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ALMOST THREE QUARTERS of Irish motorists believe that the garda presence on our roads has reduced since last year.
A poll of over 20,300 motorists by AA reveled that just 8.5 per cent of people think the presence is the same or has increased while almost 72 per cent said it was less than last year.
Based on these results, it’s not surprising that almost 40 per cent also think that the government is not treating road safety as a priority.
Another area of concern for motorists is the condition of Irish roads with over 82 per cent saying that it had worsened since last year.
Director of Consumer Affairs at AA, Conor Faughan, said that there was “not enough done to rectify” the damage done in the 2010 freeze.
“This is why the AA gets complaints and attends car breakdowns caused by potholes and dangerous road surfaces on a daily basis,” he said.
Roads are not like fine wine. hey do not improve with age. If you do not keep them properly the damage gets worse and the ultimate repair cost escalates. This is what is happening now, as every motorist who has hit a pothole in recent months could tell you.
Last year, there were 162 deaths on Irish roads, the lowest number since records began. However AA said 2013 began badly with deaths up 18 per cent and five people were killed over the bank holiday weekend alone.
Faughan said “prominent, visible policing is critical” and AA today called on the government to make sure that adequate resources are provided to gardaí and for road maintenance.
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I used to be breathalysed every few weeks at random check points. Haven’t been stopped in probably 18 months now. There’s definitely a huge reduction. Not surprising given their lack of funding.
I spend more time on the motorway network and rarely see them on that… which is to be expected as they are the safest roads in the country.
Except when there is a 60Km/h speed restriction for road upgrades, then you’ll see them in abundance… Easy way to bring up the statistics and generate some easy cash for the government!!
Up until 2 years ago, I drove over 1000 kilometres a week north and south maybe once a week would see a Garda And that would be at the petrol station in Lucan where they bought their coffee. I was home last month for two weeks the only time I saw a guard was at the local station when I had to get my pp photos signed. There is 0 presence on the roads.
The cops in this country are a joke. A load of boggers whose whole family have been or are still joke cops getting paid mad wages for doing sweet FA. COULDN’T CATCH A COLD
obviously caught you thgh!
Waa waa they use the vans to generate income waa waa
There’s a speed limit sign on the road, there’s also a speed dial inside your car. Make sure the dial matches the sign and you’re grand.
It’s not rocket science.
Gardai won’t do checkpoints on small country roads, correct. Why? Maybe it’s because they won’t make as much cash. Or maybe its because country roads are narrow and winding, therefore dangerous to stop traffic on. Take responsibility for your own actions, they wouldn’t be needed on the roads if we all slowed down to the legal speed limit. Only ourselves to blame.
+ 1 billion and these roads are the most dangerous.
It does prove the governments main priority is generating through those speed vans and not road safety. I would like to see annual incomes from the “speed van industry”
I rarely see the Go Safe vans either.
Well I got stopped by my first checkpoint in months coming into kilkenny yesterday the Garda only seem to have checkpoints when the sun comes out
Not that I minded though they seemed to be very helpfully letting me know that I needed brand new tyres on my car that the ones on it were bald one thing I very rarely check
James your car should have been repaired on the spot or taken off you. If you were driving a truck this is the result. Disgraceful. A car with bald tyres is as dangerous as a drunk driver.
Must agree that the Garda presence on our roads is appearing to be a major revenue generating exercise. Sitting in areas on good roads with ridiculous speed limits is like shooting fish in a barrel. I live in a semi rural area and on my road which takes only one car width the speed limit is 80 in one direction , do a U turn and it’s 60, yet part of the Naas Rd is 50. Go figure.
How many pedestrian crossings are there on the road outside your house. Nobody seems to realise why these speed limits are in place, its usually because of pedestrian crossings and complex junctions. Imagine being allowed do 100kmh through the long mile junction. There would be serious collisions daily
None,I was merely making the point that on a rural country road that there are two different speeds, depending on the way you are heading, pointless and no joined up thinking. The other really big issue not mentioned yet is the fact that a large number if people simply do not know how to drive on motorways
Its amazing that people complain about speed traps. Don’t speed, the zones are there for a reason, and you’ll have nothing to worry about.
Wow solbank, do you want ketchup for that massive chip on your shoulder?
Definitely far fewer checkpoints. I travel national routes daily and have noticed this. A few years ago I used be breathalised regularly but this hasn’t happened now in over 18 months.
The journal should be renamed The Garda News.
Correct – check the “guard” who hides behind the sign at roundabout onto the East link ! – life preservation or easy money ?
All the cops do is hide behide signs on good roads to stop people for speeding.they should be in back rds where people die
What difference does it make if they hide behind signs? Should Gardai on surveillance in plain clothes wear uniform because that’s not fair either.
@James, speeders speed on all roads so the idea is to catch them.
And that Garda been all sneaky behind his sign can do nothing to you if you don’t speed so he should not be a worry at all.
I wonder if the reason we see less checkpoints on the road is due to the fact that there are less gardai workin and employed by the state-
And we truly now see that we don’t have enough to police the country as a whole
Maybe this is the truth
Woah, careful there. You’re making sense. People don’t like that!!
Maybe it’s time to put desked members of An Garda Siochana back out on the streets. Isn’t that what they joined the force for? Plenty of able bodied members working in offices around the country ..
Obviously because of the speed vans!!
I have travel lots over the bank holiday weekend and never came across 1 Garda checkpoint. They have reduced in numbers greatly and the road deaths for this year prove that statistic
absolute rubbish.road deaths can happen regardless of whether there are guards on the road.they are called accidents for a reason.
No. I think there’s more Garda check points than ever. There’s also those new speeding vans everywhere now. They’re now not necessary on roads where people have died or have been seriously injured. That was a marketing gimmick to get us to accept them and to make us think they’re a good idea.
People have died and been seriously injured on most of the roads in Ireland
I’ve seen more Garsai than ever. Its been quiet for the last month or two but before that it felt like an explosion of Gardai were around. They were pulling over everything including cyclists.
I have never seen a Garda do any good. Simple fact, out there to collect money end off. If there was a self respecting Garda they would stop these bailiffs and haha sheriffs terrorizing people. Ask a few bankers to produce a license that kind of thing. U can’t drive down the road with out a license but men in balaclavas and UK registered vans can rock up to homes and smash door down and terrorize family’s and the keepers of the peace will stand there!!!
pure utter tripe solbank.
If the Gardaí could just realise that, while the speed kills, it’s the initial bad driving that causes the accident. On my bike just this morning and a a guy in a 4×4 wandered from lane 3 to 2 and back to 3 again… No indicator and I could see he was on the phone. Don’t think he even realised he’d done it. People tailgate way to much too… I had a lady stuck to the back of my bike going down the N7 last week…. honestly I think she wanted to hit me (In lane 1).
@Ross, do you not realize that these people are above the law, they do not cause accidents, other drivers must keep out of their way, it is not up to them to take care while driving, ……….or so THEY think.
Ross..did you memorize his registration..did you report the incident…are you willing to make a statement of complaint and if necessary give evidence? Gardai cannot be everywhere and cannot act on hearsay
Colm, while I appreciate your reply, can I take it you don’t ride a bike? There is a lot more to be doing than memorising reg plates when riding on the N7/M50 in busy traffic. Also if I was to start that I’d be in court every day. Thinking about getting a GoPro to record it all though…
correct Ross..Im not a biker. i appreciate your point re memorizing numbers but those incidents you describe are the very reason you should do your best as we cannot be everywhere. gopro sounds good thgh and would be good evidence. the incidents you describe are also the reason AGS require unmarked covert camera equipped cars and bikes as our colleagues in UK. the paucity of investment in Garda fleet is a scandal but its ignored by media and politicians. thank you for appreciatimg my comment and engaging constructively.
Good keep them off the roads to fight real crime.
I drive safe so I couldn’t give a crap if the road is littered with Garda!!! only reason anyone has to worry about. Garda presence is if their doing something wrong. What’s your definition of real crime? would you prefer they sit in the station waiting for a call to come in for ‘real crime’ or be out on the streets. I’ve noticed a hell of a lot more dangerous drivers on the road lately due to cuts in the force. if people don’t see them, their grumbling and when they do see them, their still grumbling!!
It’s high time the Garda showed less interest in the easy targets like the Irish motorist and put their efforts and resources into tackling real crime that is destroying this country!!! Yes they are needed on the roads but get the priorities right, crime gangs are travelling all over the country robbing houses, selling drugs, murdering people, aggravated assaults,burglaries which are a now daily occurrence in even the quietest of villages now where only a few years ago it would be nearly unheard of, teenage gangs robbing cars and giving cops a 220kph chase after robbing two houses as we seen in last weekends papers and outrunning the cop car with their stolen high powered Audi, its not on the road these thugs need to be tackled, the car has been stolen at this stage !!!!!! Until Mr Shatter and his Top teams realise that the Garda need the help of the people to beat these thugs and continuously show more interest in the easy target than the real criminals, they are going nowhere, how many of us have heard of the guards being called to some incident or another and to be told no patrol car available!! I know personally of a drug deal being done in broad daylight and that was the reply from the local station, makes you wonder where they all were at the time which that was more important???
78 people killed on the roads so far this year.
Still think the Gurads need to ease up on people speeding?
100% Liam.. yes road safety is important, they need to crack down on everything, that’s lane discipline, indicating, dui drink/drugs, mobile phones, tailgating and yes of course speeding too (the relatively slow drivers are more dangerous than the faster ones anyway, causing slow moving obstructions, queqes, tailgating and a lot of overtaking – higher risk of collision when stuck behind them) .. But the amount of actual ‘crime’ being committed all over the country is a more worthy use of their limited resources. Assaults, burglaries, crime gangs and drug users / dealers need to be tackled head on. We have to get our priorities straight.
@see my vest 78 deaths? guess the speed cameras arent working then.lets get rid of them cause they dont work.hmmmm….if that happened then the private gosafe company will have to think of a new way to make profits then.
in case any of you have not noticed there is a crisis in Garda transport and has been since 2009…more vehivles grounded permanently than are commissioned…unsuitable vehicles being commissioned like bloody transit connects.
there are LESS members on the ground to deal with all issues described.
btw…Traffic Corps deal with ALL picing matters…they concentrate on roads policing but deal with ALL matters.
there are a number of ways you as a motorist can avoid generating this extra govt revenue…i.e. drive in accordance with conditions and limits…its the speeder..non seatbelt wearer mobile phone user who generates the revenue for “without the sinner there would be no need for the pennance!”
How many of those are suicides, bad driving, falling asleep at the wheel, etc etc, foolish to keep labelling all roads as speed related!!! Guards are not needed to control speed anyhow, we have that contracted out, let the Garda deal with real crime !!!
Your completely missing the point Colm M, the Garda should be concentrating more on drug dealing, gang murders etc and not the easy sinners as you describe the motorist, every group has sinners including the Garda, yes the motorist sinners should be followed but let’s not be distracted by the massive announcements about huge clampdowns at bank holiday weekends where 350 + criminals are caught speeding. The public would much prefer to hear that 35 heroin dealers were arrested and locked up over the weekend! Priorities !!
I take it the recent seizures pf controlled drugs nationwide have escaped your notice!
You dismiss road fatalities as “suicides or bad driving” and go on about priorities! You have not got the slightest clue what you are talking about. ..roads policing is exactly that. ..POLICING! AGS mission statement is to protect LIFE and property. …ALL life. Wise up and give my head peace
Well maybe I’m not the expert you obviously are or I don’t have the intimate connection you have with the Garda but I honestly believe that the general public would not disagree too much, just look at the 2012 crime statistics on the CSO and see the crimes of burglary etc up 10 % and more, I may know a lot more than you think and some of my best friends are Guards and I can tell you they are not so blinded by “good news stats” as others !!!
Anyhow I’ll let you have your peace now bud!
Do not notice any difference in Garda numbers on the road.
Why the fuss now? During the Celtic Tiger years builders had free run of the roads and none of the authorities (not just the Gardai) lifted a finger to enforce the law. Where was the RSA then?
What’s a Garda ……?
They are never seen when the idiot drivers are around !!!!!!!
Try the Chippers.
On your shoulders?
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