Transport Minister criticises St Patrick’s Day Luas strike

THE Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Paschal Donohoe, has described confirmation of further strike action by Luas workers as “extremely disappointing” and said it will put pressure on a recovering economy that has not yet “bedded down”.

The Minister was responding to news that Luas workers are to stage a further two days’ strike action on March 8 and again on St Patrick’s Day. He said this will come as exceptionally bad news, not only to commuters who rely on the service for their daily commute, but also to the 100,000 overseas visitors who will travel to Dublin for our national holiday.

“Commuters were seriously inconvenienced last week when a 48-hour strike was held,” Minister Donohoe said. “It appears the decision to stage a further two days of strike action, in particular on St Patrick’s Day, is being taken with a view to causing maximum disruption, which will be welcomed by no one.

The Minister added: “Our economy is growing but is still fragile. This industrial action puts added pressure on businesses who are attempting to secure a more stable footing for the future and on our job creation ambitions. Every effort is being made to bed the recovery down so that we can create jobs to pay for services we need.

“A further two days of strike action at this time will damage our growing tourism sector, leave commuters stranded again and cost the company and workers dearly. I remind everyone that the State’s industrial relations resolution bodies remain ready to assist in finding a resolution to this issue. I call on both parties to the dispute to avail of them.”

Fianna Fail candidate for Dublin South West Cllr, John Lahart, said that the Minister for Transport must intervene in the Luas dispute.  

“The Minister needs to take a more hands-on approach and become an active arbitrator in the dispute rather than a casual bystander,” he said. “Last week’s dispute caused severe disruption and difficulty for 90,000 Luas commuters, many of them in Dublin South West. People had great difficulty getting to and from work, school, college and going about their daily routine.”