Fixed Penalty Charge - Hard Shoulder

q85dw7osi4lebg

Hi guys, will keep this as short as possible.

A few weeks back I was driving on the M1 South bound near balbriggan.

Traffic began to slow and became stop-start.

In this stop-start traffic I noticed my bonnet latch had come undone (I had put oil in the car the night before and must not have closed it properly).

Anyway, naturally I had to close the bonnet, so I moved into the left lane in order to make my way towards the hard shoulder.

Sure enough there were some clowns driving in the hard shoulder to get to the next exit about 200 metres ahead.

I slowly moved into the hard shoulder, and sure enough just at the end of the hard shoulder where the exit begins, there was a Garda stopping people for driving in the hard shoulder.

My question is - what would you have done when you saw the Garda about 150 metres ahead?

The below 3 options went through my head:

1) Stop on the hard shoulder immediately and Get out to close bonnet, and risk having a clown rear end me.

2) Move back out of the hard shoulder and wait until after the Garda car, and risk getting pulled.

3) Slowly drive to the Garda and explain my situation, this would be the safest bet considering the emergency.

I stupidly went with option 3, and I've just received an €80 fine and 1 point for driving on the hard shoulder.

Option 2 would have resulted in getting pulled also as other motorists found out.

deandean

I don't believe your story.
Sounds like you were taking an early shoot up the hard shoulder and got caught.
Yes it's frustrating when all those other feckers get away with it and the one time you try it...you are caught.
Same story in Dublin with driving in the bus lanes.

colm_mcm

Option 1 seems sensible, followed by attempted merging?

Mervyn Skidmore

Monserrat Jolly Sunblock wrote: »

Hi guys, will keep this as short as possible.

A few weeks back I was driving on the M1 South bound near balbriggan.

Traffic began to slow and became stop-start.

In this stop-start traffic I noticed my bonnet latch had come undone (I had put oil in the car the night before and must not have closed it properly).

Anyway, naturally I had to close the bonnet, so I moved into the left lane in order to make my way towards the hard shoulder.

Sure enough there were some clowns driving in the hard shoulder to get to the next exit about 200 metres ahead.

I slowly moved into the hard shoulder, and sure enough just at the end of the hard shoulder where the exit begins, there was a Garda stopping people for driving in the hard shoulder.

My question is - what would you have done when you saw the Garda about 150 metres ahead?

The below 3 options went through my head:

1) Stop on the hard shoulder immediately and Get out to close bonnet, and risk having a clown rear end me.

2) Move back out of the hard shoulder and wait until after the Garda car, and risk getting pulled.

3) Slowly drive to the Garda and explain my situation, this would be the safest bet considering the emergency.

I stupidly went with option 3, and I've just received an €80 fine and 1 point for driving on the hard shoulder.

Option 2 would have resulted in getting pulled also as other motorists found out.

What did the Garda say when you showed him your open bonnet? And how is driving in the hard shoulder safer than just staying in the stop-start traffic? Surely you would need to stop the car, get out and close the bonnet.

q85dw7osi4lebg

deandean wrote: »

I don't believe your story.
Sounds like you were taking an early shoot up the hard shoulder and got caught.
Yes it's frustrating when all those other feckers get away with it and the one time you try it...you are caught.
Same story in Dublin with driving in the bus lanes.

You don't have to believe it. Doubt the judge will either so I'm just going going to suck it up.

The Garda let me out to close the bonnet which is quite frustrating.

Not sure why I'd leave the M1 @ exit 7 when I've to go all the way to the city centre.

TherapyBoy

Option 1 is closest to what should be done, pull onto the hard shoulder & stop immediately to close the bonnet. With the bonnet secured indicate right & pull back into the traffic, don't drive up the shoulder until you can get in. In stop-start traffic it would have been better to pull straight back into the driving lane when someone let you in.

Of course, it's possible that if the Guard had seen you pull onto the shoulder he might not believe you had a legitimate reason for the manuvere & you could still have ended up with the points & fine, it would just depend on their mood & how convincing you are

q85dw7osi4lebg

colm_mcm wrote: »

Option 1 seems sensible, followed by attempted merging?

Agreed in hindsight. Live and learn.

q85dw7osi4lebg

Mervyn Skidmore wrote: »

What did the Garda say when you showed him your open bonnet? And how is driving in the hard shoulder safer than just staying in the stop-start traffic? Surely you would need to stop the car, get out and close the bonnet.

He looked at it, then let me get out and close it.

I needed to close the bonnet ASAP, so had to get into the hard shoulder and stop.

q85dw7osi4lebg

TherapyBoy wrote: »

Option 1 is closest to what should be done, pull onto the hard shoulder & stop immediately to close the bonnet. With the bonnet secured indicate right & pull back into the traffic, don't drive up the shoulder until you can get in. In stop-start traffic it would have been better to pull straight back into the driving lane when someone let you in.

Of course, it's possible that if the Guard had seen you pull onto the shoulder he might not believe you had a legitimate reason for the manuvere & you could still have ended up with the points & fine, it would just depend on their mood & how convincing you are

That's what my fear was, figured they wouldn't believe me.

Mervyn Skidmore

Monserrat Jolly Sunblock wrote: »

He looked at it, then let me get out and close it.

I needed to close the bonnet ASAP, so had to get into the hard shoulder and stop.

But you said you kept driving along the hard shoulder. The obvious thing you should have done was option 1. You probably just had a brain-fart and can't really blame the Garda.

q85dw7osi4lebg

Mervyn Skidmore wrote: »

But you said you kept driving along the hard shoulder. The obvious thing you should have done was option 1. You probably just had a brain-fart and can't really blame the Garda.

Yep, drove right up to the Garda car in fear that they would pull me otherwise, for disbelief of my story. A bit like yourself.

Mervyn Skidmore

Monserrat Jolly Sunblock wrote: »

Yep, drove right up to the Garda car in fear that they would pull me otherwise, for disbelief of my story. A bit like yourself.

I believe you but I suppose you have to look at it from the point of view of the Garda. Add that to the long lists of excuses they hear and then it doesn't bode well for you.

colm_mcm

Monserrat Jolly Sunblock wrote: »

He looked at it, then let me get out and close it.

I needed to close the bonnet ASAP, so had to get into the hard shoulder and stop.

Hindsight again, but in stop start traffic there wouldn't be much danger of it popping open.

Tbh if it were me I'd chance going to court with it. It's 2 points worst case scenario?

Senecio

So you'd driven down the M1 at 100+ km/h for who knows how far. Then as soon as the traffic becomes stop-start you had to immediately pull to the hard shoulder to rectify it.

You left out the most sensible option.

Pull to the driving lane and leave the motorway once you had reached the off ramp without using the hard shoulder. Once off the motorway, sort your bonnet out.

q85dw7osi4lebg

colm_mcm wrote: »

Hindsight again, but in stop start traffic there wouldn't be much danger of it popping open.

Tbh if it were me I'd chance going to court with it. It's 2 points worst case scenario?

I think it's 3 points in this scenario if I'm reading the letter correctly.

My only fear in court is that they may have a case for me not closing the bonnet properly or something along those lines.

q85dw7osi4lebg

Senecio wrote: »

So you'd driven down the M1 at 100+ km/h for who knows how far. Then as soon as the traffic becomes stop-start you had to immediately pull to the hard shoulder to rectify it.

You left out the most sensible option.

Pull to the driving lane and leave the motorway once you had reached the off ramp without using the hard shoulder. Once off the motorway, sort your bonnet out.

Yep, I'd been driving at 70kph or so for a good 10 minutes and my bonnet wasn't open.

Great suggestion, didn't think of it at the time.

Mervyn Skidmore

Don't bother going to Court over this, 1 point and 80 euro is better than 3 points and a fine and a day off work hanging around a courthouse.

kirving

I wonder does the Gard see excuses like that a lot? ie, do something illegal, and just as they realise they're caught, pull the bonnet release lever and pretend you're fixing that to avoid a penalty.

q85dw7osi4lebg

Kevin Irving wrote: »

I wonder does the Gard see excuses like that a lot? ie, do something illegal, and just as they realise they're caught, pull the bonnet release lever and pretend you're fixing that to avoid a penalty.

Probably, but it clearly doesn't work.

q85dw7osi4lebg

Mervyn Skidmore wrote: »

Don't bother going to Court over this, 1 point and 80 euro is better than 3 points and a fine and a day off work hanging around a courthouse.

Not thinking not about it. I've learned my lesson,

IF YOU NEED TO PULL INTO THE HARD SHOULDER, STOP IMMEDIATELY NO MATTER WHAT THE CIRCUMSTANCES.

Nice clean licence for 5+ years of driving so I don't mind 1 point.

the_pen_turner

if you had pulled over closed it then went back onto the driving lanes then I would think you were hard done by

saying that I wouldn't consider a half closed bonnet an emergency.

you should have waited until you could use the off ramp.

your only case is that you didn't know if the bonnet had half opened but was still safe or if something had broken and could be fully open.