Irish Rail Station Elevators Plagued by Vandalism

In 2021, vandalism put 42 elevators serving Irish Rail stations out of commission, the Irish Mirror reports, creating headaches for those with mobility issues. Incidents involved doors being kicked in, ceilings being pulled down and individuals deliberately jumping up and down in elevators. Overall in 2021, Irish Rail reported 500 elevators damaged for various reasons, the majority rendered unusable. Fifty instances of vandalism caused damage to elevators in 2021. Vandalism isn’t the only reason for out-of-service lifts: a lift in Bray was out of service for 153 days because its doors failed to fully close, and another at Seaport was out of service for 24 days from damaged by seawater. An Irish Rail spokesman said the “vast majority” of elevator issues are resolved within 24 hours, and an investment program is underway that will bring improvements to elevators at 52 stations across the network. Irish Rail is also upgrading its security, monitoring and access systems.