[Article] Great escape: drunks and speeders get off scot free

Victor

This begs the question "What do the gardaí do with their time?".

Great escape: drunks and speeders get off scot free
From:The Irish Independent
Tuesday, 22nd April, 2003
Treacy Hogan Environment Correspondent

MOTORISTS speeding or drink driving know they are very unlikely to be caught, a damning Government report reveals.

It says the chances are far below most other European countries. For speeding it is a negligible one in 1,400, and for drink driving, one in 300.

Gardai must step up enforcement on the roads at least 50-fold to force motorists to slow down and cut road deaths, according to the investigators.

"The present level of police enforcement should increase considerably. This level is modest in comparison with several other countries," the review says.

The unpublished Review of Ireland's Road Safety Strategy obtained by the Irish Independent provides a stark insight into the tiny chances of being caught for motoring offences.

"It is striking that the chance of being caught in Ireland is so low," the report states. "Considerably increasing the chances of being caught speeding or drink driving by massive garda enforcement will save many lives and prevent crashes," it adds.

The review carried out for the Government's High Level Group on Road Safety says Irish people report the chance of being caught speeding is a negligible 3pc due to low Garda surveillance.

With 350,000 fines issued each year at a time when 50pc of people are breaking speed limits during 500 million journeys on Irish roads, the report found the chance of a fine was incredibly low - just one in 1,400.

With just 12,000 detections for drink driving out of a 3.7m population, the chance of "getting caught is very low". There was a one in 300 chance of being caught for this offence, compared to one in 65 in Britain, one in 20 in the Netherlands and one in nine in Sweden.

Other countries were succeeding in having a deterrent effect on drink driving, but for this to happen in Ireland the chance of being caught would have to increase significantly.

INSIDE: Speed limits must come down The experts'

"This means a drastically different approach must be taken by the Garda and the courts," the report carried out by the Netherlands-based SWOV Institute for Road Safety Research said.

It recommends the introduction of a "a much higher level of police enforcement for Ireland", along with public acceptance of such a move.

The study, commissioned by the Department of the Environment, is being used in the new Government road safety strategy to be finalised in coming months.

Carried out by international road safety consultant Dr Fred Wegman, the report urges the setting up of a dedicated Garda Traffic Corps which could be funded by "income" from fines.

It recommends making Garda operations and the law courts more efficient so that increasing the chances of being caught would not block up the legal system with a rash of cases.

The key to reducing death on Irish roads is to instill "a fear among road users that offences will be detected and punished".

This can be achieved by:
* Combining Garda surveillance and adequate publicity.
* Using highly visible Garda checkpoints, but setting these up in a random and unpredictable manner.
* Having checkpoints at locations where there is a good chance of catching offenders and where traffic offences are known to cause accidents.
* Having gardai dramatically step up and continue surveillance methods which cannot be avoided by motorists.

The report was sent to the Government before the introduction of the penalty points system, which is credited with saving 70 lives since its introduction five months ago and preventing hundreds of serious injuries. The system has also led to a slowing down on the roads.

Victor

Well not all of them get away with it.

http://home.eircom.net/content/irelandcom/breaking/608452?view=Eircomnet

Court imposes penalty points on 37 motorists
From:ireland.com
Wednesday, 23rd April, 2003

Thirty-seven motorists were fined in Dublin District Court today for speeding under new legislation introduced under the penalty points system.

They also had four penalty points imposed on each of their driving licences.

Three others who challenged the prosecutions had their cases dismissed after a judge accepted they had paid or attempted to pay the original on-the-spot fines they were issued with and which only attract two points. A small number of other cases were adjourned.

They were the first of 40 cases to come before District Court president Judge Peter Smithwick who heard that all had been clocked speeding in mainly 30 mph and 40 mph zones of the city.

They were initially issued with €80 euro fixed-penalty notices and had they paid in time they were have just got two points on their licences. They failed to pay and were issued with summonses which brought them before the court today.

Most pleaded guilty and said they had either forgotten about the notice they received or were under personal pressures which led to them being overlooked. The court heard failure to pay within 28 days meant the fine was increased to €120 euro and failure to pay after that led to today's prosecutions.

A small number of people who did not appear in court were fined between €175 and €250. The penalty points will go on to their licences automatically and will appear next time they have to renew the documents.

Several hundred similar cases will be heard before the Dublin District Court this summer.

Silent Bob

A small number of people who did not appear in court were fined between €175 and €250. The penalty points will go on to their licences automatically and will appear next time they have to renew the documents.

Interesting...

If you have a 10 year licence the points will probably have expired by the time you renew it. Without actually having the endorsement 'on' your licence how could insurance companies know you had points?

Given the insurance lot have already stated they will increase premiums proportionally to number of points accrued (last I head it was to be about 200 quid per two points) this could be a cheaper way of dealing with it.

xlex

working in Dublin, I was down at training in Longford Wednesday night...

Between Clonard and the motorway, which is something like 8~10 miles there was one checkpoint and three separate speed traps...

aslo, I'm two years driving, only been stopped four times, all were in a 4 week period...

mike65

Originally posted by xlex


aslo, I'm two years driving, only been stopped four times, all were in a 4 week period...

Which is why ppl dont respect the law as it stands. I would'nt mind betting your 4 stops were during a
media-led "blitz" by the Gardai or during a spell of fine weather...

Mike.