Garda Speed Trap Alert - Quincentenial Bridge

KevR

Just after driving over the Quincentenial Bridge a couple of mins ago and there was an unmarked Garda car parked on the traffic island at the Galway Shopping Centre roundabout with a speed gun pointing back towards the bridge.

Anyone who is out and about tonight watch your speed on the bridge. Very easy to get caught if you're going over the bridge Eastbound.

Not sure how long they will stay there for or if there are other speed traps around town tonight..

sgthighway

I don't think its right to warn people about speed traps. The Gardai are trying to do their job and have peoples saftey at mind. Warning people to slow down in that area just because there is a speed trap does not help anybody long term because if somebody is going to speed they will continue until they get caught a few times.
(Saying all that I'm sure your post is well within the rules)

PopeBuckfastXVI

sgthighway wrote: »

I don't think its right to warn people about speed traps. The Gardai are trying to do their job and have peoples saftey at mind. Warning people to slow down in that area just because there is a speed trap does not help anybody long term because if somebody is going to speed they will continue until they get caught a few times.
(Saying all that I'm sure your post is well within the rules)

Prevention is better than cure.

mobby

KevR wrote: »

Just after driving over the Quincentenial Bridge a couple of mins ago and there was an unmarked Garda car parked on the traffic island at the Galway Shopping Centre roundabout with a speed gun pointing back towards the bridge.

Anyone who is out and about tonight watch your speed on the bridge. Very easy to get caught if you're going over the bridge Eastbound.
Not sure how long they will stay there for or if there are other speed traps around town tonight..

Easy to get caught if your going over the speed limit :rolleyes:

KevR

Sorry, but I honestly think they are taking the piss (for many different reasons) by having a speed trap on the Bridge - it's probably the safest road in the city for a start (with the high level of traffic and virtually no accidents).

I could make a list as long as my arm of other far less safe roads which they should be doing speed traps on instead of the bridge.

If I passed them doing a speed trap on, for example, Circular Road (which disgracefully has the same speed limit as the bridge) then I wouldn't mention it here.

They need to cop on to themselves (no pun intended).

Toon--soldier

KevR wrote: »

Sorry, but I honestly think they are taking the piss (for many different reasons) by having a speed trap on the Bridge - it's probably the safest road in the city for a start (with the high level of traffic and virtually no accidents).

I could make a list as long as my arm of other far less safe roads which they should be doing speed traps on instead of the bridge.

If I passed them doing a speed trap on, for example, Circular Road (which disgracefully has the same speed limit as the bridge) then I wouldn't mention it here.

They need to cop on to themselves (no pun intended).

+1 they should down some narrow back road or pullling people with one headlight

galwayrush

sgthighway wrote: »

I don't think its right to warn people about speed traps. The Gardai are trying to do their job and have peoples saftey at mind. Warning people to slow down in that area just because there is a speed trap does not help anybody long term because if somebody is going to speed they will continue until they get caught a few times.
(Saying all that I'm sure your post is well within the rules)

I think it's good to warn people, it slows people down. Much better than hiding behind bushes which seems more like a money collection type stealth tax.If there is a visible presence, it will slow down everybody:cool:

KevR

It's definitely a trap, rather than a visible presence. No doubt about it, they're out to make an easy few bob.

Have seen them doing speed checks on the bridge a few times in the last few weeks. But have never (not in the last few weeks or ever if I'm honest) seen them do any on the more dangerous roads in Galway

sgthighway

KevR wrote: »

Sorry, but I honestly think they are taking the piss (for many different reasons) by having a speed trap on the Bridge - it's probably the safest road in the city for a start (with the high level of traffic and virtually no accidents).

Some would say the same about the Sean Mulvoy Road which was the scene of a fatal accident just before Christmas:(

galwayrush

sgthighway wrote: »

Some would say the same about the Sean Mulvoy Road which was the scene of a fatal accident just before Christmas:(

A garda hiding behind a wall with a speed camera would not have prevented that accident, merely caught them speeding on camera(if they were.) However , if a garda was visibly on duty there at the time, it would probably have prevented it.

KevR

galwayrush wrote: »

A garda hiding behind a wall with a speed camera would not have prevented that accident, merely caught them speeding on camera(if they were.) However , if a garda was visibly on duty there at the time, it would probably have prevented it.

Very well said!

schween

Whats the limit on the bridge? 50kph isn't it? Typical of the Gardaí to be speed checking where it's easy to catch people and not actually at a blackspot.

Mrs OBumble

PopeBuckfastXVI wrote: »

Prevention is better than cure.

When I see someone who is obviously speeding, I take a lot of pleasure in flashing my lights to warn them about a "speed trap" which doesn't really exist on the road ahead. Keeps me chucking for a km or two, and I'm sure slows them down for at least three.

Captain Darling

Good thing they didnt catch me driving down the road with my laptop out reading this thread.

Mars Bar

JustMary wrote: »

When I see someone who is obviously speeding, I take a lot of pleasure in flashing my lights to warn them about a "speed trap" which doesn't really exist on the road ahead. Keeps me chucking for a km or two, and I'm sure slows them down for at least three.

Haha, that's golden!

JohnCleary

Cheers KevR.

Speed traps at the bridge are not that common, but I reckon that they do catch quite a few people when they do traps there. It's so easy to go over 50Km/ph there, have to constantly be looking at the speedo (not worthwhile putting on cruise control for such a short distance) going over it

One thing I notice a LOT on the Newcastle side of that bridge is feckers breaking red lights. Thankfully out of the good few times i've seen people do it, a cop car just happened to be around and has them pulled a few hundred metres up the road.

ronnie3585

Was crossing the bridge at about 9. Was in the left lane, thankfully obeying the speed limit, when an A6 flew past me easily doing 100kph. After we went through the lights and onto the Sean Mulvoy the unmarked blue Mondeo pulled over the A6 pretty snappy. Didnt see the guards with the laser gun, were they up on the roundabout?

I don't think its right to warn people about speed traps. The Gardai are trying to do their job and have peoples saftey at mind.

Totally disagree with you. Most speed traps operated by the Gardai are purely revenue generating exercises, nothing to with road safety.

KevR

JohnCleary wrote: »

It's so easy to go over 50Km/ph there, have to constantly be looking at the speedo (not worthwhile putting on cruise control for such a short distance) going over it

One thing I notice a LOT on the Newcastle side of that bridge is feckers breaking red lights. Thankfully out of the good few times i've seen people do it, a cop car just happened to be around and has them pulled a few hundred metres up the road.

Yeah I find if you try and keep to 50kmh on the bridge so much of your concentration goes on watching the speedometer, when you should be paying attention to the road, that you could nearly have a crash!

Also, I tried keeping to 50kmh once at a busy time during the day just to see what the reaction of other drivers would be like and I nearly got rail-roaded by a big truck! I had to put the foot down when I saw him coming up behind me at speed in my rear-view mirror.

ronnie3585 wrote: »

Didnt see the guards with the laser gun, were they up on the roundabout?

They were in the same unmarked car on the traffic island that would have pulled the A6 over.

They always park sidewards on the traffic island so even if you do manage to spot the Garda car from a distance you will still probably think it's just stopped at the traffic lights on the roundabout rather than there doing a speed trap.

Usually one Garda has the speed gun aimed out the passenger window while the other is in the drivers seat, ready to razz after anyone who is coming over the bridge over the limit. They pull the 'speeder' over, give them a ticket and then go back to the traffic island.

Wompa1

My dad warned me and maybe he's paranoid but he said that the gardai would be clamping down that they were doing this in the 70's and 80's to make more revenue. Just a theory but it seems true from my experiences and others I know, definately an increase. Also there was a fatal crash on the bridge 2 years ago but I agree its somewhere that a speed trap isn't really necessary, they should be checking in blackspots

Xiney

As far as I'm aware, "speed traps" are unlikely to be put on unsafe roads anyway, because it isn't safe to pull cars over or freak speeding drivers out. A driver going too fast who slams on the breaks is far more likely to lose control of the vehicle on a dangerous road than on a safe one.

Also, if a driver gets caught in a few speed traps to the point that they have so many penalty points that any more will lose them their license (and doesn't insurance increase with penalty points as well?) then maybe they won't be speeding as much on any roads.


I don't drive though so my knowledge of speeding, insurance and driver mentality is all hearsay.

kippy

KevR wrote: »

Sorry, but I honestly think they are taking the piss (for many different reasons) by having a speed trap on the Bridge - it's probably the safest road in the city for a start (with the high level of traffic and virtually no accidents).

I could make a list as long as my arm of other far less safe roads which they should be doing speed traps on instead of the bridge.

If I passed them doing a speed trap on, for example, Circular Road (which disgracefully has the same speed limit as the bridge) then I wouldn't mention it here.

They need to cop on to themselves (no pun intended).

While I dont disagree with the fact that they should be doing speed traps in more obvious locations, there have been at least 2 major accidents on that section of road last year, one of which was a fatality.......as well as the mentioned one on Sean Mulvoy road.
That said I believe posting a warning about them is a good thing and may get most of us slowing down on the bridge "Just in case"

Kippy

galah

If they really wanted to generate revenue, they should install permanent speed cameras, red light cameras, and a lot of other random checking equipment (Germany would be a great country for copying those measures - I got a ticket once for parking 40 centimeters too close to a junction...as in I was 4.60 m away, and not the full 5 m. There's actually people checking that stuff with a tape measure).

With all the greed in this country, I am actually surprised that they haven't done that ages ago...easiest way to make money, especially considering that there's no driver education to speak of.

And why not warn people of speed traps - might as well, if it slows them down. Again in Germany, they warn openly on the radio if mobile speed checks are around.

Xiney

Comparing Ireland to Germany is hardly fair.

The German religion is efficiency (and tardiness is a cardinal sin)

Whereas Ireland is... well. It's no Germany. That's for sure.

galah

I know, it's not fair.
But really, considering the government needs money and usually does not shy away from ripping off people, exploiting drivers and their stupidity/non-adherence to rules would be THE money spinner 2009.

I am just truly surprised they haven't gone down that road yet.

sgthighway

sgthighway wrote: »

I don't think its right to warn people about speed traps. The Gardai are trying to do their job and have peoples saftey at mind. Warning people to slow down in that area just because there is a speed trap does not help anybody long term because if somebody is going to speed they will continue until they get caught a few times.
(Saying all that I'm sure your post is well within the rules)

We have a bit of a system among my family and a few friends. If we see a checkpoint or speed trap we send out a text or give a call to any of them that might be passing the area where the trap is. Works well. This understanding should exist among friends/family in my opinion.

Xiney

The Irish government would never make money on it.

They'd simply waste a lot of money trying to set it up, fail, and give up, 600 million in the hole (conservative estimate)

KevR

Galway City Council must get a special mention for their role in this. For so many reasons it's incredibly stupid having a 50kmh limit on the bridge. They need to review the speed limits of some roads and put a more appropriate limit in place.

If the speed limit on the bridge was 80kmh (which, lets face it, is the speed most people drive on there now anyway) then I wouldn't be annoyed to see the Gardai strictly enforcing it.

As it stands now, Galway City Council have basically given the Gardai a licence to print money for central government as and when they please.

Cora Flabby Beneath wrote: »

We have a bit of a system among my family and a few friends. If we see a checkpoint or speed trap we send out a text or give a call to any of them that might be passing the area where the trap is. Works well. This understanding should exist among friends/family in my opinion.

Was thinking of doing something like that myself.

Last week my sister used the bridge late in the evening and there was a speed trap in the same place as last night. She texted me to let me know because she knew I'd be using the bridge soon after on my way home from work. So on the way home I slowed down (not that I ever drive at an unsafe/inappropriate speed on the bridge or any other road) and sure enough the Gardai were still there.

cornbb

KevR wrote: »

Sorry, but I honestly think they are taking the piss (for many different reasons) by having a speed trap on the Bridge - it's probably the safest road in the city for a start (with the high level of traffic and virtually no accidents).

I must completely disagree, there was a fatal accident on that bridge last year, and another fatal crash on a similarly designed stretch, and I think that road (along with all of the other 4 lane single carriageway roads in Galway) is very dangerous by design. People drive at too-high speeds because they have a false sense of security, being given 2 lanes in each direction, but there is no median to protect against crashes. This, along with the fact that there is no hard shoulder, gives zero margin for error. I have seen people do very stupid things on that bridge, including drivers who actually cross the central white line to overtake even though there are 2 lanes provided for them already :eek:

I do hate when the Gardai are out patrolling safe dual carriageways, its like shooting fish in a barrel, but I think that stretch of road is pretty dodgy.

Captain Darling

cornbb wrote: »

I must completely disagree, there was a fatal accident on that bridge last year, and another fatal crash on a similarly designed stretch, and I think that road (along with all of the other 4 lane single carriageway roads in Galway) is very dangerous by design. People drive at too-high speeds because they have a false sense of security, being given 2 lanes in each direction, but there is no median to protect against crashes. This, along with the fact that there is no hard shoulder, gives zero margin for error. I have seen people do very stupid things on that bridge, including drivers who actually cross the central white line to overtake even though there are 2 lanes provided for them already :eek:

I do hate when the Gardai are out patrolling safe dual carriageways, its like shooting fish in a barrel, but I think that stretch of road is pretty dodgy.

I'm certain one of the fatal accidents on this bridge was actually a suicide, whereby a driver intentionally drove into another car, killing himself and some occupants of the car he drove into.

The Gardai do tend to have a shooting fish in a barrel approach to their speed traps and they are actually very predictable where they do them also. Its frustrating to see a check point in a usual spot and then meet some ejit flying down the road on a bad stretch doing 100mph.

Zzippy

Wompa1 wrote: »

My dad warned me and maybe he's paranoid but he said that the gardai would be clamping down that they were doing this in the 70's and 80's to make more revenue. Just a theory but it seems true from my experiences and others I know, definately an increase. Also there was a fatal crash on the bridge 2 years ago but I agree its somewhere that a speed trap isn't really necessary, they should be checking in blackspots

Great. Another stealth tax... :rolleyes:

kayos

Captain Darling wrote: »

I'm certain one of the fatal accidents on this bridge was actually a suicide, whereby a driver intentionally drove into another car, killing himself and some occupants of the car he drove into.

I was gonna post that but did not know if it was just rumor or fact so didnt. But any way thats what I had heard also.

GerardKeating

KevR wrote: »

It's definitely a trap, rather than a visible presence. No doubt about it, they're out to make an easy few bob.

How is this not visible presence, the car was in plain sight.

Robbo

GerardKeating wrote: »

How is this not visible presence, the car was in plain sight.

An unmarked car, in the dark, parked on a traffic island. From a distance this could be taken for a broken down/abandoned ve-hick-le.

Captain Darling

kayos wrote: »

I was gonna post that but did not know if it was just rumor or fact so didnt. But any way thats what I had heard also.

Yeah, its a fact alright. My boss was at the inquest court hearing for another case the same day as that one. It was very sad, for all people involved. It was truly horrible.

bazjnr

KevR wrote: »

Sorry, but I honestly think they are taking the piss (for many different reasons) by having a speed trap on the Bridge - it's probably the safest road in the city for a start (with the high level of traffic and virtually no accidents).

I could make a list as long as my arm of other far less safe roads which they should be doing speed traps on instead of the bridge.

They need to cop on to themselves (no pun intended).

i can recall at least 3 fatal and serious injury collisions on the bridge in the last 2 years but i can't recall any on the circular road

KevR wrote: »

It's definitely a trap, rather than a visible presence. No doubt about it, they're out to make an easy few bob.

Have seen them doing speed checks on the bridge a few times in the last few weeks. But have never (not in the last few weeks or ever if I'm honest) seen them do any on the more dangerous roads in Galway

As for "they're out to make an easy few bob" you would swear that the guard was getting a percentage of the money for every speeder s/he detects. this is obviously not the case and i don't think any guard goes out thinking 'hmmm, i think i'll make a few quid for the central exchequer today'.

admittedly the Gardai are still a reactive rather proactive force when doing anything. and it is because of this you see them on the bridge- because people speed there and other people make complaints to the gardai about it.

regarding smaller roads it is meant to be part of the government's road safety strategy to have fixed camera sites in locations where a guard can simply not stand out safely to carry out a speed check or where it is impossible to stop a car safely without causing a collision. but the government have backtracked on this as they have on so many things.

bottom line is that if a motorist has a propensity to speed on the bridge they have the propensity to speed elsewhere. if they speed they are committing an offence. guards do not set the limits they enforce them

JohnCleary

There was another speed trap at the back entrance to Windsor Motors (on the dual carrageway) last week. Car was unmarked so you'd think it's just a car parked up/broken down

In fairness it's a 100kmph zone though, as opposed to the bridge which is only 50

KevR

cornbb wrote: »

I must completely disagree, there was a fatal accident on that bridge last year, and another fatal crash on a similarly designed stretch, and I think that road (along with all of the other 4 lane single carriageway roads in Galway) is very dangerous by design. People drive at too-high speeds because they have a false sense of security, being given 2 lanes in each direction, but there is no median to protect against crashes. This, along with the fact that there is no hard shoulder, gives zero margin for error. I have seen people do very stupid things on that bridge, including drivers who actually cross the central white line to overtake even though there are 2 lanes provided for them already :eek:

I do hate when the Gardai are out patrolling safe dual carriageways, its like shooting fish in a barrel, but I think that stretch of road is pretty dodgy.

I have always been of the opinion that the 4 lane single carriageways are not the safest of roads but I still think 80kmh would be a suitable speed limit (when you think of the millions of journeys made on our 4 lane single carriageway roads every year with the vast majority not keeping to the 50kmh limit and accidents are few and far between).

Ideally, when they were building these roads, they would have put in a central crash barrier and crash barriers on the edges (beside the road) of the footpaths on both sides.

Can't see them putting a central barrier on the bridge or any other 4 lane single carriageway where the 2 different directions are only separated by a white line because it would be extremely difficult to put in now. They could put in crash barriers on the footpaths which would prevent any cars mounting the footpath.

Could easily put in a central crash barrier on the Sean Mulvoy Rd and the Headford Rd along by Dunnes Terryland.

Zzippy

Wish the bacon had been there tonight, was just coming over the bridge doing about 60kmh, 3 cars overtook me doing at least 120, started weaving in and out of traffic too. Fuckin rally muppets.... :rolleyes:

KStaford

I use the road and bridge every day. I come into Galway at Briarhill so I use the n6 dual carriageway up to the N17 roundabout, then onto the headford road roundabout and onto the bridge until I get to the University.

I find it impossible to drive at 50kph. If I ever try, I am beeped at, overtaken, undertaken, flashed lights at etc. And in way I can understand the frustrations of those motorists. So I choose to drive at the same speed as everyone else which is normally 80-100kph. It just seems and feels an appropriate speed for that type of road.

The entire dualcarriageway is very safe and the speed limit should be raised to a reasonable level (not necessarily 100kph, perhaps 80). Its roads like the road out to Monivea, Athenry etc that are lethal. Twisty country roads with high speed limits and large volumes of traffic.

Muzzy

They were out at the bridge again tonight, it was a normal squad car this time.

It's a rally weekend in Galway, there is always a big Garda presence during these weekends.

It'll be back to normal after the Rally!

Madame Razz

kippy wrote: »

While I dont disagree with the fact that they should be doing speed traps in more obvious locations, there have been at least 2 major accidents on that section of road last year, one of which was a fatality.......as well as the mentioned one on Sean Mulvoy road.
That said I believe posting a warning about them is a good thing and may get most of us slowing down on the bridge "Just in case"

Kippy

It's all very well saying that the Gardaí should have speed traps along these two stretches of road because there have been two fatal accidents on them in the past two years. But can we keep in mind how those accidents actually happened???

The Gardaí cannot legislate for accidents like these, when people take it upon themselves to drive drunk/commit suicide/have a race on an icy road. Speed traps or a Garda presence would not have made any difference to these incidences. Those accidents were not due to the nature of the road but the nature of the drivers.

Doing for speed on the bridge is nothing but a revenue collecting exercise, but I would imagine given that it is the rally weekend that they're reasoning is twofold in this case(There were a serious amount of Boyracers around last night).

And anyway, is it not the case that one of the judges has an issue with them doing for speed on these road stretches?? That he throws the cases of this nature that are presented to him out of court on the basis that the speed limit is ludicrous??

kippy

Madame Razz wrote: »

It's all very well saying that the Gardaí should have speed traps along these two stretches of road because there have been two fatal accidents on them in the past two years. But can we keep in mind how those accidents actually happened???

The Gardaí cannot legislate for accidents like these, when people take it upon themselves to drive drunk/commit suicide/have a race on an icy road. Speed traps or a Garda presence would not have made any difference to these incidences. Those accidents were not due to the nature of the road but the nature of the drivers.

Doing for speed on the bridge is nothing but a revenue collecting exercise, but I would imagine given that it is the rally weekend that they're reasoning is twofold in this case(There were a serious amount of Boyracers around last night).

And anyway, is it not the case that one of the judges has an issue with them doing for speed on these road stretches?? That he throws the cases of this nature that are presented to him out of court on the basis that the speed limit is ludicrous??

I had forgotten about the rally weekend.

Of course the guards cant legislate for every road incident, however everything the set up checkpoints for is in relation to driver behaviour. Outside of the alleged suicide, the other two items you mention COULD possibly have been avoided IF the people involved expected a posibility of speed traps. Its not really a good thing to be saying, sure theres no point in checkpoints, checkpoints dont stop accidents.....its not the checkpoints that stop the accidents, its the drivers expectation of the possibility of a check point and the possible repercussions of getting caught.
I dont recall any judges throwing out cases of this nature because the speed limit was ludricous....surely this would have made the national papers?
Again, I aint agreeing with any of the set speed limits on these roads but the bottom line is these are the posted limits....if you dont wanna be a revenue generator stick within them,
Kippy

JohnCleary

Won't be many speed traps today (regardless of rally) - sure it's too wet and windy for the poor oul' Gardai to be out :pac:

Madame Razz

kippy wrote: »

I had forgotten about the rally weekend.

Of course the guards cant legislate for every road incident, however everything the set up checkpoints for is in relation to driver behaviour. Outside of the alleged suicide, the other two items you mention COULD possibly have been avoided IF the people involved expected a posibility of speed traps. Its not really a good thing to be saying, sure theres no point in checkpoints, checkpoints dont stop accidents.....its not the checkpoints that stop the accidents, its the drivers expectation of the possibility of a check point and the possible repercussions of getting caught.
I dont recall any judges throwing out cases of this nature because the speed limit was ludricous....surely this would have made the national papers?
Again, I aint agreeing with any of the set speed limits on these roads but the bottom line is these are the posted limits....if you dont wanna be a revenue generator stick within them,
Kippy

I take your point, however, I do not think people who have the mentality to race one another on an icy road in the rush hour morning traffic, or indeed people who have the audacity to drive drunk are too bothered or indeed concerned by the possibility of a checkpoint or repercussions of ANY sort, not just for themselves. No amount of Gardaí presence or actions will stop these types, and currenly legislation to curb the likes of these boyracers is not stringent or proactive enough, or at least there is too much bureaucratic red tape to implement what exists.

As regards the judge I believe he informed the Gardaí NOT to put cases of speeding offences committed in certain areas of the city, one being the quincenntenial bridge, before him, as he would be certain to throw such cases out. I do believe it made the advertiser or one of the local papers at the time.

Personally I have issue with the Guards fish in a barrel appraoch to speeding in this country. It IS a revenue collecting exercise whereby they actually have set targets and measures on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Speed traps are supposed to be an endeavour to make our roads safer, they should not be treated as a sales exercise. Targets and sales belong in the business realm;m surely the approach should be prevention, as opposed to antagonising drivers by way of speed traps. How many people have been caught by the Guards doing somehting like 54kmph in a 50km zone??? Will catching people like this save lives??? I don't think so.

The approach in this country is entirely wrong, and you can't necessarily blame the Gardaí for this. A simple offence means a ludicrous amount of paperwork on the Guards behalf, even IF the case may NEVER go beyond the superintendents desk. And it won't go beyond the Supers desk because of the laws which are in place in this country, and becuase of how the legal system operates.

So yet again, the justice system is to blame in all of this.

But don't expect the government to do anything about it; afterall, the country's quickly going down the toilet and they seem happy to sit back and watch:rolleyes:

Canada ftw methinks....;)

Bass Cadet

sgthighway wrote: »

I don't think its right to warn people about speed traps. The Gardai are trying to do their job and have peoples saftey at mind.

Good one Would that be the same reason why they have a speed trap on the safest stretch of road in the county (N6 @ Tom Hogans)?

If the Gardai really wanted to do their job right, they'd police roads that need policing and that have actually claimed lives due to excessive speed not safe, urban routes. There's only one obviously reason why they target safe, urban, busy routes

KevR

They're there again. Unmarked patrol car on the same traffic island at the Galway Shopping Centre RAB with speed gun pointing towards the bridge.

Galwaaygirl

I think dead right for telling ppl the guards are out with their speed guns. Its roads with inappropriately high speed limits that they should be policing.

I saw them parked on the roundabout between ballybane road and dublin road exits on the corrib hotel roundabout last Sunday. In all seriousness, it would be virtually impossible to speed on that road!

They are only out and about to see who's around for the rally and if they know anyone who might be trouble IMO

B00MSTICK

There was one on the road that links the "monaghans" roundabout to the "menlow park" roundabout, just thrown up on the grass on the side of the road.

If anyone says going over 50kph on that road is dangerous is insane.

KevR

B00MSTICK wrote: »

There was one on the road that links the "monaghans" roundabout to the "menlow park" roundabout, just thrown up on the grass on the side of the road.

If anyone says going over 50kph on that road is dangerous is insane.

Saw that aswell this evening.

What really makes me laugh is that I have only ever seen them out late in the evening or very early in the morning when the roads are pretty quiet. I have never seen them doing speed checks during the day when it's busy. Surely it's more dangerous to speed in heavy-ish traffic than on an empty road?! The thing is they know it would be impossible to enforce/catch anyone during the day because everyone breaks the 50kmh speed limit on the bridge and the road between the Menlo Park RAB & Tuam Rd RAB.

KevR

There was an unmarked gatso van (the new mobile speed camera vans they have) hidden behind a bush on the road between the Tuam Rd RAB and the Menlo Park RAB earlier tonight. I was driving slow (almost sure I wasn't over the limit), as was the car in front of me and the car behind me. There were 2 cars in the right hand lane going slightly faster (they might have been a bit over the limit but they weren't speeding/a danger to themselves or others).

Anyway the camera in the gatso van flashed someone. Could have been anyone really (there were 5 of us passing it at the same time) - hope to god it wasn't me.

When the camera flashed everyone jammed on their brakes (a bit late in the day after it had already flashed :rolleyes:) and the flash almost caused a pile up. :mad:

I'll be raging if I get a ticket for that - I couldn't possibly go any slower on that road without it being dangerously slow..

PS - I think I might take a different route home from work anymore. They have been on the N6 in the City an aweful lot lately in the evenings. Only a matter of time until they do me for being slightly over the limit on one of those 4 lane roads which have the stupidly low speed limits (if they haven't already that is).

Caliden

Bit of a tangent but when they are out at night and having the hand-held 'guns', do they take a picture of your reg or do they have to stop you and give you a ticket with that type?

Also is that type of gun different from the ones they have on the tripod stand?
Never fully understood how those are accurate at night and how they can read your registration