Troublemakers are blamed for match day train problems

August 2003

Iarnród Eireann has blamed ‘ troublemaker’ GAA supporters for delays and chaos on the recent ‘nightmare’ Leinster Final day train, but in ‘a gesture of goodwill’, has agreed to refund half the face value of the return tickets to disgruntled passengers.

In a letter accompanying the €11 refund vouchers, the company’s Customer Services Manager squarely places the blame for the fiasco at the feet of ‘ troublemakers’.

At no point in the letter did Iarnród Eireann as a company accept any responsibility for overcrowding, poor air conditioning, or non-existent refreshment facilities.

The letter states: ‘Some of the GAA supporters on board seemed intent on causing problems from the outset, with bottles being thrown out of the train at passengers on the platform in Pearse Station. Fortunately no-one was injured.

‘Others proceeded to get very drunk, with many smoking in the non-smoking carriages, to the annoyance of the majority of decent Wexford supporters on board.

‘ The train was held in Arklow Station and Gardaí were called to deal with some of the troublemakers. However, following a half-hour delay, the Gardaí were unable to get sufficient numbers and other arrangements were made for the Gardaí to meet the train in Gorey. This caused a further delay, resulting in a considerable overall late arrival back to Wexford.’

The letter went on to note that the Iarnród Eireann policy is to refund fares only after 60 minutes has been exceeded, but ‘as a goodwill gesture’ decided to refund single fares based on the special match day tickets issued.

Iarnród Eireann spokesman, Barry Kenny, noted that it was not an Iarnród Eireann policy to refund fares on the basis of over-crowding, and said that this matter would not have arisen if fans had availed of the spare capacity on the earlier train.

‘ There seems to be a reluctance to accept that vandalism caused the delays on the train, but that is the case,’ he said.