Girl from Gort who constantly drives at 50kph

the_syco

robtri wrote: »

Except when this is a regular occurence....
If you know there is a good chance of meeting this motorist, then it is reasonable to allow more time.....
If you know there a good chance of meeting this driver, why wouldnt you take the extra time into consideration of your driving plans

Well, I wouldn't order takeaway if there was a chance it'd be behind the slow person. Heck, I'd probably ring the Gardai and report a suspected drunk driver, as only the drunks go so slow.

doolox

If enough people do it then the guards will have to take action and prosecute this infuriating creature and make the roads clear again.

You need her number and a description of the car and also a description of the driver if close enough to see her.

If enough people phone in complaints about general lateness and slowness on the roads affected this driverit will help. A case needs to be built up against her.

I know several "boy racers" who were put off the road because of complaints from more sedate residents in housing estates being used for racing and they were then caught and punished.

Same thing needs to happen to her.

dr.fuzzenstein

Moneymaker wrote: »

Glad I don't live near Gort. Sounds very dangerous and with all the aggressive drivers out there it's asking for something nasty to happen.

Yes, driving slowly and blocking people from overtaking is indeed a textbook definition of passive aggressive driving.
She's a cnut and shouldn't be on the road, anyone who says otherwise, likewise.

Personally I would do either one of two things:
Keep right behind her and keep following her, see how long before she gets freaked.
But more likely: POvertake her, get in front of her and slow down to 10 km/h whilst blocking HER from overtaking, moving out and speeding up when she tries.
Try it one day, it drives the slowcoach arsholes absolutely INSANE with rage. It is the most fun you can have with your clothes on.

bmstuff

CelticRambler wrote: »

Ahhhh, the innocence of the Irish! One driver doing 50kph! Here in France, there are thousands of them - all perfectly legal. If you're not fit to have a licence (can't pass driving test, failed too many breathalysers, dodgy eyesight, never learnt to drive anything other than a tractor) you can buy a "sans permis" car and tootle along the highways to your heart's content ... limited to 50kph (though I did tailgate one last week who hit 60kph on a downhill stretch).

Sit back an enjoy the view.

In France you can get fined for doing less than 80kmh on the motorway
Cars you can drive without a license are not allowed on the motorway.

gordongekko

bmstuff wrote: »

In France you can get fined for doing less than 80kmh on the motorway
Cars you can drive without a license are not allowed on the motorway.

The road in question is not a motorway

dr.fuzzenstein

the_syco wrote: »

Well, I wouldn't order takeaway if there was a chance it'd be behind the slow person. Heck, I'd probably ring the Gardai and report a suspected drunk driver, as only the drunks go so slow.

I think that's also a good option.
"Hello Gard, there is a suspect looking car ahead of me, driving very slowly, weaving and it looks like the driver is drinking something from a bottle. I think she may have hit a child a few miles back".
That should do it.

Steve

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

I think that's also a good option.
"Hello Gard, there is a suspect looking car ahead of me, driving very slowly, weaving and it looks like the driver is drinking something from a bottle. I think she may have hit a child a few miles back".
That should do it.

Would you be prepared to stand up in court and say that if they prosecuted?
Given your call to the Guards is likely being recorded and all..

Contempt is an automatic spell in prison

Steve

sdeire wrote: »

The vehicle could also be incapable, for whatever reason, of going any faster - but even my feckheap can do motorway speeds despite being in emergency mode for some time (perfectly safely so, according to the NCT). It would be almost certain that if it's not able to do 80km/h that it's mechanically unsound.

Possibly, but that would not stop the driver pulling over to let traffic pass the odd time and therefore exonerate themselves from 'being inconsiderate of other road users'.

Caliden

Steve wrote: »

Would you be prepared to stand up in court and say that if they prosecuted?
Given your call to the Guards is likely being recorded and all..

Contempt is an automatic spell in prison

So the person being prosecuted was actually drinking and had also hit a child?

Steve

Caliden wrote: »

So the person being prosecuted was actually drinking and had also hit a child?

No, they weren't. That's my point.

You're only going to pi$$ off the cops by making a false report - in any prosecution, the person reporting can be called as a witness so if your found out to be fibbing in court then it won't be good..

antoobrien

Steve wrote: »

No, they weren't. That's my point.

You're only going to pi$$ off the cops by making a false report - in any prosecution, the person reporting can be called as a witness so if your found out to be fibbing in court then it won't be good..

Your honour (s)he were driving slowly and weaving in a manner I have only seen at 1am with people that just fell out of <insert name of local watering hole>.

How was I to know that (s)he was a pioneer, I couldn't smell his/her breath in my car.

The fact that she was sober just makes her actions worse as she was causing a menace to other road users.

dr.fuzzenstein

antoobrien wrote: »

Your honour (s)he were driving slowly and waving in a manner I have only seen at 1am with people that just fell out of <insert name of local watering hole>.

How was I to know that (s)he was a pioneer, I couldn't smell his/her breath in my car.

The fact that she was sober just makes her actions worse as she was causing a menace to other road users.

Exactly.
Turns out she hit a dog, I couldn't see clearly from 10 cars back.
And unregistered pre-pay SIM cards are so cheap these days plus mobile phones can be had for €20.
So the odds of having to go to court are pretty much nil.

Caliden

Steve wrote: »

No, they weren't. That's my point.

You're only going to pi$$ off the cops by making a false report - in any prosecution, the person reporting can be called as a witness so if your found out to be fibbing in court then it won't be good..

What I'm saying is, it wouldn't even go to court if they weren't found to be over the limit so your point doesn't make much sense.

antoobrien

Caliden wrote: »

What I'm saying is, it wouldn't even go to court if they weren't found to be over the limit so your point doesn't make much sense.

Unless the gardai decided that here actions were a danger to other road users, regardless of her sobriety.

djimi

Steve wrote: »

No, they weren't. That's my point.

You're only going to pi$$ off the cops by making a false report - in any prosecution, the person reporting can be called as a witness so if your found out to be fibbing in court then it won't be good..

You can be smart about.

"Hi Garda, there is a driver ahead of us who is driving well below the speed limit and erratically; in my uneducated opinion they look like they might be drunk".

Nothing there that could get you in any hot water, and nothing that you couldnt stand up in court and repeat if it came to it (which it wouldnt, lets face it). Should be enough all the same to spark some interest in the Gardai.

Renegade Mechanic

Ah here. Theres better things to be calling the peelers about:D:D

doolox

The guards will be obliged to act on the information and pursue her for inconsiderate driving.

Steve

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

Exactly.
Turns out she hit a dog, I couldn't see clearly from 10 cars back.
And unregistered pre-pay SIM cards are so cheap these days plus mobile phones can be had for €20.
So the odds of having to go to court are pretty much nil.

Yet you said earlier that you clearly saw her drinking from a bottle inside her car and you are now saying that you aren't sure if she hit a dog as you were too far away?

Just saying - there's a difference between being a keyboard warrior where anything goes and actually reporting a crime where you have to provide facts and evidence that will stand up in court.

Fair enough if you think this is all a joke and an opportunity to join the pitchfork wielding crowd heading for the hanging tree - you would be better served to look at the facts and the bigger picture and arrive at a non peer influenced conclusion of your own.

dr.fuzzenstein

If the muppetry goes beyond a certain degree, I will ring the Gards. I have done in the past.
For example the guy in a pick up truck who was jumping around the cab like a rubber ball, the old guy who stood in the middle of the road with a bicycle shaking his fist at traffic, the old bastard would would park his car IN THE MIDDLE of the Tulla to Ennis road to name but a few.
So yes, if a car was driving in the manner described in the OP, I might just ring.
So far no one has come back to me and the car parked on the Tulla road has never been seen again.
Bet you you wouldn't, for fear they might say boo to you.

cabledude

djimi wrote: »

Its a fair point. On Monday I was stuck behind someone who was going no more than 75-80 the whole way from Blessington to Brittas (on what is probably the best stretch of 100km/h road in the county), and I couldnt get past them. In hindsight it probably cost me about 2-3 minutes max compared to overtaking them. Sometimes its really not worth worrying about.

Fair point.


But another way of looking at it is this. Suppose you and I were driving along the same stretch of road. I am plodding along at 85kmph. You wish to do 100kmph. (You have to get to work or an appointment etc) I am being an inconsiderate sh1te and do not move aside to allow you to get on with your journey. While this is not, clearly, illegal, it is very inconsiderate.

Why should I hold you up from going about your business? What gives me the right to control how fast you decide to drive. Why don't I just pull in and allow you to pass me.

I have two opinions of this.

1) I am an inconsiderate ar5ehole who thinks he owns the road and don't give a flying roger who is behind me or what their wishes are

or more alarmingly,

2) I'm not even bothering to look in my rearview mirror.

A lot of this slow coach, inconsiderate, living in their own bubble driving behaviour falls into category 2 I predict. I suspect that an awful lot of people never use their rear view mirrors.

*I would never do any of the above. I'm not that much of a bell end. Just using myself as an example*

ironclaw

cabledude wrote: »

But another way of looking at it is this. Suppose you and I were driving along the same stretch of road. I am plodding along at 85kmph. You wish to do 100kmph. (You have to get to work or an appointment etc) I am being an inconsiderate sh1te and do not move aside to allow you to get on with your journey. While this is not, clearly, illegal, it is very inconsiderate.

Why should I hold you up from going about your business? What gives me the right to control how fast you decide to drive. Why don't I just pull in and allow you to pass me.

At a 100km/h to 85km/h differential, every minute, I'm 200m less than I should be. So its going to take you 5 minutes to cost me a kilometre in terms of distance of where I 'should' be. Minuscule in terms of time.

Yes, its arrogant behaviour and I personally would never hold anyone up. But if one sits back, waits for a gap and when you can gun it. You'll quickly make up the time. People just seem to get frustrated in getting everywhere 'fast' Like I said earlier, the amount of times people blow past me for me to catch them in the next town or pull into a car park space where we're both going seconds before me is laughable. If you want to 'save time' as a rule of thumb, you need to be doing at least 50% over the limit at minimum.

dr.fuzzenstein

Well and that is precisely the case in the OP. Girl driving everywhere at 50 km/h.
Dangerous, selfish and either incompetent or even mentally ill.

AugustusMinimus

As I've said in other threads, if someone comes up behind me on a road (doesn't happen too often) I will do my utmost to aid them overtaking me.

I have an understanding that I am probably holding them up and its of no benefit to me whatsoever to keep them in my mirror.

I must say though, I don't understand why people are trying to defend the girl in this thread, saying the time wasted is minimal. The Gardaí pulled her over for a reason. They clearly don't thinking that the time being wasted, the convoy being formed etc isn't a dangerous or unwanted thing.

tinkerbell

How is this idiot driver still on the road? She should be brought to court and have her license revoked.

ironclaw

AugustusMinimus wrote: »

I must say though, I don't understand why people are trying to defend the girl in this thread, saying the time wasted is minimal. The Gardaí pulled her over for a reason. They clearly don't thinking that the time being wasted, the convoy being formed etc isn't a dangerous or unwanted thing.

I for one am not defending her driving. However we all share the road, just as we are entitled to flake everywhere at 120km/h, she's entitled to get there at 50km/h if she pleases. Its an inconvenience but grabbing the pitch forks and calling for a license revoking for a once in a blue moon event where you get stuck behind someone like this is nonsense.

That said, in this instance, it would appear to be an ongoing issue in the locality so its a little bit different. I'm talking in the general case of coming across a slower driver.

We really have such small world problems here. Come across a convoy of 5 or 6 American sizes trucks on a single lane desert road and you could be stuck at 50mph for over an hour. That said, most are pretty amicable to separate if you hail on the CB and you can leap frog your way to the top :pac:

Renegade Mechanic

tinkerbell wrote: »

How is this idiot driver still on the road? She should be brought to court and have her license revoked.

Only if she does something really lethally dangerous like...... take a drink from a water bottle!!

dr.fuzzenstein

ironclaw wrote: »

I for one am not defending her driving. However we all share the road, just as we are entitled to flake everywhere at 120km/h, she's entitled to get there at 50km/h if she pleases. Its an inconvenience but grabbing the pitch forks and calling for a license revoking for a once in a blue moon event where you get stuck behind someone like this is nonsense.
:

Erm, no. She is not entitled to do that.
One of the biggest misconceptions on this green isle is "I have a god given entitlement to be on the road and drive how I see fit!"
No, you do not.
You are permitted to drive as long as you keep to the rules.
And people are also not entitled to drive everywhere at 120 km/h, that's something called speeding and you get points and a ban for that.
Where did you get your licence? A cereal box?
But I think you are just taking on an opposing viewpoint purely for the purpose of annoying people.
I wonder if there is a term for that...

AugustusMinimus

ironclaw wrote: »

We really have such small world problems here. Come across a convoy of 5 or 6 American sizes trucks on a single lane desert road and you could be stuck at 50mph for over an hour. That said, most are pretty amicable to separate if you hail on the CB and you can leap frog your way to the top :pac:

Its a small world problem yes. Its also a problem which can be solved, very easily. And if this is the case, lets solve it.

I don't want her licence taken away. I do want here to be told that what she is doing is wrong, have it explained to her why and for her to be told that her standard of driving will no longer be tolerated. If she doesn't feel she can drive any faster, then she obviously needs to get driving lessons or such as a max speed of 50kph on a national primary route indicates to me that she cannot drive to a high enough level.

cabledude

The problem with the subject of this thread is not the fact that she is driving at 50kmph. Let her off. If she feels comfortable driving at that speed, fine.

The problem is her lack of empathy for other road users. She, according to the OP, hogs the white line. This limits the sight lines of drivers behind her. What is stopping her from moving in towards the hard shoulder/margin and allowing those behind her to move along with their journey.

This issue is not about being held back by 1km every 5 minutes. It is not about the fact that people can not drive at a rate of speed that they wish. This is about ignorance. This girl is a very ignorant driver. She doesn't give a feck about what is going on behind her. That may be perfectly fine for some people. But it grinds the gears of the rest.

It is absolutely out of order to impose speed limits on the drivers behind you by driving slow. It should be against the law. Probably not enforceable. But if it were to focus minds, it would be worth it.

ironclaw

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

Erm, no. She is not entitled to do that.
One of the biggest misconceptions on this green isle is "I have a god given entitlement to be on the road and drive how I see fit!"
No, you do not.
You are permitted to drive as long as you keep to the rules.
And people are also not entitled to drive everywhere at 120 km/h, that's something called speeding and you get points and a ban for that.
Where did you get your licence? A cereal box?
But I think you are just taking on an opposing viewpoint purely for the purpose of annoying people.
I wonder if there is a term for that...

Thats a bit strong! :eek:

I'm not trolling. What rule is she breaking? She simply not driving fast enough for you or at a speed that you feel is appropriate. Driving at a speed she see's fit, grand. Let her off. Crank up the radio and wait for a safe spot to pass. If she was actively blocking others from over taking, I mean weaving in a defensive manner, then hands up thats ridiculous and she should be pulled. No contest. But driving at 50km/h in itself, whilst dangerous, is not breaking any rules that I'm aware of. Even motorways in Ireland don't have minimum speed limits, as long as you can do 50km/h (And you don't actually have to do that speed) then off you go.

I'm not trolling. I'm just presenting my view (That I'm entitled to as are you without being told I got my license from a cereal box :rolleyes:) that on the grand scheme of things, she's cost your nothing but a bucket load of self induced stress and a few seconds off your day. Like I said, could be a whole lot worse e.g. Go sit on the 405 in LA for the afternoon and then come back to discuss someone holding you up at 50km/h in Gort :pac: