Final preparations: The Railway Procurement Agency (RPA) has assured the public that Luas trams will begin operating today despite a last-minute safety hitch. Joe Humphreys reports.
The agency admitted that some "minor" safety concerns had still to be addressed by yesterday evening, among them the absence of pedestrian railings along parts of the elevated platforms at Charlemont and Ranelagh.
However, it said all such works would be completed by today, claiming that some of them had been held off until late yesterday to reduce the risk of vandalism.
Mr John Welsby, the chief railway inspector, said the remaining works had only been a matter of "ticking the last few boxes". He added that the project had gone "extremely well" to date from a safety perspective.
A RPA spokesman said: "We did hold off on some things, like Perspex panels on handrails, because we didn't want them to get vandalised. Most of the things were quality-of-service issues rather than safety ones."
Another item on the "snag-list" had been the installation of area identification poles along the track to allow drivers to radio in their location in the case of a tram breaking down.
The RPA has warned other road users to be alert to the presence of trams from today. Black and yellow warning signs have been installed for motorists, pedestrians and cyclists. All have been told to avoid blocking the path of trams going into tram lanes. Cyclists have been warned to watch out for rail grooves.
Pedestrians should not walk along tramways or step on to tramways without looking both ways. An emergency hotline has been set up in the case of accidents and can be contacted at (01) 4673040.
While the RPA predicted no glitches today, bookmakers Paddy Power were less optimistic, quoting odds yesterday on the location in which a Luas tram would first break down. Sandyford and St Stephen's Green were joint favourites at 6/1.