Madam, - Matthew C Curran (April 6th) deplored the lack of accommodation for bicycles on the new Iarnród Éireann trains. I read his letter with particular concern as I was sitting at the time in the waiting-room at Edgeworthstown Station, along with my heavily laden bike, returning from a delightful week's cycling in Leitrim, Sligo and Mayo, and intending to travel to Dublin for that night's ferry to Holyhead.
When the railway official arrived to sell tickets, he regretfully confirmed that I would not be allowed to put my bike on the train - something I had never before experienced in 25 years of cycling in Ireland.
In the event, the late afternoon Bus Éireann service rescued me and my mount from our difficulty. However, the bus, with its limited storage space, would have been of no use had it been laden with luggage or had I been one of a party of cyclists - as I often have been in the past.
It is deplorable that Iarnród Éireann's otherwise excellent website fails to alert travellers to the new situation. In itself, the decision to commission rolling stock with no space for bicycles defies belief, given the health and environmental benefits of cycling, the unparalleled attractions of the Irish countryside as a place to ride, and long-standing attempts to promote Ireland as a destination for green tourism.
I join Matthew Curran in hoping that some action will be taken by the Department of Transport to remedy the situation, and suggest that if examples of good practice are wanted, officials of the Department might like to look at provision for cyclists, both as commuters and holidaymakers, on the railway services of Holland or Denmark. - Yours, etc,
MARTIN RYLE, Rodmell, Lewes, Sussex, England.