[23-1-2007] Bridge Strike Connolly

[Mark Gleeson]

Its now offically the worst week in living memory

Things looked very nasty going north out of Pearse

DART and Commuter delays - truck strikes bridge by Corporate Communications

23rd January 2007 - UPDATE 18.10hrs

There are currently delays to DART and Commuter services due to a truck hitting Amiens St Bridge at 17.30hrs approximately.

Services are now operating again.

However, delays are estimated at up to 30 minutes.

Iarnród Éireann apologises for the inconvenience caused.

[Rashers]

I was delayed on a Bray to Drogheda service that was 40-50 mins late. At one point, we were on the train for 1 hour without a single announcement (although we were moving for the last 30 mins).
Why do the drivers not make announcements? It really drives passengers mad, and while I'm sure they are often waiting on CTC to update them, someone has to start accepting responsibility for the poor communication to passengers, and start making a difference...

[hhf8]

EDIT: NOW BACK TO NORAML

hope this gets better,am planning on getting the 9.25 from tara?,are trains moving across the river?,or from connolly?

[al2637]

Arrived into Connolly on Southbound DART at 17:55... absolute chaos. Destinations of DARTs changing as they sat on platforms. No one knew what was going on. Had two people ask me. PA's were being made, but the sound quality was too poor that no one could really understand them.

Maynooth train was announced to be leaving from P3, then P4. Went to P4, no announcements, no signs, no displays on the train, no driver announcement. No one was too sure if we were going to Maynooth or Dundalk. Friend (also going to Maynooth) called from train on P3, they were equally unsure.

Although they can't do much to stop the bridge strikes, the lack of information just made a bad situation worse.

I've been in Dublin 1.5 days now. Delayed going home yesterday evening, delayed this morning, and again this evening.....

[Rashers]

Check this out...the IE website has a hyperlink containing a picture of what appears to be the truck which caused the chaos tonight...
http://www.iarnrodeireann.ie/news_centre/travel_alerts.asp?action=view&news_id=186
I've never seen anything like that before from IE..

[Mark Gleeson]

Well considering the front door of IE's head office is all of 10 feet away...

[hhf8]

nice advertisement there for miller....

[Aphfaneire]

I was in the thick of this aswell.

I was lucky to get off placement early as the 4th students advised me i could convince the nurse i was with that i finished at 430 not 5. So swift change and a luas journy into town, short delay between abbey street and busarus and then a mad dash up the steps, saw the board and it said 1719 and the train my mom was on due at 1721 p7. Walk as fast as possible to platform and see it across the way, but by the time im coming half way up the ramp i hear the beep beep beep of the doors and then the roar of the engines.:mad:

Ok so it was 15 minute wait for the next train yay.

But it wasnt, pa comes on "bridge strike". First few times it was confusing and at one moment the announcer actually said all services are sussbended untill further notice:eek:
Then the darts roll in, first p6 where i sat, then p7 behind me. Both south bound, greystones and bray, then they get switch to northbound after about 10 minutes. A lot of confusion as no one payed proper attention to the pa, i admit i was listning to music, but had the keen sense to turn it down and hold one earphone ready to pop out. Also i think i was sitting on the ground very close to a speaker.
So constant pa reminding of dart changes, ppl get the message.

A brief stint of pa's mentioned Maynooth train at 1808 from p3, and then it said extra maynooth passengers to p4, and then something inaudable about a longford train. P3 kept being mentioned and p4 left out of the confusion.

Then the se ond batch of darts, this time more prepared and ppl aware that nothing was going south, or at least i was. But the swarm of ppl on the ramp choose to only enter the forward carrages of the howth dart on p6, more 15 going for the same door as it tried to close again and again. When it finally left there was more than 20 seats free in the last carraige:confused:

This whole time there was no mention of Commuter services and 2 loads of howth and malahide darts had been ramshackled together in the chaos. And then a quick automatic pa says "now ariving at p6 the delayed 173? services to dundalk". Joy as i jump up and i get a seat aswell.

Not running full pace to catch the 1721, meant i didnt leave connolly till after 1815, so fun:D

[SickCert]

It was around 1745 when they announced over the bus radio to accept all dart tickets as per normal. Dont worry i was safe in Kilcoole!
All the years ive been around Eden quay and Corn ex, i have never known bridges like the few between the river and the station to be hit so often.

[Thomas J Stamp]

It was around 1745 when they announced over the bus radio to accept all dart tickets as per normal. Dont worry i was safe in Kilcoole!
All the years ive been around Eden quay and Corn ex, i have never known bridges like the few between the river and the station to be hit so often.

This is o/t, but I'll split it later,but as you're here and Alex Smart isnt....

Last Week, last train to Maynooth only went as far as clonsilla. IE said Dublin Bus will honour tickets. What happens if the passengers for Maynooth miss the last 66, (it was about 22.30 when the train got to clonsilla and stopped) will the stance lads in Westmoreland Street and the Nitelink Drivers also be told?

[MOH]

Check this out...the IE website has a hyperlink containing a picture of what appears to be the truck which caused the chaos tonight...
http://www.iarnrodeireann.ie/news_centre/travel_alerts.asp?action=view&news_id=186
I've never seen anything like that before from IE..

Maybe it's because after the week so far they're trying to forestall the gathering lynch mob ...

edit: If you look closely, doesn't it say 'Demolition' acroos the front of the truck? Appropriate!!

[Colm Donoghue]

I was heading to Pearse last night to get the 17:50 to Dundalk.
Wife rang to say the 17:25 was still in Pearse and to leg it to Tara to see if I'd get that.
Got to Tara and there was a dart on the northbound platform going to bray. there were a coupla guys at the river end of the dart.
I asked them what the story was and they said a bridge had been hit and it was pretty bad from what they'd heard. they said best bet was to walk over to Connolly to get a returning train from there. They then went tote top of the stairs and were calling out the dart was for bray and northbound passengers to go to Connolly.
We went over to Connolly and got the "Delayed" 17:58 service which waited 'til a dart to Malahide went ahead of us so we crawled all the way to Malahide. Got in about 7pm to rush and Lusk.

[shweeney]

went to connolly to get the 1740 to Greystones. Arrived to find the 1725 to Gorey still sitting at P5 - the driver told me about the bridge strike and suggested going to Tara St.

So, walked over to tara st and got on a Bray-bound Dart that was sitting at the northbound platform, got to Bray and got a 184 (once again reminding me how much I hate the bus), eventually arrived home at 1920, about 40 minutes late.

I think if I'd just got on the gorey train and waited I probably would've got home sooner - the trains were back running by the time I reached Bray. But that's the chance you take.