new motorway campaign

padma

from rte http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0411/roads.html

will they educate on correct lane usage?

bazzachazza

padma wrote: »

from rte http://www.rte.ie/news/2011/0411/roads.html

will they educate on correct lane usage?

No to easy !:o

Cookie_Monster

The National Roads Authority says that on a new stretch of road in Limerick, around 30 motorists a month are driving the wrong way down the motorway.

30 a month, what the fuck:confused:

Mena

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

30 a month, what the fuck:confused:

One can only but hope these are dopey tourists and not locals :eek:

CiniO

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

30 a month, what the fuck:confused:

I've seen one over last 2 years, and I drive very seldom on motorways.

So I assume it's quite usual.

Absurdum

some of the article is quite misleading imo.

Last year, 20% of those killed on motorways were pedestrians.

OMG the motorways must be full of pedestrians shock horror, people are morons, the RSA must spend more money etc.

Whereas the actual number is 1 or 2 pedestrian fatalities; I can't find the 2010 statistics, but in 2009 there were 4 fatalities on motorways (source: page 41 of 2009 report), and it's entirely possible that they were pedestrians as a result of a breakdown or puncture, so it's not like people are casually strolling up the M1 every day.

Almost 100 people have been killed or seriously injured on Irish motorways in the past five years.

Again, "almost" and "seriously" are arbitrary statements; was it 70 people? what extent were the injuries?

Last year, the AA also saw a 60% increase in the number of members who broke down on motorways.

There were 2 periods of extreme cold weather last year, traffic was at a crawl on many stretches of motorways, minor collisions occurred due to ice and snow (classified as call-outs by the AA or actual breakdowns??).

Also, many new stretches of motorway were opened in the last couple of years, so obviously the number of users has increased.

The whole thing reeks of the RSA covering their arses in case their budget gets cut.

In my opinion

corktina

pedestrians in this context must mean drivers/passeengers of broken down vehiocles walking for help I guess

Take no notice of what the AA say, they are just a commercial recovery company with pretentions to be the Motorists Spokesman....

Leonard Hofstadter

The RSA is the most retarded organisation in existence.

The single biggest problem with Irish motorways is people who do not understand the mind bogglingly simple concept of staying in the left lane all the time except when overtaking?

And yet we have a "campaign" to tell us about not walking on motorways:eek:?

Fine Gael and Labour had better get rid of this useless quango, and get rid of it fast.

Zubeneschamali

The new advertising campaign focuses on the key motorway issues of Lane Merging, Lane Discipline on 3 Lane Motorways, Overtaking and a Breakdown. It also reminds the public never to walk on a motorway and never to stop on the hard shoulder of a motorway.

Sounds fair enough to me. Link here.

Cookie_Monster

pity they didn't add cycling on motorways into that campaign

Beta Ray Bill

Cookie_Monster wrote: »

30 a month, what the fuck:confused:

I Read that too!!!

How can people be this stupid?
How is it possible like?

I do not understand! :mad:

Absurdum

Surely to jaysus if there are that many in a month on one particular stretch, it's something to do with the layout and signage

Beta Ray Bill

Absurdum wrote: »

Surely to jaysus if there are that many in a month on one particular stretch, it's something to do with the layout and signage

I'd say you're right

There has to be a bogey junction somewhere that is confusing people that are not local to that particular area

I wouldn't be at all surprised in fact

Cuddlesworth

I'm afraid nothing beats the car that performed a three point turn after missing his exit on the m50 between the firhouse and Tallagh. I literally **** myself a little from the sheer surprise of a car turning across three lanes to drive up a on ramp.

skyhighflyer

I hope they'll target people who pull in on the hard shoulder to take a phone call / rummage around for something in the back seat / give out to their kids or whatever. People need to realise they can't stop on a motorway unless it's an emergency.

Too many people treat the new motorways like the N-raods they replaced. Very dangerous for a car with kids in the back seat to be pulled over on the hard shoulder with cars whizzing past at 120kph +.

Voodoomelon

I've a feeling the way the RSA is going to handle the lane discipline problem is going to come across as a "suggestion" and people just aren't going to listen.

They need to say word for word "it is an offence to not keep left unless overtaking", highlighting the fact that it is law and not something you can choose to follow or not. They also need to dismiss the myth that is the "fast lane" and the "slow lane", publically state that these terms are made up the refer to them correctly as driving lanes and overtaking lanes.

Because I bet they'll just say it in passing, "keep left unless overtaking", which will just shoot over 95% of the dimwits heads who hog the wrong lane every day of the week.

Absurdum

it's on RTE News now, CCTV footage looks suspiciously foreign to me.

Message from AA is "don't break down on a motorway"

At least their was no mention of breaking the speed limit = certain death.

whyulittle

"Don't stop on the hard shoulder unless it's an emergency".

Hmmmm, how could we get that point across a bit stronger. Maybe if we called it the Emergency La.....nah, forget it.

Guy:Incognito

Saw the ad today and dissappointed with the section on moving to the middle lane to alow people to merge. It makes it sound mandatory. Every time I'm on a motorway here I come across people braking to create gaps or braking and moving to the middle lane because people are looking to merge. You should never have to brake on a motorway and certainly not in those circumstances. If everyone kept the right gaps in traffic, the peopel mergign on should be able to look after themselves withotu anyone doing anything but lettign off the accelerator a bit to re-establish the gap once someone moves in to it.

captainspeed wrote: »

And yet we have a "campaign" to tell us about not walking on motorways:eek:?.

In fairness, the section on the news just sad a decent percentage of people killed and injured on out motorways are pedestrians. Theres clearly a lot of idiots out there. Most tend to be in cars but a few cattle do seem to get loose and stray. Nothign worng with having it mentioned in the campaigns.

coylemj

corktina wrote: »

Take no notice of what the AA say, they are just a commercial recovery company with pretentions to be the Motorists Spokesman....

+1

I don't remember Conor Faughnan ever getting elected by the motorists of Ireland to speak on their behalf.

Solair

The National Roads Authority says that on a new stretch of road in Limerick, around 30 motorists a month are driving the wrong way down the motorway

If that many people are making that mistake then there's something wrong with the signage / layout.

coylemj

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

Saw the ad today and dissappointed with the section on moving to the middle lane to alow people to merge. It makes it sound mandatory. Every time I'm on a motorway here I come across people braking to create gaps or braking and moving to the middle lane because people are looking to merge. You should never have to brake on a motorway and certainly not in those circumstances. If everyone kept the right gaps in traffic, the peopel mergign on should be able to look after themselves withotu anyone doing anything but lettign off the accelerator a bit to re-establish the gap once someone moves in to it.

Temporarily moving into the middle lane is often the safest way to allow someone to merge, especially if it's a thicko who doesn't appear to have the intelligence to adjust his speed to merge safely.

A lot of drivers think they can merge at whatever speed they like and the people on the motorway have to let them in no matter what, they don't seem to realise that the merging lane is as long as it is in order to allow them to adjust their speed to that of the traffic already on the motorway.

The merging lanes on Irish motorways are about three times longer than in France, a testament to the crappy driving standards in this country.

Guy:Incognito

They could have done with a section too dealing with the M50 and tellign peopel they dont all have to fight each other to get in to the outside of the 2 slip lanes at most junctions. The lane ends and gives about 30 metres to merge but all these idiots try to force themselves out in a train about 10 cars long.
The other bloody lane gives you the whole distance to the next junction to merge at your leisure. 9 times out of 10 when I use the M50 I end up ahead of all the idiots in the outside lane because they and the people on the carriageway are braking and jostling to get themselves sorted while I can continue in an empty lane at 100km/h and merge when theres a [rp[er gap.

Guy:Incognito

coylemj wrote: »

Temporarily moving into the middle lane is often the safest way to allow someone to merge, especially if it's a thicko who doesn't appear to have the intelligence to adjust his speed to merge safely.

A lot of drivers think they can merge at whatever speed they like and the people on the motorway have to let them in no matter what.

I've no issue with that but I just know what will happen now is that everyone in the driving lane will be brakign and divign in to the middle lane at the mere sight of a car on the slip. They could have worded it better to make sure people know they are not required to move if they dont have too.

Telling people that 100 is the speed they should be driving at not 80-90 wouldnt have gone amiss either.

coylemj

Guy:Incognito wrote: »

I've no issue with that but I just know what will happen now is that everyone in the driving lane will be brakign and divign in to the middle lane at the mere sight of a car on the slip. They could have worded it better to make sure people know they are not required to move if they dont have too.

Agreed, it should be highlighted as an option at the discretion of the driver on the motorway.

However since 'middle lane hoggers' are the stated enemy of the boardsies on this forum, one would hope that a driver with the intelligence and good driving practice to be in the left lane in the first place will be sufficiently able to deal with merging cars and not automatically dive into the middle lane.

sporting dogs

the new EDT driving scheme should hopefully cut down on the amount of crashes an deaths on our motorways. up until now you could fail your driving test and yet drive home by yourself either on national road or the motorway.

as a instructor i teach carriageway driving , least when the pupils are out on their own they will have some idea of how to join the major roads

Voodoomelon

sporting dogs wrote: »

up until now you could fail your driving test and yet drive home by yourself either on national road or the motorway.

Learners aren't allowed on the motorway.

sporting dogs

learners arnt allowed on motorways your right, they are also not meant to drive without a full licence driver beside them but we all know plenty of L plate drivers who are out driving on their own

slimjimmc

corktina wrote: »

pedestrians in this context must mean drivers/passeengers of broken down vehiocles walking for help I guess

Take no notice of what the AA say, they are just a commercial recovery company with pretentions to be the Motorists Spokesman....

Some perhaps but from what I see quite a few aren't. I've seen quite a few 'pleasure' pedestrians on the M9 over the past 12 months. Some the one that come to mind were:
1 guy out jogging, 2 guys just strolling along together (no stopped car within 5km of them), another guy strolling, and only last week I saw a kid, about 12-14 years old at a guess, wobbling along the hard shoulder on an under-size bike and looking over his shoulder as if he was looking for a gap to cross.
So if you add that on top of the odd eejit you see standing at the central barrier trying the cross 3 lanes of the N7 in peak traffic, it only surprises me there aren't more serious accidents involving pedestrians.

Buffman

Here's the solution for idiots entering a motorway the wrong way. One way spikes at the bottom of each exit.

Seasoft

http://maps.google.ie/maps/empw?url=http:%2F%2Fmaps.google.ie%2Fmaps%3Fhl%3Den%26q%3Dennis,clare%26gbv%3D2%26ie%3DUTF8%26hq%3D%26hnear%3DEnnis,%2BCounty%2BClare%26ll%3D52.84435,-8.982994%26spn%3D0.001898,0.004823%26t%3Dk%26z%3D14%26output%3Dembed&hl=en&gl=ie

This is a junction on the M18 at the Tulla Road from Ennis to Tulla. It is sub-standard in design, and has been the scene of at least one fatal "wrong-way" accident.
Both the on and off ramps are side by side, originally separated only by a continuous line of paint. A driver going down the on-ramp from the roundabout could easily think they were on a dual-way, cross into the other side, and end up driving the wrong way, especially at night. In the dark a driver entering the motorway did turn the wrong way, and died.
Afterwards, thin plastic bollards were but along the central line. Now it is clearer that it is a two way system to the motorway proper, but who allowed this junction to be approved beats me. Perhaps the Limerick motorway mentioned earlier also has a similar junction???
The penalty points should go to the designers/approvers and not the confused drivers.

edwinkane

Cuddlesworth wrote: »

I'm afraid nothing beats the car that performed a three point turn after missing his exit on the m50 between the firhouse and Tallagh. I literally **** myself a little from the sheer surprise of a car turning across three lanes to drive up a on ramp.

It must have been a little embarrassing, actually a lot embarrassing, if you literally **** yourself. Do you mean figuratively?

Gregor Samsa

Seasoft wrote: »

This is a junction on the M18 at the Tulla Road from Ennis to Tulla. It is sub-standard in design, and has been the scene of at least one fatal "wrong-way" accident.

I use that junction daily. One of the (many) problems with the layout of that junction is that it's counter intuitive to people who know the geography of the area, but aren't used to motorways*. When you're coming from Ennis, you know that Limerick is to your right (south), and Galway to your left (north), yet the junction for the Galway carriageway is on the right side of the Tulla road, and the one to Limerick on the left. So people who weren't used to it were taking the Limerick junction when they wanted to go north, then when they got down the ramp, turned right onto the motorway, as they knew that was the direction they wanted to go (albeit on the wrong side of the road).

I know it sounds unbelievable, but as Seasoft said, there was one fatal "wrong-way" accident last year (an elderly lady), and I've personally seen 2 cars facing the wrong way on that motorway - luckily for me, they were pulled in at the time, with confused drivers wondering how the f**k they'd got into that situation.

The plastic bollards at seem to have improved things, but it's mad that some drivers literally need to be corralled into their lane to keep them on the right side of the road.

*There are plenty of people in Clare who would have never driven on a motorway before the M18 opened. I dive it every day to Shannon. The behaviour on it is unbelievable. Hitchhikers, walkers (carrying their shopping back form Shannon), cyclists, loads of people stopped on the hard shoulder daily, lane hoggers, people driving at 50km/h, driving on the hard shoulder, straddling lanes, trying to merge onto the mororway at 80km/h, the works.

Last week I saw a guy in a van pull into the hard shoulder just before Barefield. He had 2 kids in the front, but he hopped out, left them there, and ran across the motorway (vaulting the concrete meridian barrier) to do something in a field on the other sided of the road. Motorway education is seriously needed in this county.

Little A

Any campaign on improving peoples road usage has to be a good thing.

- most people agree that lane disciple in Ireland is woeful, lane 1 is nearly always empty with everyone motoring along in lanes 2 & 3

- many people have no clue how to use roundabouts

- I have seen a family have a picnic along the side of the M50 (portable table & all !!). Mum, dad & 3 small kids.....madness & the police would be along in minutes in anyo ther country

- I have regularly seen people waiting to be collected or being dropped off along the side of motorways

- Learner drivers regularly drive on the motorways - this is never monitored

Then again, Irish can be very intolorant - we generally hate anyone overtaking us & don't allow people to pull back in, we imediately think "gobs***e" rather than giving people the benefit of the doubt that they made a simple mistake. Common courtesty would help our statistics as much as any campaign + driving defensively.

Seasoft

One thing mentioned by several posters (and as far as I can tell, is unique to Ireland) is stopping in the hard-shoulder on motorways for non-emergency reasons.
We'd toot drivers who did something stupid while moving. Why not blow our horns as we pass stopped cars? Legal? If not after dark, I'd say so. A few long blasts from several passing cars/vans/trucks would let the parker know what others thought of him/her.
Thoughts?

Cookie_Monster

Seasoft wrote: »

One thing mentioned by several posters (and as far as I can tell, is unique to Ireland) is stopping in the hard-shoulder on motorways for non-emergency reasons.
We'd toot drivers who did something stupid while moving. Why not blow our horns as we pass stopped cars? Legal? If not after dark, I'd say so. A few long blasts from several passing cars/vans/trucks would let the parker know what others thought of him/her.
Thoughts?

how do you know it's not an emergency / breakdown?

Cuddlesworth

edwinkane wrote: »

It must have been a little embarrassing, actually a lot embarrassing, if you literally **** yourself. Do you mean figuratively?

Just a little shart. Had a mild dose of the runs that day.

DanWall

Talking about the runs, when are we going to get services on our motorway? also if you are not allowed on the hard shoulder and there is no where to stop, what do you do if you are feeling sleeping, you dammed if you do and you dammed if you don't.

Gregor Samsa

DanWall wrote: »

Talking about the runs, when are we going to get services on our motorway? also if you are not allowed on the hard shoulder and there is no where to stop, what do you do if you are feeling sleeping, you dammed if you do and you dammed if you don't.

The M4 has a sevice centre between junctions 9 and 10. A few of the newer motorways have some rest areas (M7, M18 between Ennis and Gort, for example). But we need a lot more of them.

the varg

DanWall wrote: »

Talking about the runs, when are we going to get services on our motorway? also if you are not allowed on the hard shoulder and there is no where to stop, what do you do if you are feeling sleeping, you dammed if you do and you dammed if you don't.

If you're feeling sleepy and there are designated lay-bys (granted they are few and far between) you use them otherwise you leave the motorway at the next exit. You don't park on the hard shoulder to have a kip. What have you got, a death wish or something?

Vicxas

How can you go down the wrong side of the motorway.... mind boggling...

Solair

I just had an utterly maddening situation on the M8 the other day.

When I am driving Dublin-Cork I usually put the car into cruise control and try to maintain exactly 120km/h. Usually it's no issue but I got stuck behind this utterly weird driver with a Kildare reg.

He was driving in the left lane and kept falling back from 120km/h to about 90km/h to 100km/h. So, naturally enough, I overtook him and went back into the left lane a good bit ahead of him and continued on at 120km/h

He then seemed to take offence to the idea of being over taken and the minute I pulled back into the left lane again, he overtook me. He then drifted back down to about 90km/h

I overtook him again and he just did exactly the same thing - passed me out and then drove slowly in front of me.

After the 3rd time, I didn't have much option other than to break the speed limit and put some clear distance between me and him.

That kind of driving is just utterly weird. I don't know what is wrong with someone like that they need to get their petty attitudes off the road.

I am a young guy and I drive a fairly new Toyota Prius so it's not like he had some kind of ego issues where he felt he'd been passed by an old lady in a 1990 Micra or something, which would also be an utterly ridiculous thing to be upset by.

People need to drive and stop behaving like children on the road!

I don't know if that guy's behaviour is a specific traffic offence but it's very dangerous and utterly weird driving!

The other thing that drives me nuts is that you will get the odd person who for absolutely no reason will drive at 120km/h about 2 meters from your bumper, even though there's a totally empty overtaking lane and they won't pass. Instead, they just want to tail gate and drive in a weird / intimidating manner.

It's like they're trying to bully you into going >120km/h in the slow lane. Again, it leaves you with little choice but to break the speed limit. I have flashed the hazards / touched the break lights with that kind of situation before.

I also had an incident where a "boy racer" deliberately blocked me from getting into an exit lane by matching my speed and driving along side the car! When I slowed, he slowed, when I accelerated, he accelerated. I missed the exit and I could see the guy laughing to his mate and pointing. It was really dangerous as I had to pull back into the motorway again!

I called the Gardai on that one but I don't think they took it very seriously.

Egotistical idiots should not on the roads. Motorways are not the school playground!

AugustusMinimus

I have to ask this though. How are the motorists of this country to know not to stop in the breakdown lane of a motorway when we have the Gardai parking speed camera vans on the breakdown lane of the M1 ?

-Chris-

Looks like they're not actually on the lane, looks like they're on a clearing on the "grass".

AugustusMinimus

-Chris- wrote: »

Looks like they're not actually on the lane, looks like they're on a clearing on the "grass".

The van is still not in a safe place.

What if there was an accident and someone hit the van ?

I bet you'd get done by a Garda for stopping in the breakdown lane if you parked your car there.

-Chris-

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

The van is still not in a safe place.

What if there was an accident and someone hit the van ?

What if there was an accident and the van wasn't there and instead the car hit the concrete pillar behind it?

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

I bet you'd get done by a Garda for stopping in the breakdown lane if you parked your car there.

We've been through this before though, Gardai can park in places that civilians can't as long as it's work-related.

Stealthirl

what gets me is driveing the wrong way down the m50 ect will get you 2 points and a €80 fine yet parking in a dangerous position = Mandatory court appearance,5 points if convicted and a court fine

iv seen it loads of times but the stand out was
the 3 idots on the M4 who ziped by me in the overtakeing lane doin 120+ [est] ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD IN THE FOG :eek: @ 2am

the road was closed est bound from maynooth to celbridge west exit

AugustusMinimus

-Chris- wrote: »

We've been through this before though, Gardai can park in places that civilians can't as long as it's work-related.

Ah yes, but you claimed that the area where the van is parked is not technically the break down lane.

-Chris- wrote: »

Looks like they're not actually on the lane, looks like they're on a clearing on the "grass".

I bet a judge would view it as being the breakdown lane if an ordinary motorist park "on the grass".





Gardai being allowed to park there doesn't excuse how dangerous it is to park something there, especially considering that the gatso van is clearly not parked there as part of an emergency.

While Gardai may be above the law (in being allowed to park there) in this situation, they aren't above common sense. They should be aware that what they are doing is (in my opinion) very dangerous and who ever decided to place the van there could find themselves in deep trouble if it resulted in the death of a motorist. On that basis, no one is above the law.

AugustusMinimus

-Chris- wrote: »

What if there was an accident and the van wasn't there and instead the car hit the concrete pillar behind it?

I can't really tell what's behind it due to it being a poor quality photo.

I think that there actually may be a ramp up to where the vertical part of the pillar starts.

Anyways, the motorway was originally designed with this pillar in mind safety wise. I really don't know if the motorway was originally designed with the placement of a gatso van alonside the pillar.

It's also much more likely you are going to hit the van as it is obviously much closer to the driving lane of the motorway than the pillar is (that being if there is no ramp up to the start of the pillar)

Leonard Hofstadter

Solair wrote: »

I just had an utterly maddening situation on the M8 the other day.

When I am driving Dublin-Cork I usually put the car into cruise control and try to maintain exactly 120km/h. Usually it's no issue but I got stuck behind this utterly weird driver with a Kildare reg.

He was driving in the left lane and kept falling back from 120km/h to about 90km/h to 100km/h. So, naturally enough, I overtook him and went back into the left lane a good bit ahead of him and continued on at 120km/h

He then seemed to take offence to the idea of being over taken and the minute I pulled back into the left lane again, he overtook me. He then drifted back down to about 90km/h

I overtook him again and he just did exactly the same thing - passed me out and then drove slowly in front of me.

That is one of my pet hates, it's really noticable when you're in a car with cruise control fitted the amount of people that cannot keep to anything even remotely resembling keeping a constant speed on motorways and dual carriageways.

I think some of the not so young drivers get really upset when someone who is rather young goes and overtakes them - some seem to be determined that you are "speeding" (because you're driving at say 125 because of the fact that speedos overread) and must overtake you to slow you down because as we all know, just 1 kph over the limit will literally kill you stone dead :rolleyes:!

AugustusMinimus

captainspeed wrote: »

That is one of my pet hates, it's really noticable when you're in a car with cruise control fitted the amount of people that cannot keep to anything even remotely resembling keeping a constant speed on motorways and dual carriageways.

I think some of the not so young drivers get really upset when someone who is rather young goes and overtakes them - some seem to be determined that you are "speeding" (because you're driving at say 125 because of the fact that speedos overread) and must overtake you to slow you down because as we all know, just 1 kph over the limit will literally kill you stone dead :rolleyes:!

Old fogies hate being overtaking.

I overtook one doing 50mph on the Clonakilty to Bandon road last week and he went mental. Started flashing lights at me and everything. Never expierienced anything like it before.