DUBLIN, February 23, 2024 – An 86-year-old man died Thursday after a Bus Éireann double-decker bus, not in service at the time, struck a lamp-post and came to rest against a shop front on North Earl Street in Dublin city center.
Bus Crash Prompts safety Review in Dublin City Centre
The incident has sparked calls for increased pedestrian safety measures, including the potential installation of bollards.
- Frank Daly, 86, of east Wall, Dublin, was fatally injured in the collision.
- Three others – a man in his 20s, and two women aged 30s and 50s – were hospitalized with injuries.
- Dublin City Council is considering safety enhancements,perhaps including bollards on North Earl Street.
Wall, north Dublin.A framed photograph and flowers were placed at Ann’s Bakery on mary Street Friday,a location Daly frequented,according to reports.
A male pedestrian in his 20s remains in hospital with serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. The woman driving the bus, in her 50s, and a female pedestrian in her 30s are also receiving treatment in hospital.
Fine Gael councillor Ray McAdam said he will discuss the incident with the local authority’s chief executive and the chairperson of the mobility and public realms strategic policy committee next week. “We need to move forward and ensure that we keep public safety of paramount importance,” McAdam stated.
McAdam indicated that the council is continually monitoring safety in public areas, particularly given “the increasingly challenged world in which we live.” He pointed to the use of planters and other barriers on pedestrianized streets as examples of existing safety measures.
The Garda examination will inform any further action taken by the council, including assessing “the possibility or feasibility” of installing bollards at the end of North Earl Street, which is a pedestrianized area.
Bus Éireann stated Friday that it is fully cooperating with authorities during the investigation.”Our thoughts and heartfelt sympathies are with the family and loved ones of the person who has passed away, and also with those who have been injured and affected by yesterday’s incident,” the company said in a statement.
President Catherine connolly expressed her condolences to the family of the deceased Thursday and wished a speedy recovery to those injured. she also thanked emergency service personnel for their rapid response. Taoiseach Micheál Martin conveyed his thoughts were with all those affected, while Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien expressed shock upon learning of the incident.
