Speeding

Drove from Monaghan to Dublin yesterday morning. I drove at just under the speed limit of 100km/h on the National roads and never exceeded 110km/h on the M1.

The number of cars, vans, even a bus that overtook me on the Monaghan to Ardee road, clearly doing well over the speed limit shocked me. Without exaggeration there must have been about 25-30 drivers who thought it was ok to break the speed limit, and there wasn't that many drivers on the road between 9.30 and 10.15 on a Sunday morning.

Where were all the garda speed traps?????

Joe1234 said:

Where were all the garda speed traps?????

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Probably on the stretch of the Naas Rd dual carriageway between Red Cow and Long Mile with the 50kph limit. They must make a small fortune there between the GATSO vans parked at the bus stop and the jeep in Harris's Gateway.

Until the powers that be see speed cameras as more than just handy revenue earners your experience Joe will remain the norm on Irish roads

in reference to speeders you can report anybody driving dangerously to the national Garda helpline (cant remember the number offhand). If more peolple do this then maybe peolple will slow down. I would love to do this for litterbugs out of cars as well - I do hoot at them sometimes however speeding is the more serious offence

jod said:

I would love to do this for litterbugs out of cars as well - I do hoot at them sometimes however speeding is the more serious offence

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My brother has been known to hop out of his car at traffic lights and return the burning fag end just tossed out of the window of the car in front into the driver's lap. While I share his sentiment, I'm worried that one day he'll pick the wrong person!

You could try reporting them to your local litter warden, though I understand they'll need the actual fag-end as evidence.

I was in the smoke on saturday and used the m1 for most of the journey.
kept the speed around 110-120 kph but was passed out by some cars as if I was stopped! also noticed that lorrys and trucks are now doing 100/110 kph again even though their top limit is 80 since january. Joe 1234 - plod usually on the stretch south of Monaghan trying to catch speed merchants travelling north, certainly there on the monaghan side of castleshane last thursday evening, (though to be fair they were being open about it, and not hiding behind a tree like one I saw in birdhill in limerick one day). and on the stretch outside castleblayney - inside the 40 and 50kph limit - which for this stretch of road is bordering on the ridiculuous -for the south bound traffic. also since the carrickmacross/ dundalk road was reduced to 80 kph they like to patrol this road.

I was driving on the ratoath road to the N2 on sunday evening and doing the speed limit 80mph and this jeep tailgating me he could not wait to overtake me and when he did he only got in front of me for the rest of the way and then we goes tailgating the car in front the whole way. Also on my way out to Dungshauglin in Ratoath village i let about 3 cars go from the fairyhouse road and the car behind me beeped me for letting them go. So even on a Sunday afternoon these aggressive drivers are out there.

On my daily trip around the M50 double-decker busses pass me on a regular basis. I drive at 120 kph on the M50 when traffic allows so the busses are doing over 120kph when they pass me. Trucks do it as well but they are not filled with 60 or so people.
It seems to be a case of the law being an ass but this law is a bit too important too be shrugged off.

LIVERLIPS said:

I was driving on the ratoath road to the N2 on sunday evening and doing the speed limit 80mph ......

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Er, I think not.

Do you mean 80kph ?

Or was it an unrestricted area of the N2 ? ... in which case it would be 100kph

It'd be a big help if the powers that be dropped the speeding fine entirely. After all I think it is safe to say that the reason penalty points were brought in was because fines weren't working. If the Gardai were to simply allocate penalty points then people couldn't keep pointing this out as a money racket/the powers that be taking candy off a baby/persecuting the driver as they are too afraid to tackle real criminals etc.
Unless of course that is the truth.

You are supposing that they care whether people go on about it being a money making racket. If you had a money making racket would you stop taking the money just to stop people talking?

They would be wise to look to the future and the consequences of these actions. If they value the relationship people have with the authorities they should think twice about the value of their cash cow. Though I know the powers that be aren't too good at that.