Sign at Cork Airport.. what were they smoking?

embraer170 · 01-01-2006 8:38pm #1

Saw this sign just as you leave Cork airport:

Drive on the left
Conduire a droite *
Links Fahren

:rolleyes:
*yes the French is telling you to drive on the right.

Wish I got a picture.

(Edited for clarity)

PowerHouseDan · 01-01-2006 8:39pm

Eh?

amazingemmet · 01-01-2006 8:39pm

Have it at all Irish an english airports methinks, its for the foreign people who'd drive on the right.

mike65 · 01-01-2006 8:40pm

What?????????

The authorites at an Airport are telling tourists driving hire cars to drive on the left?????????????

Shock horror will the madness ever end?

Mike.

embraer170 · 01-01-2006 8:41pm

Maybe I should have made it a bit clearer.

The French sign is telling people to drive on the RIGHT.

Karoma · 01-01-2006 8:42pm

I think the OP's problem is with "Conduire a droite "

mike65 · 01-01-2006 8:42pm

Droite = right.

That is madness. Clearly the ppl of Cork are not cunning linguists.

Mike.

robinph · 01-01-2006 8:45pm

For some reason I've occasionally seen them on roads in the middle of the country as well, nowhere near any ports or airports. You'd have thought that Monsieur French bloke would have noticed that everyone else was driving on the other side of the road from him after he'd driven a 100k or so and not be needing the signs to remind him?

Dooom · 01-01-2006 8:47pm

But are they master debators?

ctrl-alt-delete · 01-01-2006 8:47pm

maybe roy keane had something to do with it......hoping paddy vieria was going to visit

01-01-2006 8:48pm

That signs been there for years.
Theres one on the Arklow by pass and coming up from Rosslare Europort too presumably for the continental drivers.

01-01-2006 8:49pm

ah droite

me was wondering as me knew embraer knew these things

mike65 · 01-01-2006 8:50pm

Actually they don't have nearly enough such signs. Its the easiest thing in the world to get up of a morning in a foreign land get in your car and pull out onto the road on the wrong side when leaving your hotel/b&b.

All exits from hotels, ports etc should have signs and arrow markings on the tarmac pointing in the correct direction for the left/right side of road. There is'nt always traffic around to remind you.

Mike.

DMC · 01-01-2006 8:50pm

Spike wrote:

But are they master debators?

Brendan O'Connor is from Cork, so.... yes!

therecklessone · 01-01-2006 8:51pm

And I wonder...

Has anyone bothered to tell them?

Litcagral · 01-01-2006 9:05pm

Earthman wrote:

Theres one on the Arklow by pass and coming up from Rosslare Europort too presumably for the continental drivers.

Yes but they do not have such a glaring mistake!

Karoma · 01-01-2006 9:30pm

embraer170:
http://www.cork-airport.com/AR_Cork/Live/Lv_pres_GenTemplate.asp?strPage_Name=CK_ContactUs

off ya pop.

parsi · 01-01-2006 9:33pm

robinph wrote:

For some reason I've occasionally seen them on roads in the middle of the country as well, nowhere near any ports or airports. You'd have thought that Monsieur French bloke would have noticed that everyone else was driving on the other side of the road from him after he'd driven a 100k or so and not be needing the signs to remind him?

Unlikely. 26 Years ago we met Monsieur French Bloke head on in the depths of the country. He and his buddies were ok but we weren't.

Scraggs · 01-01-2006 9:36pm

embraer170 wrote:

Saw this sign just as you leave Cork airport:

Drive on the left
Conduire a droite *
Links Fahren

:rolleyes:
*yes the French is telling you to drive on the right.

Wish I got a picture.

(Edited for clarity)

god that is so dangerous!!!
the person who wrote that sign is gonna feel like some puppet when they realise their mistake!

Litcagral · 01-01-2006 9:47pm

Scraggs wrote:

the person who wrote that sign is gonna feel like some puppet when they realise their mistake!

Aer Rianta !!!! no one will have been responsible - no one will bear the blame - no one will be at fault - six month inquiry - findings will be inconclusive etc. etc. !!!!

therecklessone · 01-01-2006 10:16pm

Litcagral wrote:

Aer Rianta !!!! no one will have been responsible - no one will bear the blame - no one will be at fault - six month inquiry - findings will be inconclusive etc. etc. !!!!

Pointless asking them, its the Cork Airport Authority now...

embraer170 · 01-01-2006 10:29pm

Actually it looked to me like a Cork county council sign.

Just as you exit the airport before going on the Kinsale road.

01-01-2006 10:34pm

mike65 wrote:

Droite = right.

That is madness. Clearly the ppl of Cork are not "cunning linguists".

Mike.

Yeah cork people aren,t good with the tongues!:D

Litcagral · 01-01-2006 10:34pm

therecklessone wrote:

Pointless asking them, its the Cork Airport Authority now...

Point taken although they still have "AR Cork" (Aer Rianta??) in their web address.

YeatsCounty · 02-01-2006 3:18am

embraer170 wrote:

Saw this sign just as you leave Cork airport:

Conduire a droite

That's pretty stupid, but it could be worse. They could have put the incorrect translation in Irish. :-/

Our man in Havana · 02-01-2006 3:42am

Can we get some photographic evidence please?

therecklessone · 02-01-2006 11:06am

Litcagral wrote:

Point taken although they still have "AR Cork" (Aer Rianta??) in their web address.

New name, same old laziness...

Dave! · 02-01-2006 11:16am

Has anybody reported it to the local council, or the airport, or whoever's in charge?

Might be a good idea!

damien · 02-01-2006 11:18am

Bond-007 wrote:

Can we get some photographic evidence please?

Feck, and I was just there.

therecklessone · 02-01-2006 11:33am

DaveMcG wrote:

Has anybody reported it to the local council, or the airport, or whoever's in charge?

Might be a good idea!

Nah, its much more fun taking the p*ss on a message board.

Dave! · 02-01-2006 11:43am

true dat

daveirl · 02-01-2006 12:05pm

This post has been deleted.

daveirl · 02-01-2006 2:35pm

This post has been deleted.

mike65 · 02-01-2006 2:44pm

Well thanks for that Dave!

Yeah you can see where they painted over a line of type. Proberly done last night!

Mike.

kensutz · 02-01-2006 2:46pm

It's been visible for ages. I flew out of Cork airport last week and it was clearly visible. Isnt there another sign by Lemybrien or else I could be totally mistaken, I thought it was on the road to Cork where there is another similar sign

rymus · 04-01-2006 7:44pm

not wanting to steal Dave's thunder or anything.. but I got a better photo this afternoon

http://blog.rymus.net/2006/01/04/conduire-a-what/

The above is a link to it on my blog, the following is the photo on flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/rymus/82132462/

strassenwolf · 04-01-2006 8:12pm

YeatsCounty wrote:

That's pretty stupid, but it could be worse. They could have put the incorrect translation in Irish. :-/

It's a good point. The sign is put up by a state-owned body and includes English text. Are they not obliged to put up an Irish translation?

DublinWriter · 04-01-2006 8:16pm

Litcagral wrote:

Aer Rianta !!!! no one will have been responsible - no one will bear the blame - no one will be at fault - six month inquiry - findings will be inconclusive etc. etc. !!!!

Yes, but it won't just be the Senior Counsel wearing the wigs at any enquiry involving Aer Rianta.

nesf · 04-01-2006 8:19pm

Moved to the Cork Forum.

DublinWriter · 04-01-2006 8:24pm

strassenwolf wrote:

It's a good point. The sign is put up by a state-owned body and includes English text. Are they not obliged to put up an Irish translation?

Why? Just in case any gaelgors forget that we actually tend to drive on the left in their country of birth?

The words "O'Cuiv" and "tout" spring immediately to mind.

Speaking of which, since there isin't even the letter 'V' in the Irish alphabet, he should be renaming himself, never mind Dingle.

strassenwolf · 04-01-2006 8:56pm

Well, maybe because of the following, but I'm not a lawyer, so I can't say for sure.

Official Languages Act 2003 wrote:

9.—(1) The Minister may by regulations provide that oral announcements (whether live or recorded) made by a public body, the headings of stationery used by a public body and the contents and the lay-out of any signage or advertisements placed by it shall, to such extent as may be specified, be in the Irish language or in the English and Irish languages and different provisions may be made in relation to different classes of body, oral announcements, stationery, signage or advertisements.

(2) Where a person communicates in writing or by electronic mail in an official language with a public body, the public body shall reply in the same language.

(3) Where a public body communicates in writing or by electronic mail with the general public or a class of the general public for the purpose of furnishing information to the public or the class, the body shall ensure that the communication is in the Irish language or in the English and Irish languages.

Though as you point out, there's very little chance of the natives forgetting which side of the road to drive on, so maybe the law really is an ass in this case. (come to think of it though, is Jim McDaid a Gaelgoir?)

Ri_Nollaig · 04-01-2006 11:31pm

that is really very funny

i have past that sign for years and never noticed but ofcourse i never did french
i guess neither did the person who wrote it...

Our man in Havana · 05-01-2006 12:59am

I wonder who let them know about it?

Dizzyblabla · 05-01-2006 2:34pm

Bond-007 wrote:

I wonder who let them know about it?

it looks like they are aware of it, sure didn't they colour it in so you can't read it?? http://blog.rymus.net/2006/01/04/conduire-a-what/
probably cost them more to have someone colour it in than it would have had to make a whole new one!

daveirl · 05-01-2006 9:01pm

This post has been deleted.

invincibleirish · 06-01-2006 12:52pm

the sign was only put up recently along with the overhead signs for the new terminal,it wasnt painted over,it just wasnt scratched off as they probably realised the mistake.

robinph · 16-01-2006 1:14pm

It's not just the French that are being confused by Cork airport and getting them to drive on the wrong side of the road. Now they are trying to do the same trick to the Welsh, but in their own country.

Cerddwyr edrychwch i'r chwith

parsi · 16-01-2006 1:46pm

It shold be pointed out that we are likely dealing with different "theys" in these cases.

I'm sure that them that did that in Cork are different to them that did that in Wales ;-)

beer enigma · 17-01-2006 10:32am

Its been changed.............

now correctly reads "gauche"...........

Rippy · 17-01-2006 8:36pm

Yes it's been changed...by pop rivetting a small sign saying gauche over the offending word.
So it stands as an obviously admended monument to someones inattenion in French lessons.

BTW a Swiss freind of mine works at the Airport Business Park and drives past the sign everyday. Never even noticed to I pointed it out.

Shanannigan · 27-01-2006 4:20pm

i heard a similar story about a sign in wales tellin ppl not to turn left and in welsh not to turn right, but that was with a sign in welsh, a mistake which you'd think the guy puttin up the sign would spot when he was puttin it up, unless its a really subtle form of Apartheid

sorry dude, just spotted your post about the welsh sign after i posted about it... je m'escuse

Sign at Cork Airport.. what were they smoking?

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