Child escapes injury as bicycle is hit by Luas

A child narrowly escaped injury when his bicycle was struck by a tram in Dublin yesterday afternoon.

The incident has led to calls for additional protective measures along the Luas route .

The incident, which occurred at Milltown on the Sandyford line, was the fourth accident involving Luas since Saturday.

According to the Luas operator Connex, yesterday's incident involved a young boy cycling onto the track into the path of a tram. The boy abandoned his bicycle as he ran away, and the bicycle was struck by the tram which was unable to stop in time.

The boy was not injured by the tram, but was hurt when he subsequently fell, a Connex spokeswoman said.

The incident follows another "near miss" involving two schoolchildren at the Cowper stop earlier this year which prompted the Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, to write to the Railway Procurement Agency.

Mr McDowell warned the agency chief executive, Mr Frank Allen, that "the crossing is not safe, and inadequate measures have been taken to deal with the fact that it is a through route for commuters and particularly for schoolchildren".

The Milltown crossing, which is the next stop along from Cowper, is of a similar design, and backs on to the playing fields of Alexandra School.

"I don't know how strongly I have to couch my representations to you. But in view of this latest incident, this is a matter of direct personal accountability and moral responsibility," Mr McDowell told Mr Allen at the time.

Earlier yesterday morning, a man was taken to the Mater Hospital after a collision between a car and a Luas tram on Upper Abbey Street.

The incident happened at around 6.30 a.m. The man, the driver of the car, had to be cut out of the car. He is not thought to be seriously injured.

On Tuesday morning, three people were hospitalised following a collision between a Luas tram and a car on Dublin's north inner city.

The incident, which occurred at the junction of Benburb Street and Blackhall Place, involved an outward-bound tram and a car. The occupants of the car suffered collarbone and rib injuries.

Last month, four people were injured after two Luas trams collided at St Stephen's Green.

The Progressive Democrats spokesman on transport, Sen Tom Morrissey, said "lives will be lost" unless warning signs along the route are improved.

He said large hazard signs were necessary as well as larger protective barriers. He described some of the barriers as "pins".

The Fine Gael transport spokeswoman, Ms Olivia Mitchell, said, however, that motorists were "playing Russian roulette with traffic lights" and "need to cop themselves on".