Author Topic: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop  (Read 588 times)

Offline watty

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Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« on: November 13, 2025, 02:22:35 pm »
Time to get a gun anchor?

Speed limits across Dublin city to be reduced

Quote
Almost all roads in Dublin city are set to see their speed limits reduced to 30km/h.  It is already in place in most parts, including residential areas, but routes with higher speeds will now also be assessed.  Bylaws are to be drawn up by Dublin City Council and go out to public consultation.

Dr Caoimhe Clarke, from Irish Doctors for the Environment, told councillors the impact will be dramatic, Newstalk reported.  "If a person is hit by a car travelling at 50 kilometres per hour, their chance of dying is 40 per cent; if a person is hit by a car travelling at 30 kilometres per hour, their chance of dying is 13 per cent. That’s significant," Dr Clarke said.

The council’s head of traffic, Brendan O’Brien, told Newstalk that they had hoped for default 30km/h zones in built-up and urban areas.  "What we find is that when you do drop from 50 to 30, you still have people who drive at 50 in those streets, but the average speed starts to come down, because people, while they mightn’t be conscious of, or want to drive at, 30, they do know it’s a 30, and so they tend to stick closer to 30 than they do to previous ones," Mr O'Brien said.
#

The Gardai advise that 'a speed limit is not a target.  It is simply the maximum speed you are legally entitled to drive at on a stretch of road' so is Mr O'Brien in the last paragraph admitting defeat already that 30 km/h is unrealistic and unenforceable today?
Getting old is compulsory whilst growing up is voluntary.

Offline Rat Catcher

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #1 on: November 13, 2025, 04:53:32 pm »
Good news for a change!
If it doesn't have a roof sign and door stickers it's not a taxi.

Offline watty

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #2 on: November 13, 2025, 06:27:42 pm »
Could be handy for you?  A poacher-turned-gamekeeper-type of situation where an experienced taxi driver/driving instructor could retrain grown men how to drive properly once they hit 9 penalty points and are at risk of losing their licence. 

I'm sure you've an old ManU tracksuit combo somewhere that you could dig out to make the men feel more comfortable taking instructions from you as youse are squashed together in the 2 front seats  :P
Getting old is compulsory whilst growing up is voluntary.

Offline silverbullet

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #3 on: November 13, 2025, 07:24:01 pm »
Could be handy for you?  A poacher-turned-gamekeeper-type of situation where an experienced taxi driver/driving instructor could retrain grown men how to drive properly once they hit 9 penalty points and are at risk of losing their licence. 

I'm sure you've an old ManU tracksuit combo somewhere that you could dig out to make the men feel more comfortable taking instructions from you as youse are squashed together in the 2 front seats  :P
8)

Offline Rat Catcher

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #4 on: November 15, 2025, 02:14:18 pm »
Could be handy for you?  A poacher-turned-gamekeeper-type of situation where an experienced taxi driver/driving instructor could retrain grown men how to drive properly once they hit 9 penalty points and are at risk of losing their licence. 

I'm sure you've an old ManU tracksuit combo somewhere that you could dig out to make the men feel more comfortable taking instructions from you as youse are squashed together in the 2 front seats  :P

I don't think I'm going to renew my ADI permit this time round. I do enjoy the few lessons I give but I'm not cut out for being tied to appointments and such like and the whole renewal process is very cumbersome. I can always start the whole process again should I want to take it more seriously at some time in the future.
If it doesn't have a roof sign and door stickers it's not a taxi.

Offline silverbullet

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #5 on: November 15, 2025, 02:21:18 pm »
Time to get a gun anchor?

Speed limits across Dublin city to be reduced

Quote
Almost all roads in Dublin city are set to see their speed limits reduced to 30km/h.  It is already in place in most parts, including residential areas, but routes with higher speeds will now also be assessed.  Bylaws are to be drawn up by Dublin City Council and go out to public consultation.

Dr Caoimhe Clarke, from Irish Doctors for the Environment, told councillors the impact will be dramatic, Newstalk reported.  "If a person is hit by a car travelling at 50 kilometres per hour, their chance of dying is 40 per cent; if a person is hit by a car travelling at 30 kilometres per hour, their chance of dying is 13 per cent. That’s significant," Dr Clarke said.

The council’s head of traffic, Brendan O’Brien, told Newstalk that they had hoped for default 30km/h zones in built-up and urban areas.  "What we find is that when you do drop from 50 to 30, you still have people who drive at 50 in those streets, but the average speed starts to come down, because people, while they mightn’t be conscious of, or want to drive at, 30, they do know it’s a 30, and so they tend to stick closer to 30 than they do to previous ones," Mr O'Brien said.
#

The Gardai advise that 'a speed limit is not a target.  It is simply the maximum speed you are legally entitled to drive at on a stretch of road' so is Mr O'Brien in the last paragraph admitting defeat already that 30 km/h is unrealistic and unenforceable today?
If a pedestrian is hit by an EV bike or scooter travelling at 50 KPH, we can only hope the the EV driver is killed and the pedestrian escapes injury.

Offline taxi1990

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #6 on: November 15, 2025, 07:37:08 pm »
I wonder will the speed limits be enforced much or will it be like all the other laws them bring in like 50 euro fines for e-scooters on footpaths.

Offline watty

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #7 on: November 15, 2025, 09:56:04 pm »
I wonder will the speed limits be enforced much or will it be like all the other laws them bring in like 50 euro fines for e-scooters on footpaths.

Quote
"The council’s head of traffic, Brendan O’Brien, told Newstalk that they had hoped for default 30km/h zones in built-up and urban areas.  "What we find is that when you do drop from 50 to 30, you still have people who drive at 50 in those streets, but the average speed starts to come down, because people, while they mightn’t be conscious of, or want to drive at, 30, they do know it’s a 30, and so they tend to stick closer to 30 than they do to previous ones," Mr O'Brien said."

Like everything else, they'll be enforced on Day 1 for some press photos and then quietly ignored...
Getting old is compulsory whilst growing up is voluntary.

Offline taxi1990

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #8 on: November 16, 2025, 08:28:29 am »
I wonder will the speed limits be enforced much or will it be like all the other laws them bring in like 50 euro fines for e-scooters on footpaths.

Quote
"The council’s head of traffic, Brendan O’Brien, told Newstalk that they had hoped for default 30km/h zones in built-up and urban areas.  "What we find is that when you do drop from 50 to 30, you still have people who drive at 50 in those streets, but the average speed starts to come down, because people, while they mightn’t be conscious of, or want to drive at, 30, they do know it’s a 30, and so they tend to stick closer to 30 than they do to previous ones," Mr O'Brien said."

Like everything else, they'll be enforced on Day 1 for some press photos and then quietly ignored...


I agree.

Offline silverbullet

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #9 on: November 16, 2025, 02:54:26 pm »
I wonder will the speed limits be enforced much or will it be like all the other laws them bring in like 50 euro fines for e-scooters on footpaths.

Quote
"The council’s head of traffic, Brendan O’Brien, told Newstalk that they had hoped for default 30km/h zones in built-up and urban areas.  "What we find is that when you do drop from 50 to 30, you still have people who drive at 50 in those streets, but the average speed starts to come down, because people, while they mightn’t be conscious of, or want to drive at, 30, they do know it’s a 30, and so they tend to stick closer to 30 than they do to previous ones," Mr O'Brien said."

Like everything else, they'll be enforced on Day 1 for some press photos and then quietly ignored...


I agree.
https://www.lawsociety.ie/gazette/top-stories/2025/august/some-roads-gardai-show-little-interest/

Crowe says "Gardaí would prefer to be in the Special Branch" 8)

Some roads gardaí ‘show little interest’
A report carried out by consultants into garda Road Policing Units (RPUs) has found “significant differences in policing practice and productivity” among the force’s divisions.

Consulting firm Crowe said that its findings highlighted “a lack of effective supervision of RPUs and the inability (or unwillingness) of supervisors and more senior ranks to proactively supervise and manage the performance and productivity of RPU members”.

Garda Commissioner Drew Harris said that the report made for “stark reading”.

While the consultants stressed that the majority of the RPU members had a positive attitude and aimed to be effective and productive, they also encountered members who appeared to show “little interest” in detecting road-traffic offences.

Consultants ‘quite shocked’
There were also, according to the report, “a small number” who volunteered that they disliked their job and were eagerly looking forward to retirement, as well as “a small number” who seemed disinterested in the fact that their ANPR equipment was switched off or not functioning properly.

The report said that its team was “quite shocked” that, in a small number of instances, the RPU members concerned “were quite open about their lack of interest in being seen to fulfil their duty”.

“We also found it disturbing that those members who told us how much they disliked their job had no difficulty in raising these issues in front of external consultants engaged specifically by An Garda Síochána to review how roads policing operates,” the report added.

The Crowe report said that the reliability of ANPR (automatic number-plate recognition) equipment appeared to have been a contributing factor to the productivity issue, finding that the system was either not working or took a long time to activate properly in around 30% of the vehicles in which its team accompanied RPU members.

‘Review PALF policy’
The consultants also reported “considerable frustration’ among RPU supervisors, who felt that they could do “little or nothing” to address situations in which some RPU members were avoiding doing productive work.

The report attributed this to supervisors’ interpretation of a garda performance-assessment policy called PALF, which excludes the use of “numeric targets focused at individual level”.

Crowe called for an immediate review of the PALF policy and its replacement with “a more appropriate policy” that allowed the force to manage the performance of its staff.

Court business
The consultants also reported “a commonly expressed desire” among RPU members for better management of the business of the District Courts.

The report said that the requirement for RPU members to attend court often involved lengthy periods waiting for a case to be called, limiting the time available for frontline policing operations.

Crowe also reported “significant frustration” about the reduced strength of RPUs at a time when road-traffic fatalities had been rising in recent years.

On 31 October last year, there were 623 gardaí serving in RPUs – down 40% compared with 2009.

In a statement, Harris said that the force had allocated an extra 49 gardaí to roads policing in the past year and would allocate more in the second half of this year.

He added that, as recommended by the report, a steering group to oversee the necessary changes identified in the report had been set up, as well as a working group to implement the measures.

Offline Bob Shillin

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Trump has called for help, so I'm on a plane heading for The Strait of Hormuz, talk soon.

Offline watty

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #11 on: November 16, 2025, 03:43:46 pm »
Yeah, very sad.

RTE says it was Golf vs Land Cruiser and there was 6 young people in the Golf so at least one wasn't wearing a seatbelt.

One of my nephews is just starting to drive so it's a very sobering story.
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Offline Rat Catcher

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Re: Got a heavy foot? Dublin speed limits to drop
« Reply #12 on: November 17, 2025, 05:47:22 am »
Very sad. RIP.
If it doesn't have a roof sign and door stickers it's not a taxi.

 


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