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Driving in a Bus Lane

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    #32
    markpb
    Registered Users Posts: 9,250 ✭✭✭markpb


    McCrack wrote: »
    In future join the queue or merge at the top like any other, either is not difficult

    Isn’t that what they were waiting to do when the guards arrived?


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    #33
    McCrack
    Registered Users Posts: 2,968 ✭✭✭McCrack


    Yes and they failed


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    #34
    Peregrine
    Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 26,399 Mod ✭✭✭✭Peregrine


    McCrack wrote: »
    Yes and they failed

    Your advice is to not merge at the top but join the bus lane early illegally or.. just merge at the top? What?


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    #35
    markpb
    Registered Users Posts: 9,250 ✭✭✭markpb


    McCrack wrote: »
    Yes and they failed

    What do you think they should have done? Pushed other cars out of the way? Teleported to the junction? Driven at another time?


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    #36
    McCrack
    Registered Users Posts: 2,968 ✭✭✭McCrack


    Peregrine wrote: »
    Your advice is to not merge at the top but join the bus lane early illegally or.. just merge at the top? What?

    Either are options and neither are difficult to execute for the vast majority of drivers


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    #37
    blackbox
    Registered Users Posts: 4,102 ✭✭✭blackbox


    McCrack wrote: »
    Either are options and neither are difficult to execute for the vast majority of drivers

    Just because its easy doesn't make it right (or even legal)


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    #38
    Wishbone Ash
    Registered Users Posts: 24,954 ✭✭✭✭Wishbone Ash


    markpb wrote: »
    .. The same was true years ago for drink driving. Everyone did it so the guards didn't really try to stop it. Then it became politically and morally unacceptable so there was a major change in enforcement and it was eradicated....
    Drink driving has been illegal since 1933 but it wasn't until the 1980's that breathalyzers became available. Prior to that, the Gardai had no scientific way of detecting a driver on the side of the road and would have had to follow their own opinion which may not have stood up in court.


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    #39
    highdef
    Registered Users Posts: 6,140 ✭✭✭highdef


    McCrack wrote: »
    Get a grip of yourself

    Asking a garda "to write it down" and their "badge no"

    Id like to say what you are but I can't

    In future join the queue or merge at the top like any other, either is not difficult

    Merging at the top is what I was trying to do in both instances! The Gardai had a problem with me doing this. Until there was a gap, I couldn't merge.


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    #40
    imme
    Registered Users Posts: 3,200 ✭✭✭imme


    It is idiots who drive in bus lanes when they're not allowed to.


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    #41
    markpb
    Registered Users Posts: 9,250 ✭✭✭markpb


    Wishbone Ash wrote: »
    Drink driving has been illegal since 1933 but it wasn't until the 1980's that breathalyzers became available. Prior to that, the Gardai had no scientific way of detecting a driver on the side of the road and would have had to follow their own opinion which may not have stood up in court.

    That’s true but there was no pressure on drunk drivers in the 80s or, if I remember correctly, the early 90s either.


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    #42
    L1011
    Moderators, Business & Finance Moderators, Motoring & Transport Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 67,693 Mod ✭✭✭✭L1011


    Wishbone Ash wrote: »
    Drink driving has been illegal since 1933 but it wasn't until the 1980's that breathalyzers became available. Prior to that, the Gardai had no scientific way of detecting a driver on the side of the road and would have had to follow their own opinion which may not have stood up in court.

    1969, not the 1980s. Electronic ones might have been the 1980s but I suspect it was actually a lot more recent

    https://www.rte.ie/archives/2014/1102/655842-breathalyser-comes-to-ireland-1969/

    That early tech is where the idea of "blow in the bag" or "being bagged" comes from.


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    #43
    Patser
    Registered Users Posts: 7,874 ✭✭✭Patser


    Out of curiosity, anyone know the rules if you're driving in a bus lane out of hours - say 5am - and you come up to a set of lights that now has a bus only green 1st.

    Had that happen to me last week in Dublin, there's a new bus priority light on the North quays, but it was a 0700 - 1900 hrs bus lane. Green light with BUS written on it came on, but light on other side was red - didn't know wether to go or not


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    #44
    Peregrine
    Moderators, Education Moderators Posts: 26,399 Mod ✭✭✭✭Peregrine


    Patser wrote: »
    Out of curiosity, anyone know the rules if you're driving in a bus lane out of hours - say 5am - and you come up to a set of lights that now has a bus only green 1st.

    Had that happen to me last week in Dublin, there's a new bus priority light on the North quays, but it was a 0700 - 1900 hrs bus lane. Green light with BUS written on it came on, but light on other side was red - didn't know wether to go or not

    The one on Bachelor's Walk? It changes to 24/7 at Ha'penny Bridge. It should really be 24/7 for the entire length.


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    #45
    Patser
    Registered Users Posts: 7,874 ✭✭✭Patser


    Peregrine wrote: »
    The one on Bachelor's Walk? It changes to 24/7 at Ha'penny Bridge. It should really be 24/7 for the entire length.

    Yes, but there's a bus only light a good bit back, maybe on Ellis Quay, near Smithfield.


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    #46
    cgcsb
    Registered Users Posts: 9,275 ✭✭✭cgcsb


    I find it's easier to just go with the crowd rather than try to drive properly in this scenario. Where this is a real pain is on Blackhall Place driving northbound. The car lane becomes a right turning lane(for some reason) and of course the vast majority of cars are driving straight on so they've to get into the bus lane. This means long lines of cars most afternoons. If I do it properly I either get beeped at/shouted at and can't merge so I'll usually just get in the bus lane early. Very frustrating when I'm on the bike or on a bus.

    This is standard in Ireland, so many people aren't sure how to drive exactly, poor driving is not corrected by the gardaí so you get all sorts of group behaviour that becomes acceptable such as:
    -driving in bus lanes
    -driving very slowly in the fast lane not overtaking anything
    -driving slowly straight over your stop line at a red light and into a cycling box, ped crossing or yellow box junction before coming to a complete stop
    -parking literally wherever you please.


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    #47
    endacl
    Registered Users Posts: 22,232 ✭✭✭✭endacl


    Dravokivich wrote: »
    If you think I don't understand it, would you be willing to explain it, or do you just want to appear to have something more subtle going on?

    It's not an opinion. Fines don't work as a deterrent. We see things people do while driving every day that would result in a fine, yet they persist with it. We see things people do regularly even if they aren't driving that would result in a fine, but still they go on with it.

    The do work. I don’t drive in bus lanes because I don’t want to pick up a fine. Also, because I’m not ignorant. But, mostly the fine.

    I’m sure I’m not the only one. Fines do work. They just don’t work for everybody.


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    #48
    AndrewJRenko
    Registered Users Posts: 28,386 ✭✭✭✭AndrewJRenko


    A service tech friend of mine tells me he uses bus lanes all the time to get around to calls. He gets fined once or twice a year, and the saving in time is well worth it for him.

    It's a sad indictment of the low levels of enforcement. Penalty points for this and for parking on bus/cycle lanes would be a big improvement. Camera enforcement would be even better.


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    #49
    trellheim
    Registered Users Posts: 5,856 ✭✭✭trellheim


    Where this is a real pain is on Blackhall Place driving northbound. The car lane becomes a right turning lane(for some reason) and of course the vast majority of cars are driving straight on so they've to get into the bus lane. This means long lines of cars most afternoons. If I do it properly I either get beeped at/shouted at and can't merge so I'll usually just get in the bus lane early. Very frustrating when I'm on the bike or on a bus.

    This is a junction I always try and merge correctly, I find if you drive up and stop and indicate you are let in quickly because people are embarrassed to be driving in the bus lane .

    It is a shockingly useless bus lane though, because it is always full of cars the buses go up the regular lane . The major jam point here comes from people waiting to right turn onto Brunswick street or cross from Arbour hill , and this will only get worse as this is now the ONLY route for vehicular traffic to access the south end of Grangegorman


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    #50
    highdef
    Registered Users Posts: 6,140 ✭✭✭highdef


    cgcsb wrote: »
    I find it's easier to just go with the crowd rather than try to drive properly in this scenario. If I do it properly I either get beeped at/shouted at and can't merge so I'll usually just get in the bus lane early.

    Isn't it almost comical that you almost feel like you are in the wrong in that the people breaking the rules are the ones who are giving out to you for doing the correct thing when in fact if anyone is to beep and shout at others, it should really be you and others in the same situation doing that to those in the bus lane who are in fact blocking you!!!!


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    #51
    cgcsb
    Registered Users Posts: 9,275 ✭✭✭cgcsb


    trellheim wrote: »
    This is a junction I always try and merge correctly, I find if you drive up and stop and indicate you are let in quickly because people are embarrassed to be driving in the bus lane .

    It is a shockingly useless bus lane though, because it is always full of cars the buses go up the regular lane . The major jam point here comes from people waiting to right turn onto Brunswick street or cross from Arbour hill , and this will only get worse as this is now the ONLY route for vehicular traffic to access the south end of Grangegorman

    The Stoneybatter-Brunswick St-Arbour Hill junction is a literal free for all, who knows why there isn't daily deaths on this, absolutely mental layout and all turns are possible even though Arbour Hill can only fit 1 car up it.

    Bus connects promises to fix this by making Brunswick street bike only at that end and allowing access to Lower Grangegorman via north king st and George's Lane.

    they could make Arbour hill one way now though and that would simplify the cluster-** of possible turning movements here.


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