Nearly seventy railway safety concerns have been investigated by a commission responsible for ensuring train and tram services are up to standard.
The Commission for Railway Regulation (CRR) said it had received 67 reports since the beginning of 2022 about brake failures, noise pollution, bridge safety, and overcrowded services.
There were eleven confidential concerns raised this year, including one relating to what was described as a “serious rail safety incident” on an Irish Rail service in June.
Queries were also raised over the licences held by drivers on rail and Luas services, while one person asked for an investigation into overcrowding on a train travelling between Limerick and Cork.
Other safety concerns highlighted this year were the safety of infrastructure at the Beechwood tram stop in Dublin and a door that partially opened on an Enterprise train to Belfast.
Thirty-four separate confidential concerns were investigated by the CRR in 2023, including a wheel defect on a Luas tram that led to “dragging” near the Red Cow station.
The commission was also asked to look into structural concerns about a platform at a train station in Tipperary and an accident in Limerick where somebody fell in a station.
There were concerns logged as well over an illegal encampment at a railway car park in Co Clare and a defective elevator on one of the Luas lines in Dublin.
Other issues investigated by the CRR included a complaint from the OPW about air pollution in Connolly Station in Dublin and the failure of a tram wheel on a light rail vehicle.
A sinkhole adjoining an Irish Rail line was flagged to the commission, but an investigation found it posed no risk to the safety of train services.
Twenty-two concerns were raised in 2022 with four relating to the breakdown of a train on the day of the Bray Air Show in July that year.
During that incident, passengers ended up forcing open the doors of carriages on the DART and walking along the tracks.
The CRR was asked to investigate separate safety concerns about older DART carriages that remained in use, including the levels of rust on them and whether they should continue in service.
Also flagged in 2022 were noise pollution and vibration along a train line, a concern over the safety of brakes on a Luas tram, and the structural integrity of a railway viaduct.
Asked about the records, which were released under the Freedom of Information Act, the Commission for Railway Regulation said they had nothing further to add.
An information note on their website said that all concerns were “treated seriously” and that each one was closely examined.
It said: “Our response will vary and may include inspection, written or verbal intervention, or noting the details which may direct some future activity.”
