Meanwhile on the Roads...

Paddigol

Just for balance, on the bus today heading over Leeson St. Bridge into the city centre we had a numpty cyclist in a suit and a helmet roll through his red light along the canal to turn left onto the bridge, against the oncoming bus, on what is at the best of times an extremely narrow lane. When blasted out of it by the driver he had the temerity to stop and come back to argue his point.

Unbelievably brainless stuff.

zell12

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123870492#Comment_123870492

Tbh, I've seen worse roads in Galway

https://www.thejournal.ie/richmond-road-drumcondra-protest-6837769-Oct2025/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFbH8-aHcEg&t=187s

LeoD

This is why there should be time limits set on how long councillors can serve in office.

“I’m a strong supporter of road safety for primary schools but what has been put in place in Athea makes no sense,” he said.
“If you’re a lorry driver, a bus driver or an agricultural contractor trying to get up that hill and you’re forced to stop, how are you supposed to take off again with traffic behind you? It’s a disaster waiting to happen," he told the meeting.

https://www.limerickleader.ie/news/politics/1910138/a-disaster-waiting-to-happen-new-road-layout-outside-limerick-primary-school-criticised.html

Mefistofelino

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123888539#Comment_123888539

I'd respectfully suggest to Cllr Galvin that if a lorry driver, a bus driver or an agricultural contractor cannot stop and re-start on a hill, then either the driver is inadequately trained, the vehicle is defective or the vehicle is overloaded. In precisely none of those cases should they actually be on the road. It's not the 1950s with lads driving two-stroke Fodens that struggled to get themselves going.

CramCycle

Agricultural vehicles have low gears for precisely this. And if a Bus or Lorry can't get going again, as @Mefistofelino said, either inadequate training, defective machinery, or (my addition) that road should be restricted in regards what vehicles can use it

Large bottle small glass

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123888539#Comment_123888539

It's really sh1te journalism though and pretty typical sadly.

The article to be fair should have

*Copy of design drawings

,*details of what the design was based on; the specification drawings will have all that detail.

*Ask the learned councillor what area of design is not in compliance with code/design manual

*What is his alternative design and what is it based on precisely.

*What precisely should the design team learn when they go back to school.

In the alternative they could just call him an ignorant cnut 🙂

Mefistofelino

I know the village / road in question and that hill going East is a fair drag on the bike. However, the school is at the foot of the hill, not half way up it. Map shows the slope at around 1-1.5% at that section. I'm not sure how the traffic calming presents a problem other than not allowing heavy vehicles put the hammer down in a 50 kmh zone to build up a head of steam for the hill.

Red Silurian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123888539#Comment_123888539

District, Cllr Liam Galvin, called for urgent changes to be made… The Fine Gael councillor criticised…

Like what he says or not he is in a position of having the power to change the road layout or have put a stop to it in the first place. Unless there an election recently that kicked FG out of power?

Every time I hear Willie O Dea or Cathal Crowe speak lately I keep thinking they are in opposition and I've slept through a General Election or something

loyatemu

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123888793#Comment_123888793

councillors don't decide on road layouts, nothing would ever get done if they had a veto.

Red Silurian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123888853#Comment_123888853

My point is he should be having a private word with his party leader about it to get any of his issues sorted, not mouthing off to the local paper.

loyatemu

Simon Harris isn't going to get involved in traffic calming plans for a Limerick village either.

Large bottle small glass

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123888853#Comment_123888853

Unfortunately the stupid cnuts do; leaving the council really exposed both in terms of criminal prosecution or civil liability.

The councillors don't know or are too ignorant to give a fcuk.

Above is a pre works junction in Dungarvan. It was subsequently designed by a professional road designer with pedestrians primarily in mind. Between design and the commencement of works a couple of councillors got it changed unknown to the outside engineer.

The result is a much longer crossing than designed for by the professionals applying the roads design manual criteria for such a crossing.

Same happened when I lived on the Marlifield road in Clonmel. Once road narrowing is measured people seem to lose their ability to think critically.

CramCycle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123889305#Comment_123889305

While the council have to answer to the councillors ala a board of management scenario, the councillors can't just change things as the above scenario describes. A road engineer and their team would have also had to agree. I'm not sure if that makes the above better or worse

Large bottle small glass

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123889352#Comment_123889352

Some poor bollix of a road engineer gets dragged along to council meeting where she/he will have to listen to a couple of hysterical councillors rabbit on about how dangerous the new design is.

He/she should insist and hold the line but it never lets up I would guess. I don't envy them.

hans aus dtschl

Yeah I've seen it loads of times. Councillors demanding the design engineers do ridiculous stuff or they won't approve anything. I can cite loads of examples of it.

Regarding "dem trucks can't stop on hills" I've had TII push-back on pedestrian/cycle priority on GREENWAYS over this. The NTA and TII are actually currently trying to bake that into the new cycle design manuals: that they can "depart from all design rules if dem trucks just need to have priority over vulnerable road users". I really wish I was joking.

Citizen Six

Break from the norm this time, but services suspended on the Maynooth line earlier after a cyclist hit the barriers at Porterstown level crossing. Must have been going pretty fast to cause that kind of damage.

JMcL

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123889485#Comment_123889485

Timely illustration of councillor car brain. Wilkin St. Is an extremely narrow side street with very poor visibility at the northern junction

https://m.independent.ie/regionals/waterford/news/waterford-city-one-way-traffic-trial-causing-stress-for-local-residents/a1804518844.html

JMcL

https://archive.ph/4qJxj

Indo doing well on the car brain articles today

p15574

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123892913#Comment_123892913

I don't know why people want to advertise how bad at driving they are.

Kaisr Sose

I just read about the tragic death of a motorcyclist on the R117, Enniskerry Rd, somewhere around Monastery to Kilternan is what is reported. I cycle this road a lot and am finding it getting more and more dangerous. From ispeeding, overtaking at blind bends, against oncoming traffic, or close passes, these happen on every cycle, multiple times. It sometimes freaks me out how inconsiderate and dangerous some drivers are.

I often thought someone could be killed on this road, and yesterday it happened You never see a Garda car on this road and the Go safe van is in the wrong place. It should be between Enniskerry and Kilternan.

Anyone else here share my experience of this road?

smacl

Never had any serious problems myself but it is getting increasingly busy with the amount of building going on in the area and wasn't ever a road that I really enjoyed cycling. If I'm coming back to Dublin from that direction, I prefer Kilegar road to Kilcullen or Devil's elbow / Bridge road and back via Cruagh road. Both add a significant extra climb but are quieter and far more attractive, also narrow roads so maybe less suited to groups. Barnasligen is the other option from Enniskerry but only gets you to Kilternan, where again, the hill to Kilcullen is an option from there. Enniskerry road for me is the option when I'm too knackered or pressed for time to take the nicer alternatives.

JMcL

https://www.echolive.ie/corknews/arid-41726499.html

FFS

chalkitdown1

What's even the point of speed limits if a judge can just throw out the case with no justification.

The judge here seems to be implying that she also speeds on this road, therefore that makes speeding okay. Wild.

TheChizler

They're basically saying oh it's alright they thought it was a 120 limit, when they were caught at 127 anyway!

CramCycle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123918060#Comment_123918060

Car dependent but to be doing 127 in my 2012 car you'd have to have a speedo reading North of 132, probably closer to 135. Absolutely ridiculous.

Citizen Six

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123918060#Comment_123918060

Ah sure he needs to drive for a living, can't take his licence away for not obeying speed limits.

hesker

If you think that's bad have a look at this one from a couple of weeks back

https://connachttribune.ie/driver-was-on-the-mars-bars-not-on-the-phone/

CramCycle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123919447#Comment_123919447

No wonder the Gardai aren't arsed with enforcement.

gooseman12

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123919447#Comment_123919447

This might be a question for the legal discussion forum, but is there a reason these quite obviously incorrect judgements don't get appealed?

Is it just dpp policy to leave smaller offences like these go?

blackwhite

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123919447#Comment_123919447

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123919766#Comment_123919766

What to appeal this one on though? There needs to be a point of law to base the appeal on - not just that they don't like the decision.

Absolutely the one quoted further above from Macroom bypass should be appealed - but in this case the defendant introduced testimony that lead to reasonable doubt in the judge's mind, and the Garda confirmed that it was the same claim made by the defendant when stopped and challenged, and that some level of supporting evidence (the wrapper) had been presented at the time.

Very hard to find a point of law to challenge that on - and equally well if the judge had decided he didn't accept the defendant's claim then it would be very hard for the defendant to find grounds for appeal either.