Luas derailment at Heuston Station causes travel chaos

More public transport woes for the capital.

A Luas tram derailed in Dublin city centre on Thursday morning, causing major travel disruptions for the city's public transport users. The incident occurred on the Luas Red Line, on the stretch of track outside of Dublin's Heuston Station in the midst of morning rush hour. No injuries have currently been reported as a result of the derailment, although Luas services have been severely impacted. https://twitter.com/Luas/status/1633772977278910464?t=uX53pVvtnBaWh0xPR0mR2A&s=19 A Luas statement confirmed that due to the incident, there would be "no Red Line services operating between Blackhorse and Connolly/The Point." Apologising for the inconvenience to the tram system's users, it was also confirmed that the only Red Line services currently operating were those operating "from Saggart/ Tallaght to Blackhorse only at the moment". Due to the incident, Iarnród Éireann have also announced that there is currently no vehicular access to Heuston Station. [caption id="attachment_770193" align="alignnone" width="640"] The incident occurred outside Heuston Station.[/caption] In response to the derailment, the official Luas Twitter account confirmed that all Luas tickets would be valid on Dublin Bus for the duration of the incident, as they attempted to minimise the ensuing travel disruption. This morning's events are just the latest in a spate of concerning public transport incidents to occur in the capital recently, with a man killed just last September in an early-morning collision with a Luas tram. The recent events surrounding drone activity at Dublin Airport have also drawn the ire of the city's residents, with flights grounded for the sixth time in as many weeks last Friday due to illegal drone activity at the airport. Minister for Transport and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan also faced further criticism this week, after he responded to calls to introduce free public transport by stating that such a policy would only lead to an "increase in the level of unnecessary trips". Related links:

• Michael O’Leary slates Eamon Ryan over latest Dublin Airport incident
• “Like something out of Schindler’s List” – Passengers blast Irish Rail following Bray Air Show “chaos”
• Former Coca-Cola boss submits planning for huge food market in Dublin’s docklands
• Iarnród Éireann confirm Cork to Dublin catering services from April

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