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The Dealer is a curious soul and when he heard that India’s first high-speed train had been derailed by a holy cow after one day in action, he got to thinking about Irish Rail and not so holy Irish cows.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, sheep make up the highest number of farm animals killed by trains
It turns out that a total of 212 animals have been killed by trains since 2016. Perhaps unsurprisingly, sheep make up the highest number of farm animals killed by trains, with eight killed last year and seven incidents of trains recorded colliding with flocks on train tracks. On average, four cows are killed every year by trains.
But overall, deer make up the highest number of deaths every year, with 73 dead since 2016. Considering the calls for deer culling in certain TB blackspots, maybe farmers should call for increased rail services instead.
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