West

Gridlock on roads and disgruntled commuters marked the public transport strike in the west yesterday, with private operators filling the breach in many parts.

However, Iarnrod Eireann said it was optimistic that most train services would be back to "normal, or near to it" this morning, along with the provincial buses. The Mayo-Dublin route will be one exception in the early part of the day, according to Mr Myles McHugh, business development manager with Iarnrod Eireann in Galway, as Dublin-bound train passengers will have to be taken by bus to Roscommon.

There were no public buses or trains running into and out of the west yesterday, but good weather and a choice of private services made the industrial action a little easier to bear in Galway.

City Direct, the only private suburban bus service of its type in the State, placed extra vehicles on its routes serving Salthill and the Knocknacarra areas, while City link, the private provincial operator, reported brisk business.

Mr Donal Joyce of City Direct said a lot of people opted not to travel, but he expected the picture might be different today. School services run by part-time public drivers or by private drivers were largely unaffected yesterday, but those driven by full-time Bus Eireann staff were badly hit.