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16-09-2009, 14:24 | #1 |
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Bus/Luas collision on O'Connell St
Gf just rang to say there's been a collision between a Luas and a 16 bus at Abbey St/O'Connell St. Ambulance and fire brigade at the scene.
Nothing on breaking news sites yet, but expect delays. |
16-09-2009, 14:26 | #2 | |
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Looks like all traffic stopped on O'Connell St. EDIT: Link to a pic, looks bad http://www.flickr.com/photos/darragh/3926211414/ Last edited by Mark Hennessy : 16-09-2009 at 14:34. |
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16-09-2009, 14:39 | #3 |
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16-09-2009, 14:50 | #4 |
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Last edited by Mark : 16-09-2009 at 15:38. |
16-09-2009, 14:55 | #5 |
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I'm a bit unsure about the photo orientation there.
Would the driver have been at the end of the LUAS that got hit? |
16-09-2009, 15:08 | #6 |
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Yep, the driver's end went into the bus first
Hard to tell if the bus ran a red, or the luas ran a signal. Someone was moving that shouldn't have been though... |
16-09-2009, 15:15 | #7 |
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17-09-2009, 17:11 | #8 | |
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Garda Witness Appeal
http://www.garda.ie/PressReleases/Default.aspx
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17-09-2009, 21:59 | #9 |
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A friend of mine was there when the accident happened. She said it was very scary with people shouting for help. She said a special branch Garda car was going down the street the wrong way and a bus was pulling in to let it pass and the luas struct it. Another person on boards said they heard this story from someone by the GPO also.
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20-09-2009, 01:30 | #10 |
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My own theory on it is. The bus driver had the green light, but then got stuck in traffic on the far side, by which time the traffic lights were red, and allowed the Luas to go. The Luas then smashed into the bus.
The whole accident at a notorious flashpoint junction, is an eerie reminder of why we should have had a Metro system, or at the very least a bridge crossing the street for the trams, similiar to the train bridge nearby. You wouldn't see trains attempting to cross streets full of other vehicles in a city centre, so trams shouldn't be allowed either. Instead you have an "Irish" solution, and it leaves the tram a sitting duck without a bridge or barriers as protection for crossing the busiest street in the city. It is solely down to the goodwill and discipline of other transport users that there haven't been more serious incidents on it so far.
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20-09-2009, 01:37 | #11 |
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While I agree the Abbey St/O'Connell St junction is rather unfortunate and dangerous, I do think your theory fits the accident: The tram was clearly derailed, its front dragged on quite a distance in the direction of traffic on O'Connell St. IMHO, that can only have happened with the bus moving at considerable speed - and not suck in traffic.
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20-09-2009, 10:29 | #12 |
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Irish Solution?
On the move refers to the tram system as an 'Irish solution'. If one were to visit any European city with trams - Amsterdam, Vienna and many more, one would see that the Dublin Luas is actually built to a higher standard with far more seqregation from traffic. Trams crossing main routes is common place; Luas is nothing different. Trams even go through pedestrian zones!
In Vienna, trams run down the middle of some streets and the stops are simply in the middle of the street; no platforms. Traffic is expected to stop while passengers disembark and make their way to the footpath. In other areas, trams share road space with traffic; this only happens is a very few places on Luas - Beresfort Place and Thomas Street. Also many of the older trams around Europe are totally non-wheelchair accessible unlike Luas which is excellent in this regard. It is also clear the both bus and tram were moving at speed so there is no possibility that the bus was stuck in traffic. |
16-09-2009, 20:46 | #13 | |
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With regards to luas being at fault the only reason i mentioned that was because i know someone who was there and says the traffic light was at green at the time and also that someone on boards mentioned that their brother was on the bike just ahead of the bus and the light was green. i wasnt there im just saying what i was told. Maybe it could have been a problem with the luas signalling im sure we will find out. Noones perfect. Attack the post not the poster. Last edited by ThomasJ : 17-09-2009 at 11:32. |
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16-09-2009, 20:53 | #14 |
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It could have been so many things - even a signal misfunction (green for the bus, go-ahead for the luas) or a brake failure or, or, or... No point in speculating right now. And certainly no point in attacking anyone!
Edit: As for the current situation, if I am interpreting the pixelated webcam image correctly, there should be a crane on site right now. A friend just headed over to check whether they are actually lifting the luas off the tracks. Last edited by undo : 16-09-2009 at 21:00. |
17-09-2009, 04:29 | #15 | |
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From http://www.luas.ie/page.php?name=Dis..._Red_Line_Luas:
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17-09-2009, 09:58 | #16 |
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A number of people on boards.ie have mentioned that passengers inside the tram could not open the doors after the crash. I'm assuming they had enough sense to use the manual release instead of the button (you never know) and still had no luck.
Surely the area around the doors wouldn't be reinforced enough to stop the doors compressing in a crash? I doubt the Luas was moving at much speed so the impact-damage should have been fairly minimal. |
17-09-2009, 10:42 | #17 |
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All the doors on the Luas where open when I saw the tram
The problem lies in people assuming the doors will open when the emergency handle is pulled, you still need to push the doors and pull them apart as per the notice next to the handle The structural integrity of the passenger area was uncompromised, no sign of any distortion which would have restricted the doors opening
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17-09-2009, 15:02 | #18 | |
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17-09-2009, 15:10 | #19 |
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Thanks personally i thought i jumped the gun as did alot of people on the forums yesterday! It will be interesting to see what happens. There was a mention in the paper today that a teenage girl is still in a critical state in hospital. Hopefully everyone will be ok.
Last edited by ThomasJ : 17-09-2009 at 15:12. |
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