Go safe vans - revenue raiser or life saver

PFL · 13-02-2015 07:49PM #1

So in the last few weeks I've noticed a dramatic increase in the amount of Go safe vans on the side of the roads. In all cases they are located in sneaky spots tucked in off the road and all in 50km speed zones.

My issue is the vans are supposed to be in areas where frequent accidents occur but from my observations they're located in ideal locations to nab drivers coming from 100km zone to 50km zones, with the increase in points to three per offence, four strikes in three years and you're out.... opinions....

The_Valeyard · 13-02-2015 07:50PM

Either way, I really hate the bast*rds!

Dr Turk Turkelton · 13-02-2015 07:53PM

Complete money spinner. I always flash oncoming traffic to warn them of these parasites.
If they at least pretended to put them in dangerous areas I could come around to believing they are for safety but in their current guise it is all about the money.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1 · 13-02-2015 07:53PM

Like them or loathe them it is neither revenue collection nor life saving. It is enforcing the law.

kneemos · 13-02-2015 07:59PM

I've noticed people have begun flashing again,something I haven't seen in many years.

magick · 13-02-2015 08:02PM

Pure money spinners

byhookorbycrook · 13-02-2015 08:04PM

Revenue raisers. One parked on the Wexford road out of Carlow, just before the speed limit sign. Shooting fish in a barrel.

My name is URL · 13-02-2015 08:09PM

Leanna Prickly Maiden wrote: »

Like them or loathe them it is neither revenue collection nor life saving. It is enforcing the law.

Not very effectively. Cameras not set up properly, no reps turning up to court meaning cases are thrown out

And!

Wabbit Ears · 13-02-2015 08:10PM

Heard on the radio there was some figures that the number of road deaths is actually steadily increasing again with 2012 being a really good year, Does this prove the sceptic right that its little more than a money spinner and no real deterrent or driver behaviour adjuster?

Jan-December 2013 there were 181 fatal collision according to RSA
2014 Rose to 196

Dr Turk Turkelton · 13-02-2015 08:14PM

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

Heard on the radio there was some figures that the number of road deaths is actually steadily increasing again with 2012 being a really good year, Does this prove the sceptic right that its little more than a money spinner and no real deterrent or driver behaviour adjuster?

Jan-December 2013 there were 181 fatal collision according to RSA
2014 Rose to 196

I have always thought that the drop in road deaths was due to fewer cars on the road due to the recession.
The roads not chock full just before dawn and just after dusk surely must have had some impact.
Also not as much "pleasure" driving at the weekends.
I'd imagine if the economy takes off again we will see a sharp rise in road deaths.

Banjo String · 13-02-2015 08:18PM

Pile of ****, money spinner and nothing else. I give you the one that's always on the N4 for example, just after Liffey Valley heading towards Galway.

One of the benefits of holding a northern license however.......

PFL · 13-02-2015 08:19PM

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

Heard on the radio there was some figures that the number of road deaths is actually steadily increasing again with 2012 being a really good year, Does this prove the sceptic right that its little more than a money spinner and no real deterrent or driver behaviour adjuster?

Jan-December 2013 there were 181 fatal collision according to RSA
2014 Rose to 196

I heard the same report, I'm all for enforcing the law especially in locations where speed was a factor in the crash, the other morning I was heading off for work passing through a rural town at 5-30am. Lo and behold tucked off the road the go safe van.

This area is a known speed trap as you come down a hill to the 50km zone but at that time of the morning? I was doing the limit but was incensed at the van being there catching folks on their way to work paying a fortune in taxes etc.

scurnane · 13-02-2015 08:20PM

Afaik GoSafe are being paid approx €80million over 5 years to provide a fixed amount of surveyed hours. They don't get any bonuses for detections apparently.
I don't have a problem as long as the paid fines from the speeders go into the govt coffers and means I have to pay less tax.

darkpagandeath · 13-02-2015 08:21PM

Speed cameras on the m50.......

Galway K9 · 13-02-2015 08:22PM

Leanna Prickly Maiden wrote: »

Like them or loathe them it is neither revenue collection nor life saving. It is enforcing the law.

Checks for posts in emergency services....

Nabber · 13-02-2015 08:25PM

See one a top of a climbing lane. No better place to setup if you wanna make money. Speed limit 100km, truck, van or car doing 85km. Chance are you are going to hit 110km to get past them.

One always parked illegally at Mount Argos.

Turtwig · 13-02-2015 08:26PM

Wabbit Ears wrote: »

Heard on the radio there was some figures that the number of road deaths is actually steadily increasing again with 2012 being a really good year, Does this prove the sceptic right that its little more than a money spinner and no real deterrent or driver behaviour adjuster?

Jan-December 2013 there were 181 fatal collision according to RSA
2014 Rose to 196

I hate this obsession with year on year road deaths. Like we can actually tell something from them. We can't! The sooner they stop reporting and pontificating rules on them the better. It's simple, if you have a lot of deaths one year you'd expect less deaths the following years by default. No introduction of laws or penalty points needed. Likewise, if you have very few deaths one year you expect a lot more deaths the next years. It's called regression to the mean. Road deaths need to, at the very least, be assessed on decade long trends. This "compared to this time last year" is complete and utter bullsht. It's the worse kind of data to make policy decisions.

SaveOurLyric · 13-02-2015 08:31PM

Both.
A real win-win situation.

darkpagandeath · 13-02-2015 08:32PM

Turtwig wrote: »

I hate this obsession with year on year road deaths. Like we can actually tell something from them. We can't! The sooner they stop reporting and pontificating rules on them the better. It's simple, if you have a lot of deaths one year you'd expect less deaths the following years by default. No introduction of laws or penalty points needed. Likewise, if you have very few deaths one year you expect a lot more deaths the next years. It's called regression to the mean. Road deaths need to, at the very least, be assessed on decade long trends. This "compared to this time last year" is complete and utter bullsht. It's the worse kind of data to make policy decisions.

More people die of flu each year.

TheChizler · 13-02-2015 08:36PM

Seeing as it costs more to run them than they bring in they are objectively not a revenue raiser.

SaveOurLyric · 13-02-2015 08:44PM

TheChizler wrote: »

Seeing as it costs more to run them than they bring in they are objectively not a revenue raiser.

Please desist from disturbing people in their ignorance having a good moan. You and your fancy 'objective' facts. They arent wanted around here thanks.

Son Of A Vidic · 13-02-2015 08:53PM

PFL wrote: »

Go safe vans - revenue raiser or life saver

Revenue raiser of course. They're never positioned around accident blackspots or on dangerous stretches of road like they claim to be.

bpmurray · 13-02-2015 08:57PM

TheChizler wrote: »

Seeing as it costs more to run them than they bring in they are objectively not a revenue raiser.

Ah stop - you can't let the facts get in the way now.

Sala · 13-02-2015 09:03PM

There are better things to focus on for safety than speed in my opinion. I always see them late at night in a 60km area after the limit drops from 80. It wouldn't be dangerous to be doing over the 60 at that time. Much more dangerous driving occurs in rush hour on this stretch with people weaving in and out of lanes or shooting up the bus lane and pulling in last minute.

TheChizler · 13-02-2015 09:09PM

A couple of places I've seen them seem like places that speeding wouldn't be a problem, and it wouldn't in itself, but combined with the characteristics of the area would be dangerous; hidden entrances, junctions that can develop queues, narrow parts of the road, like you see on the Douglas Road and Blackrock Road for instance. I've never seen one and after initially thinking it was pointless placement not been able to make sense of it when taking other things into account.

KaaaaaaPOW · 13-02-2015 09:30PM

TheChizler wrote: »

Seeing as it costs more to run them than they bring in they are objectively not a revenue raiser.

Always thought that should have been looked at.

A few judges have started throwing out cases around the country aswell cuz the vans are just sitting in 50kph zones.

Yiikes · 13-02-2015 09:47PM

Nothing beats driving passed a school, seeing parents parked up on the footpaths on the phone. Kids darting in and out with no zebra crossing and a 50km/h limit. People talking on the phone, accelerating quickly suddenly stopping to pick up kids. But sure the go safe van out on the 100km/h dual carriage way and gard hidden at the start of the 60km/h road really are changing behaviour.

The stupider the place to speed/use the phone the less likely you are going to get caught. Variable speed limits are the way to go but the RSA would never accept the idea of a limit being raised from 100 to say 110km/h during quiet periods. 30km/h outside open schools make sense but makes little sense in the middle of August at 9pm (and of course the cost is a barrier)

Capt'n Midnight · 13-02-2015 11:13PM

Why do they need vans ?

Solar powered cameras with a 3G connection would be a tiny fraction of the price.

And much smaller so no problems with parking.

If they want to cut down on speeding just get some average speed cameras, especially before and after accident black spots.

If they want to raise revenue then use the existing cameras on our motorways to fine people who don't keep left unless overtaking.

Have the RSA stopped publishing Free Speed Surveys ??
http://www.rsa.ie/RSA/Road-Safety/RSA-Statistics/Surveys--Consultations/Speed/ None since 2011.

If you want to improve safety , change behaviour and raise revenue here's the area you should target. I'd like to see the measured figures on the 30Km/h zones outside schools and in town too.

82% of car drivers surveyed exceeded the 50km/h limit on urban national
roads, a marginal decrease of one percentage point on 2009 figures;
• 53% of these drivers exceeded the speed limit by 10km/h or more;

The average speed of cars on urban national roads was about 10 km/h
above the 50 km/h posted speed limit. Furthermore , only 19.9% of
drivers were observed travelling below the speed limit and 6.3% were
travelling between 80 and 100 km/h.

On urban arterial roads with a 50km/h speed limit, the number of cars
exceeding the speed limit increased from 40% in 2007 to 70% in 2008;

The Backwards Man · 13-02-2015 11:18PM

How is it anything like shooting fish in a barrel? The poor fish can't do anything to prevent its fate, YOU can.

Capt'n Midnight · 13-02-2015 11:20PM

Yiikes wrote: »

Variable speed limits are the way to go but the RSA would never accept the idea of a limit being raised from 100 to say 110km/h during quiet periods. 30km/h outside open schools make sense but makes little sense in the middle of August at 9pm (and of course the cost is a barrier)

In the UK they have variable limits on motorways.
40mph / 60 Km/h is roughly the speed at which you get most throughput , ideal for rush-hour.

In France they have something similar but you can only go at the limit in good weather, not like here where people still push it bad weather.

The German system of a speed limit sticker on goods vehicles is another option.

Though Free Speed Survey's have shown that most HGV's speed.

kub · 13-02-2015 11:51PM

It is weird how i always get this urge, i drive a van and whenever i see these parasites on the side of the road, i usually park right behind them nice and close and take out my flask and have a cuppa.
They can't do much really, his van and my van are both commercial vehicles and if he is allowed park there then so am I.

Now if it was a Garda van....well that's completely different.

Go safe vans - revenue raiser or life saver

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