail thread yet??
i really wanto slag em off, all for good reason of course.
i would have thought there is a industrial standard to do with train stopping distnace and the distance way from alevel crossing.
of course this is irish rail so that could be randomly chosen.
just like the price of a return from limerick to dublin about 4 years ago was 1/3 of the price via bus than the train

andrew

Did it actually say that? It doesn't anymore.

Piste

Oh no, I rarely every get the Dart, but tomorrow I really need to get it

jumpguy

It's gone now. Did it really say that?

Ostrom

It did, twas good. Especially as it matches the irish rail in-train announcement dialect perfectly with its overdone formalization.

bambera

faceman wrote: »

The "geniuses" at irish rail could do with having someone actually answer their customer service emails. also the same "geniuses" could also have someone work on the timing of their automated crossings so that people arent waiting for upto 5 minutes from when the barriers go down to when the train passes

I was at the Sydney Parade dart station a while back (the one just down from the merrion gates). The lights started flashing to show the gates were coming down. Next of all one of those flyby air coaches decides he doesn't want to stop and starts driving through anyway. He gets stuck on the track between the barriers. People started jumping out of the emergency exit at the back and shouting at other passengers to jump out. I was on my way into the station to tell the guy but the barriers came back up the let the bus out. The drive starts to pull off with the emergency door still open and passengers running after the coach. It's because of goobers like that that the gates are down for five mins before the dart passes.

Also I've got stuck on the dart a few times at grand canal dock because of trucks crashing into the bridge underneath, despite the height restriction signs.

**Timbuk2**

andrew wrote: »

Did it actually say that? It doesn't anymore.

jumpguy wrote: »

It's gone now. Did it really say that?

Yes it did. I should have gotten a screenshot (I didn't think the link would change!)

A person on this forum managed to find it as well. http://www.railusers.ie/forum/showthread.php?t=11743

MagicMarker

Do drivers usually get out of their truck and run away for no reason?

daymobrew

bambera wrote: »

I was at the Sydney Parade dart station a while back (the one just down from the merrion gates). The lights started flashing to show the gates were coming down. Next of all one of those flyby air coaches decides he doesn't want to stop and starts driving through anyway. He gets stuck on the track between the barriers. People started jumping out of the emergency exit at the back and shouting at other passengers to jump out. I was on my way into the station to tell the guy but the barriers came back up the let the bus out. The drive starts to pull off with the emergency door still open and passengers running after the coach.

AFAIK the closing of the gates is automatic, but the signal (that the train driver will see) does not change to green until someone in the control room has looked at the CCTV at the crossing to ensure it is clear. This someone must have opened the barriers for the bus, though fair play for you for deciding to tell someone.

SEPT 23 1989

MagicMarker wrote: »

Do drivers usually get out of their truck and run away for no reason?

too many festive sherries possibly

Ciaran187

I thought he drove off. Pics on RTE.ie show the moments he hit the cables

http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/1231/dart.html

4 pics on the right show truck approaching, big flash, sparks and a van speeding off!

testicle

Ye obviously missed this - http://twitter.com/IrishRail/status/7192518880

bambera

daymobrew wrote: »

AFAIK the closing of the gates is automatic, but the signal (that the train driver will see) does not change to green until someone in the control room has looked at the CCTV at the crossing to ensure it is clear. This someone must have opened the barriers for the bus, though fair play for you for deciding to tell someone.

They were lucky, I happened to be in a good mood.:rolleyes: