Getting caught going through a red light..

Wats_in_a_name

Is it possible to get points & fine for going through a red light if your not pulled over at the lights. Are there cameras on some traffic lights?

keithclancy

Wats_in_a_name wrote: »

Is it possible to get points & fine for going through a red light if your not pulled over at the lights. Are there cameras on some traffic lights?

Not in Ireland, those cameras on the Lights are for the council I think. Something to do with traffic management.

I went through a red in Germany once, you'd know if you did, big massive flash, temporary blue spots in eyes.

If a garda witnessed it though I think they can just send you the ticket as he saw you driving through a red light.

Wats_in_a_name

Thats a relief. Went through a red yesterday pulled onto a road which has pedestrian crossing right beside the road I was pulling out of. Near a school so kept looking around for children & cars and completely forgot about the lights!

fryup

keithclancy wrote: »

Not in Ireland, those cameras on the Lights are for the council I think. Something to do with traffic management.

are you sure about that?

dr.fuzzenstein

In Germany a lot of traffic lights have cameras on them, tried to make the yellow light once but missed it, big flash, picture taken, fine, points and since I was a newly qualified driver had to do another test. This highly advanced technology (photographic camera) was available in Germany as far back as the 70's, I myself was caught out in the early 90's.
Never went through a red light again.
Same goes for speeding, illegal parking, tailgating, illegal overtaking, drink driving, you name it.
You know you'll get caught, so you don't do it.
In Ireland it's ok as long as you obey the three car rule: No more than three cars to run a red light after it has changed. 4 tops. 5 maybe. 6 is pushing it. Unless it's a road works light, they don't count anyway, but no more than 20 cars at the most. 25 maybe.
In other words: In 15 years of driving here I have never, EVER heard of ANYONE being done for running a red light.
I'm sure they have prosecuted a token handful of people so they can say "see! We're doing something!" but as for regular prosecutions for this or entering a yellow box, driving at 20 km/h and a few other things it just does not happen.
As long as you have tax and insurance and don't speed on motorways (at least on the three spots where they always are) it doesn't matter if your car is on fire and you have 20 severed heads in the boot.
I don't know why the Gardai take such a lax attitude to these things, it can't simply be numbers since in Germany you never see half the cops you see here and they seem to manage to keep things under control.

bladebrew

i know someone who got 2 penalty points for going through a red, but she was pulled over after she went through it,im not sure where the garda car was though,
afaik there is no other way to get a fine or points,

Idleater

Wats_in_a_name wrote: »

Are there cameras on some traffic lights?

I thought the camera at the st johns road island bride junction was to catch light breaking.
Whether It's operational or if there's even 'film' in it is another matter.

meercat

nereid
agree with you their.thats what they are there for.dont know if they are operational though

djimi

nereid wrote: »

I thought the camera at the st johns road island bride junction was to catch light breaking.
Whether It's operational or if there's even 'film' in it is another matter.

I think that one is actually to catch people who make an illegal right turn at one of the junctions, but its possible it can also catch people who break the lights.

martydunf

Are the camera looking things on top of the lights not sensors to detect if theres a car at the lights?

Mr Benevolent

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

I don't know why the Gardai take such a lax attitude to these things, it can't simply be numbers since in Germany you never see half the cops you see here and they seem to manage to keep things under control.

I think it's because the Germans generally obey most laws and the Irish generally ignore them, think they apply to someone else or think 'ah shure it'll be grand!'.

Stereotype? Nah.

gurramok

fryup wrote: »

are you sure about that?

Some of them are(probably most). The council don't prosecute for jumping red lights, the Gardai do. And the Gardai can only do it if they witness it.

You'll definitely see this at operation Freeflow where Gardai do be sat around the corner at camera enabled junctions specifically to nab red light jumpers. Why bother post a Garda for this job when there are camera's ?:)