Blame Ryan Tubridy's granddad, Todd Andrews, who made sure Ireland's rail network was not only decommissioned, but the tracks dug up so it could never be recommissioned. Car culture was injected forcibly into Irish life in a way that can't be undone.

April 09, 2026 - 12:56 UTC

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I'm no expert (I do love trains!), I think that it was more nuanced than that. Andrews oversaw the introduction of diesel trains to Ireland, but maybe he was inspired by the 'Beeching Axe' in the UK.

I do spend more time than I should looking at things like this: www.railmaponline.com/UKIEMap.php
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Yeah he was clearly influenced by Beeching but why destroy a massive infrastructural investment made by the British, just to copy the British? I am sure it's more complicated, but Andrews was the axeman, he was also brought in to bring RTE to heel but didn't manage to get Gay Byrne fired as planned.
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When I moved to Sydney I discovered they hadn't dug up the train tracks. And those tracks still carried trains. And I could walk to my suburban train station (or drive and avail of free parking) and go to work in the city on the train everyday.

Madness.
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Was there lobbying that ensured Ireland committed itself completely and irrevocably to becoming a country covered in motorways, rather than train lines? Who knows. I would certainly not discount it.
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An entire country ensnared by the plot of Who Framed Roger Rabbit
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Yes - Ford built their first car plant outside the US in Cork in 1917 and my understanding is that the aggressive removal of tram lines and railways from Ireland post-independence was a direct result of their lobbying.
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It's actually crazy. I learned to drive at 40 when I became a dad because I (correctly) believed that parenting without a car would be a logistical nightmare. And I live in Dublin! Public transport only gets worse beyond the capital.

This country is addicted to driving.
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My partner tried every single thing to convince me to learn to drive, failed on every front until we eventually had a kid and I felt I had no choice
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And roadbuilding.
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And media/politics have been completely captured by the notion that buying and using a nice new car is the correct choice for everybody who isn't either a weirdo or poor.
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Same in the US with the « rails to trails » programs which were promoted as eco friendly
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