[Article] Over 66,000 drivers have got penalty points

Victor

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/topstories/2018443?view=Eircomnet

Over 66,000 drivers have got penalty points
From:ireland.com
Monday, 24th November, 2003

More than 66,000 drivers have incurred penalty points on their licences in the first year of the scheme.

No driver has accumulated the 12 penalty points that will result in a six-month disqualification from the roads. However, three licence holders - one each in Co Donegal, Co Kerry and Dublin city - have reached 10 points.

A total of 66,603 drivers have been given penalty points summarily by gardaí with a further 104 receiving points through cases processed by the courts. Over 9,000 drivers penalised were either unlicensed or living outside the State.

Publishing the figures yesterday, the Minister for Transport, Mr Brennan, welcomed the fact that there were 76 fewer deaths on the roads since the scheme was introduced on October 31st, 2002.

Mr Brennan said provisional Garda figures showed serious injuries dropped by about 13.5 per cent to 1,054, while Department of Health statistics indicated a "noticeable fall" in the number of people admitted to hospital as emergencies following road traffic accidents.

The Minister said it was estimated that the number of insurance claims was dropping by 20 per cent and he wanted insurance premiums for law-abiding drivers to reflect these savings.

The figures released yesterday only cover points incurred for speeding. While two other offences are covered by the scheme at present, namely the absence of insurance and non-wearing of seat-belts, penalties for them had yet to show up in the statistics, a spokesman for the Minister said.

Mr Brennan has signalled that he plans to add careless driving and dangerous overtaking to the scheme early next year.

He plans to roll out the scheme in full by the middle of next year.

Mr Brennan noted the only category of road user which had seen an increase in fatalities was motorcyclists.

Describing this as "a particularly worrying development", the Minister said he would shortly announce a package of measures "to address this critical safety issue", including compulsory practice training for motorcyclists. He is also considering increasing the minimum age of licence-holders from 16 years to at least 17 years, demanding provisional licence holders display L-plates and requiring motorcyclists to leave their headlights on during daylight.

Meanwhile, Dublin City Council confirmed yesterday that Luas works would continue in the capital during Operation Freeflow this Christmas except in major traffic-flow areas.

Victor

Press release and figures. The one person on 10 points has been there since July and must be fairly paranoid about their driving at this stage.

http://www.transport.ie/upload/general/4383-0.pdf

Mailman

was reading a thread on boards.ie. The Fleet Manager's comments show how the scheme is being operated.

http://pub145.ezboard.com/faskaboutmoneyfrm16.showMessageRange?topicID=1889.topic&start=21&stop=37

Victor

Whats next, bets on who will be murdered next in Limerick?

http://home.eircom.net/content/unison/national/2037770?view=Eircomnet

Bets on ban for penalty point driver to cost bookie €10,000
From:The Irish Independent
Thursday, 27th November, 2003
Treacy Hogan

A MYSTERY motorist could cost a leading bookie €10,000.

He is believed to have heavily backed Waterford city as the first place a driver will be disqualified for clocking up 12 penalty points - in the full knowledge that he is soon to become that driver.

Paddy Power yesterday suspended its book on the first offending district after heavy betting saw the odds on Waterford tumble from 33-1 to 2-1.

The bets have baffled the Department of Transport.

By close of business yesterday they had no record of any Waterford city driver even coming close to disqualification.

One possible explanation is that someone may have appeared in court and been given the points but this has not yet been officially recorded.

Alternatively the driver may have committed a serious offence and be fairly certain of the punishment about to be meted out.

Paddy Power said yesterday it fully expected to pay out on the bet.

No money was placed on any other county even though Waterford city had no driver on eight or 10 points in figures released earlier this week.

These figures showed there were three drivers on 10 points in other parts of the country.

The bets were all placed at Paddy Power offices in Mullingar, Dublin and Limerick - but, strangely, none from Waterford city.

Paddy Power is convinced by the betting pattern that someone knows a Waterford city driver is about to be disqualified.

"I don't think there's any doubt we'll be paying out on this one.

"We've been well and truly caught with our pants down," the bookie said.

He said they expected to be paying out up to €10,000 on a total of about €1,000 in bets placed at their shops yesterday.