reporting illegal driving

PCPhoto

Apologies on a bit of a rant here - but is it possible to report a driver who is in control of a car while on a mobile phone - I know there is the garda confidential line for reporting crimes.

it just sickens me that drivers who clearly cant control their car struggle while holding their mobile phone and cause other cars to a sudden stop/swerve - I was driving up my street a couple of mins ago and as I was coming up there was a car struggling with a 3point turn blocking my path - as I got nearer I could clearly see that the driver was on her mobile - I parked my car and gestured to the driver who rolled down the window and asked me whats wrong - I told her to get off the phone and driver properly - she was driving illegally - she said she wasnt on the road - at which point I mentioned that she's in the driver seat of her car, the engine running and she's moving the car ..... she told the person on the phone to hold on a sec then she put up the window and drove off at speed..... in a residential area with kids playing about 100feet down the street.

I realise that while it wasnt going to kill anyone attempting a 3 point turn on a quiet residential street but if she's willing to do it on a quiet street will she decide not to answer the phone if she's in a busy street - I doubt it.

Ps. I should add that I know of someone who was hit by a driver who admitted to answering a call on his mobile and was distracted when he hit my friend (driving without due care and attention..... no drink or drugs involved - just stupidity)

are people too cheap to either press the loudspeaker button or get a handsfree kit.... or are people becoming more ignorant.

I know it might sound bad but I would like to think that if reported that the gardai could call to her house and basically frighten her not to do it again. (if everyone did this - the gardai would be busy - but at least drivers would get a fright and some would not use their phone while driving next time)

Random

If you make a report to the Gardai you're going to have to provide evidence or a statement to back it up.

PCPhoto

I took out my camera and took pics of her and took pics of the reg .... (I work as a photographer so really need to be fast with my camer sometimes)

so..other than going to garda station and reporting it theres nothing else ?

looks like I will have to do that (later today -I've got to goto a job)

leeroybrown

If it wasn't on a public road then they're extremely unlikely to do anything for you.

Dankoozy

i try not to get worked up over this kind of ****. lifes too short just let it go

also what goes around comes around - next time you do something wrong you might be snitched yourself. the only one who wins out of this snitching business is the government because it brings in the fines

Tigger

why

Random

What do you want from this?

If you think an offence was committed go down to the Garda station with your evidence and make your statement. Let them decide what to do with it.

My thoughts anyway.

CyberGhost

Man, I hate it when I see someone blabbering on the phone, while trying to smoke, while trying to turn the wheel, while trying to change the gear.

PCPhoto

what I would like from this is one less driver willing to chat to her mates on the phone while not paying full attention to the road.

she was clearly struggling with a 3point turn shile holding her phone and speedily drove off when I took out the camera and photo'd her..... she was not in control of her car while on the phone - fingers crossed if/when I report it and if/when the gardai call out to her to investigate then maybe she will have learned a lesson and will be less inclined to do it again.

lifer_sean

Was driving south of Roscrea on main Limerick-Dublin road during the week, around 5pm. Van in front, car behind, doing arond 55-60mph. Suddenly some nutter in white boy-racer 98 almera overtakes all three of us, when meeting other cars. Cars coming towards us had to swerve onto the hard shoulder to avoid head-on crash.

A minute later traffic blocks up in Roscrea, so I get the reg. Rang TrafficWatch number, gave the details. Today at lunch-time the Gardai in Roscrea ring me to follow up. They are calling to driver's house to caution him. Hopefully this will make him (her ?) cop on and will prevent an accident in the future.

Tigger

lifer_sean wrote: »

Was driving south of Roscrea on main Limerick-Dublin road during the week, around 5pm. Van in front, car behind, doing arond 55-60mph. Suddenly some nutter in white boy-racer 98 almera overtakes all three of us, when meeting other cars. Cars coming towards us had to swerve onto the hard shoulder to avoid head-on crash.

A minute later traffic blocks up in Roscrea, so I get the reg. Rang TrafficWatch number, gave the details. Today at lunch-time the Gardai in Roscrea ring me to follow up. They are calling to driver's house to caution him. Hopefully this will make him (her ?) cop on and will prevent an accident in the future.

i wonder if ye had left enough room to be over taken one at a time

L-M

lifer_sean wrote: »

Was driving south of Roscrea on main Limerick-Dublin road during the week, around 5pm. Van in front, car behind, doing arond 55-60mph. Suddenly some nutter in white boy-racer 98 almera overtakes all three of us, when meeting other cars. Cars coming towards us had to swerve onto the hard shoulder to avoid head-on crash.

A minute later traffic blocks up in Roscrea, so I get the reg. Rang TrafficWatch number, gave the details. Today at lunch-time the Gardai in Roscrea ring me to follow up. They are calling to driver's house to caution him. Hopefully this will make him (her ?) cop on and will prevent an accident in the future.

I rang them before to complain about a drink driver, and they rang me a few days later for me to follow it up. I didn't see the point as all the drink would have clearly gone out of his system. I'm not going to bother reporting again, 1. Because it tookt them too long to follow up and 2. I don't intend on wasting my time going to court.

I constantly see people driving on whilst on their mobile phone, which really annoys me. The new thing is putting the phone on loud speaker and holding it about two inches from your face, which I'm afraid is the exact same thing!

dudara

Limerick man wrote: »

The new thing is putting the phone on loud speaker and holding it about two inches from your face, which I'm afraid is the exact same thing!

Priceless, in a very sad way.

When are people going to understand that you need to use your two hands, your eyes, your ears and your brain when driving. Anything less and you're dangerous.

L-M

dudara wrote: »

Priceless, in a very sad way.

When are people going to understand that you need to use your two hands, your eyes, your ears and your brain when driving. Anything less and you're dangerous.

Well I don't have much use of one of my eyes, but I get where your coming from :P

dudara

Limerick man wrote: »

Well I don't have much use of one of my eyes, but I get where your coming from :P

It turned out that I passed my driving test with a detached retina in my left eye. Wasn't diagnosed until afterwards. Freaky!

mik_da_man

If you dont think she was paying peoper attention you should report her IMO.
I've reported dangerous driving before and the Gardai were very helpful.
Pull the chap in the next town about 10 mins away and cautioned him.
Rang me back to tell me what happened and to say thanks for reporting him.

brian ireland

PCPhoto wrote: »

I took out my camera and took pics of her and took pics of the reg .... (I work as a photographer so really need to be fast with my camer sometimes)

so..other than going to garda station and reporting it theres nothing else ?

looks like I will have to do that (later today -I've got to goto a job)

Are you saying you took out your camera and took a photo while driving??

Type 17

brian ireland wrote: »

Are you saying you took out your camera and took a photo while driving??

He was stopped because his path was blocked by a selfish tw4t doing a three-point turn while on the phone (the devil is in the detail, my friend).

brian ireland

Type 17 wrote: »

He was stopped because his path was blocked by a selfish tw4t doing a three-point turn while on the phone (the devil is in the detail, my friend).

Ah thats where the devil is, and I thought...... never mind!!!

Sofiztikated

There are 3 possible ways its work out.

1 You don't report her. Nothing will happen.

2 You do report her, and nothing happens.

3 You do report her, and the squads go out and caution her.

I know which I'd do. If more people did actually report this, there would be less of it happening. It seems to have gotten back to being acceptable again, one of those laws thats obeyed for a bit and then forgotten about when the media hype has blown over.

Ah-Watch

lifer_sean wrote: »

Was driving south of Roscrea on main Limerick-Dublin road during the week, around 5pm. Van in front, car behind, doing arond 55-60mph. Suddenly some nutter in white boy-racer 98 almera overtakes all three of us, when meeting other cars. Cars coming towards us had to swerve onto the hard shoulder to avoid head-on crash.

A minute later traffic blocks up in Roscrea, so I get the reg. Rang TrafficWatch number, gave the details. Today at lunch-time the Gardai in Roscrea ring me to follow up. They are calling to driver's house to caution him. Hopefully this will make him (her ?) cop on and will prevent an accident in the future.

Happens alot in Roscrea:( Nice to see the boys in blue did something about it!:)

allthedoyles

lifer_sean wrote: »

so I get the reg. Rang TrafficWatch number, gave the details. Today at lunch-time the Gardai in Roscrea ring me to follow up. They are calling to driver's house to caution him. .

I use this number as well and I hope it works - Traffic Watch 1890 205 805

Wishbone Ash

PCPhoto wrote: »

I took out my camera and took pics of her and took pics of the reg

* shakes head * :rolleyes:

Allowing yourself to get so worked up about something like this probably made you a bigger danger on the road.

Dartz

Am I the only person who can't help but feel that people who go out of their way to report random driving offences and such to the Gardaí are like tell-talers from school who just never grew up. The sort of people who make themselves feel better, by going out of their way to report the stupidity of others.

I hate you people. I really do, driving around like your exhaust smells sweeter than ours. It's that self-righteous arrogance that I hate, the idea that you've never broken a speed-limit, or missed a red-light, been a bit late with road-tax, or generally been a dumb bloody idiot on the road at one stage. Either you got away with it, and nobody saw you, or nobody bothered to report it.

Yeah, these people are doing stupid things, nobody ever said they weren't... but Good God man, haven't you ever done something dumb yourself?

allthedoyles

Yes , of course we are no angels , and always have our stupid manouvres on the road .

However , we have to think about the 365 killed on the roads every year ...........thats one for every day of the year.

I can still brag about the fact that I have no penalty points , and I hope it is every readers ambition here to stay safe and drive safely at all time , and always obey the rules of the road .

E34

Dartz wrote: »

Am I the only person who can't help but feel that people who go out of their way to report random driving offences and such to the Gardaí are like tell-talers from school who just never grew up. The sort of people who make themselves feel better, by going out of their way to report the stupidity of others.

I hate you people. I really do, driving around like your exhaust smells sweeter than ours. It's that self-righteous arrogance that I hate, the idea that you've never broken a speed-limit, or missed a red-light, been a bit late with road-tax, or generally been a dumb bloody idiot on the road at one stage. Either you got away with it, and nobody saw you, or nobody bothered to report it.

Yeah, these people are doing stupid things, nobody ever said they weren't... but Good God man, haven't you ever done something dumb yourself?

Totally agree with Dartz.

Big difference between someone driving carelessly, for instance, on the phone, bad road positioning, wrong lane, etc and dangerous driving.

I agree with reporting people for dangerous driving but not for petty infringements which should be left to the gardai to enforce.

8vjohn

If I was to report every dangerous incident I see on the roads everyday I'd be making 5 or 6 calls a day.
Only yesterday I met a car overtaking a tractor on a blind bend with a double white line. It was so close that the abs had a hard time trying to keep the wheels in check. This was at 100kmh.
Can't people wait untill after the corner??

phonebox

8vjohn wrote: »

If I was to report every dangerous incident I see on the roads everyday I'd be making 5 or 6 calls a day.
Only yesterday I met a car overtaking a tractor on a blind bend with a double white line. It was so close that the abs had a hard time trying to keep the wheels in check. This was at 100kmh.
Can't people wait untill after the corner??

I drive the N4 every day, and I could make more than 20 calls each day.

The gardai do nothing here, there is no enforcement of the law, (unless your driving a foreign porsche) trucks and buses tailgate, trucks racing each other, they use the overtaking lane on motorways (illegal) people on phones, women and makeup, men reading newspapers, no wonder so many are killed here (roads are sh1te too).

lunatics joining a motorway and moving straight in to OT lane.
kids standing on back seats
kids sitting on the lap of a parent in a van
death trap cars

the list is endless

Zube

phonebox wrote: »

no wonder so many are killed here

Actually, our death rate is pretty respectable by European standards. Not up to UK/Swedish standards, but improving. 2008's was the lowest figure since records began in 1959.

moretothegirl

the worst i saw was when i was overtaking a lorry and a jeep three cars back behind me decided to pass at the same time, obviously i wasnt going fast enough for his liking (even though i did pass pretty quickly) and so decided to pass me WHILE i was passing the lorry.... he was practically on the other hard shoulder/ditch......... iv never felt so much road rage as i did that day!! he drove off to fast to catch his number plate