Never. I've even seen Garda cars driving dangerously on the M50
Bullying of small cars.
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Agree with lack of Garda presence (marked/unmarked) on M50, or any road for that matter. Poor driving, speeding would not be as prevalent if there was more chance of getting caught.
As a result, the M50 is out of hand with discourtesy, speeding, aggression, undertaking, bullying and distracted driving.
Garda vehicle driving can be poor too. Tailgating, cutting corners/bends (even with full sight of oncoming traffic) and late or no indication are very common. All observed while vehicles are not under blue light call. What hope these drivers recognising this as poor driving by members of the public while on patrol?
edited to add 'not' (... 'not' under blue light..)
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If fatal accidents keep happening in Ireland as they do I have no doubt some kind of Driver Tests may be introduced every few years for all drivers. Before you say it'll never happen, it's a nice little earner for the state and others and another hoop to be jumped through by the motorist. All that is need is a few pressure groups* to get the ball rolling. I think it would be a good thing too. And there could be a "fail" loading on your already overloaded vehicle insurance.
* eg Gardaí, Cyclists, Relatives/Friends of people killed on our roads, County and City Councils, The Greens, etc
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All the poor Garda driving I've observed was not under blue lights.
Gordon Gekko
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There was a traffic school out near the East Link where kids used to go and learn the Rules of the Road and general driving etiquette. I went there in primary school. We went around these mock roads in pedal cars and learned what to do in certain scenarios. Why was that closed-down?
The media do nothing to investigate or report properly the causes of accidents. They call them ‘freak’ or ‘tragic’ events. People then think that there is no explanation and it won’t happen to them. The Gardai produce very detailed forensic vehicle investigation reports on all fatalities. Instead of teaching our kids about gender ideology in secondary schools we might save some lives by learning about what dangerous driving means in particular excessive speed and its effects on a vehicle and occupants during an impact.
iamaspinner
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I saw an unmarked garda jeep after pulling over a car on the M50 yesterday morning!! If only it were the start of some serious enforcement!
Thats what I meant to type. Corrected my post.
Are you suggesting that the safe driving guidance is that when other traffic is driving at an appropriate and safe speed, the right thing to do is join a motorway at a slower speed? I'd like to see where you're referencing that, especially as it is illegal to join a motorway or other road in front of faster moving traffic.
No. All traffic should enter the motorway in a safe manner. No driver should cut into another lane dangerously.
Are you suggesting that all traffic should enter the motorway at the maximum speed limit, just in case there might be a vehicle traveling at this speed a distance further back and this vehicle might then change lanes to overtake ?
Every situation of a vehicle entering a motorway is different and in each case the actions of all drivers, both entering and already on the motorway should be appropriate and safety should be the priority.
Are you suggesting that all traffic should enter the motorway at the maximum speed limit, just in case there might be a vehicle traveling at this speed a distance further back and this vehicle might then change lanes to overtake ?
Every situation of a vehicle entering a motorway is different and in each case the actions of all drivers, both entering and already on the motorway should be appropriate and safety should be the priority.
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Clontarf
Clontarf Traffic School
The miniature highways of the Clontarf Traffic School in Dublin help children learn rules of the road.
www.rte.ie
thedaddyman
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I spent about 6 hrs driving last Friday, combination of Motorway (M9), N roads and City roads (Cork) on a return journey
No speed vans or Garda cameras to be seen. Got passed on the N road twice by 2 different white vans going probably in excess of 120km/h. (I had cruise control on at 99 kmh), a merc driver who pulled out of a service station without even looking to see if the road was clear and had me jam on the brakes coming out of a town and 2 plonkers who passed me out on a piece of road that every local person treats cautiously as it's a known black spot, these 2 cars forced other traffic to edge over onto the hard shoulder to give them room. One driving a BMW, one an Audi. Obviously very important people and the rest of us were just getting in the way of their very important lives!
Every idiot I saw driving dangerously was driving a big powerful car. Makes me think that either speed limitors should be compulsary or if you want to drive a big powerful car, fine but sit a "how to drive a big powerful car properly" special test to prove you know how. Not saying everyone who drives a big powerful car drives like an idiot BTW, but most idiots seem to be driving cars they are not capable of driving properly
No speed vans or Garda cameras to be seen. Got passed on the N road twice by 2 different white vans going probably in excess of 120km/h. (I had cruise control on at 99 kmh), a merc driver who pulled out of a service station without even looking to see if the road was clear and had me jam on the brakes coming out of a town and 2 plonkers who passed me out on a piece of road that every local person treats cautiously as it's a known black spot, these 2 cars forced other traffic to edge over onto the hard shoulder to give them room. One driving a BMW, one an Audi. Obviously very important people and the rest of us were just getting in the way of their very important lives!
Every idiot I saw driving dangerously was driving a big powerful car. Makes me think that either speed limitors should be compulsary or if you want to drive a big powerful car, fine but sit a "how to drive a big powerful car properly" special test to prove you know how. Not saying everyone who drives a big powerful car drives like an idiot BTW, but most idiots seem to be driving cars they are not capable of driving properly
If you can point to where I said that I'd be impressed!
Another poster suggested that joining a motorway slower than the traffic already on it forcing them to slow increased the risk of accidents. You called them clueless and suggested they'd benefit from an advanced driving course! You now appear to be trying to reinvent what was said to suit that assertion.
I'm not sure the information is a clear as you think, or accessable.
It’s time for Irish journalists to follow the Road Collision Reporting Guidelines -- IrishCycle.com
COMMENT & ANALYSIS: The Road Collision Reporting Guidelines were launched in May 2021 to promote better reporting around road traffic collisions. The guidelines were developed with the UK in mi…
irishcycle.com
@thedaddyman
Regarding your last sentence...
My experience is that idiots drive all kinds of vehicles too fast and without regard for others. This includes trucks, busses etc.
It is very rare to see visible garda presence on the roads. I once seen a Garda in a 'generic small white van' on Conningham Road which had pulled a vehicle. That was nice to see. More unmarked patrols needed on the road and maybe in a lorry so they can observe HGV cabins for phone use, which is a major problem in the UK, so must be here too.
Regarding your last sentence...
My experience is that idiots drive all kinds of vehicles too fast and without regard for others. This includes trucks, busses etc.
It is very rare to see visible garda presence on the roads. I once seen a Garda in a 'generic small white van' on Conningham Road which had pulled a vehicle. That was nice to see. More unmarked patrols needed on the road and maybe in a lorry so they can observe HGV cabins for phone use, which is a major problem in the UK, so must be here too.
They could enforce the rules more. If someone got enough fines and points it would kerb their behavior. In some countries the fines are proportional to income.
Swede faces world-record $1m speeding penalty
A Swedish man who was caught by Swiss police driving at 290km/h is facing a world-record speeding fine of SFr1.08m ($1m; £656,000).
www.bbc.com
The Garda forensic vehicle investigation reports are read into the record at inquests by investigating Gardai. Usually no journalists attend. On rare occasions they do attend but only if there is more than one fatality. They like to produce front page pictures and headlines at the time of the ‘accident’ but a few months down the road when the facts are being read out they generally can’t be bothered to attend/report. The vehicle report is on the public record and can be easily accessed by contacting the coroners office. I’ve yet to see a tv programme or article documenting the causes in RTAs. It should be mandatory learning for all secondary school kids contemplating getting into a car or on a motorbike. Perhaps it’s viewed as too sensitive to families to blame drivers under the influence or speeding etc. If we fail to pass on the facts then we are guaranteed the same mistakes will be repeated again and again. There are so many ‘boy racers’ in my neck of the woods driving like they are at Mondello with their blacked out windows, loud music on and noisy exhausts complete with N or L plates. If I was a Garda I would fill my day giving out penalty points. I don’t know why it’s tolerated.
In my view, continuing to refer to crashes or fatalities on our roads as "accidents" or "RTAs" is to ignore the evidence of many posters here. The ubiquitous WkiPedia’s definition will suit my purpose: “An accident is an unintended, normally unwanted event that was not directly caused by humans.[1] The term accident implies that nobody should be blamed,”
In the incidents described in this thread, the likelihood is that at least one human is to blame due to their poor driving behaviour; mechanical failures or acts of nature (falling trees, high winds, floods) may be to blame but in most cases, the root cause is the nut behind the wheel.
Call them incidents, call them tragedies, call them occurrences, but please NOT accidents.
Finally, from Wikipedia: “Most car wrecks are not true accidents; however English speakers started using that word in the mid-20th century as a result of media manipulation by the US automobile industry.[3]”
Care, courtesy, and consideration at all times, as I was taught in England, and magically the tragedies will reduce, even with zero roads policing.