Local councillor had fears about bus stop

A local councillor who raised concerns about a Dublin city centre bus terminus that was yesterday the scene of a crash that claimed five lives, today spoke of fears expressed before the tragedy about personal safety.

Catherine Murphy, chairwoman of the traffic and transport committee of Leixlip Town Council, highlighted the “unsatisfactory” bus location on the River Liffeyside Wellington Quay with executives of the Dublin Bus Company less than two weeks ago.

One of the two buses involved in the accident, the number 66, which serves the Leixlip area, originally terminated in another part of central Dublin but was recently re-sited to make way for work on the city’s new Luas light transport system.

Ms Murphy said her council had been told that Dublin Bus was unhappy at the new location and planned to move it again later this year.

“The unsatisfactory nature of the terminus at Wellington Quay was one of the items on the agenda at our meeting with Dublin Bus,” she reported.

“It is confined to a much tighter space than in its previous location, and people had concerns about personal safety.

“At peak times, people had to push through, but I don’t really think you could have predicted the accident that has happened, and the awfulness of it.

“There is a need to pack waiting buses into a tight area on the quays.”

Dublin Bus said an investigation headed by senior management would be carried out. Garda inquiries are also continuing.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and Transport Minister Seamus Brennan both pledged full inquiries after visiting the scene of the crash yesterday.

The five who died have still to be named but the three women victims were aged 43, 59 and 69 years. Two of them were from Dublin, while the third was from Maynooth.

A 50-year-old man from Leixlip and a 33-year-old male foreign national with an address in Lucan were also killed.

A total of 12 people were still receiving hospital treatment today for their injuries.

The two buses involved in the crash were being examined at the Irish police headquarters in Dublin.