Manually operated railway crossings must be automated and fitted with flashing lights, the Dáil heard today.
Mayo Fine Gael TD Michael Ring said an elderly constituent was killed when he was struck by a train near Straide last month.
The incident happened at the intersection between the Ballina-to-Dublin railway line and a minor road that has manually operated barrier gates.
Mr Ring said there were 230 such crossings in the country that were posing a safety risk to local road users. He said new trains were faster and had quieter engines so some local residents had difficulty hearing them approach.
"I'm calling or automatic barriers and flashing lights or other people will be killed," he claimed. "We want no more lives lost. What we want is Irish Rail to provide automatic barriers and the flashing lights."
PA
