The road safety thread.

[Baron von Biffo]

The government is introducing a new 'N' plate that drivers will be required to display for the first two years after passing their test.

http://www.independent.ie/national-n...s-3264735.html

I say 'required' but the reality is that, just like the 'L' plate, compliance will be sporadic and enforcement effectively nil.

Another meaningless gesture.

[Baron von Biffo]

We're to have another high profile campaign on compliance by learner drivers this weekend. The last time that happened was in May when no action was taken against two thirds of those caught breaking the law.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/g...rs-571911.html

It would be nice to think that this time will be different and it will be more than just a cosmetic exercise but I won't be holding my breath.

[Baron von Biffo]

A district court judge has criticised the so-called 'hip-flask' defence in drink driving cases.

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland...se-212029.html

It's open to the legislature to close off this option by making it an offence for a driver to consume alcohol between the time an accident occurs and they're is breathalysed by the gardaí. The penalty should be identical to that applied on conviction for drunk driving.

[Captain Con O'Sullivan]

Alternatively the judge could have instructed that a file be prepared for the DPP to prosecute the Garda.

But then, drumroll, Gardai, like the nephews of Gardai come from good Garda families. Two tier justice system.

[Baron von Biffo]

The number of penalty points issued last year was down significantly and the vast bulk of them were for speeding.

http://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/2...-9-576130.html

It might be more accurate to refer to them as Gatso Van Points if the trend continues.

[Baron von Biffo]

A man was caught drink driving 26 times in the past 4 years.

http://www.independent.ie/national-n...s-3325359.html

If law allowed for the automatic forfeiture of any vehicle driven by someone over the limit he might not have hit that number.

[Baron von Biffo]

News at One reporting that there's been an orgy of self congratulation about the road deaths figure for last year.

The reduction on previous years is being entirely credited to various RSA/legislative/garda initiatives. The effect of the recession on the big danger group, young men, doesn't seem to have been considered at all. The massive drop in boy-racer buggies and the behaviour associated with them must surely have been a substantial contributor to the lower death toll.

[Baron von Biffo]

We're to have another of those Two Day Wonder blitzes, this time the target is faulty lights and inappropriate use of fog lights.

http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/0219/368...-light-safety/

The last of these PR stunts for the RSA targeted unaccompanied learners. If my memory serves, almost a thousand were detected but less than a hundred were fined. Alas, there's no reason to expect that tomorrow's outing will be any better.

[C. Flower]

Not the only case of someone said to have died due to a "temporary" road surface.

http://www.con-telegraph.ie/news/lat...county-council

[Spectabilis]

Road deaths in South Africa are four times higher than in Ireland according to WHO figures:
8.5 per 100,000 population in IRL
33.2 per 100,000 SA
http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/poverty-matters/2011/may/11/most-dangerous-roads
When the WHO assessed SA’s road safety programme it was found to be very strong on legislation but very weak on enforcement.
In the week when Mido Macia was brutally killed by being handcuffed to a police van and dragged along the road, it must be noted that his offense, if such it was, was parking his taxi on the wrong side of the road. The eight police involved were arrested yesterday. The disproportionate police behaviour - to say the least - in a country where between 1 221 fatal accidents were recorded in the Christmas period alone (from December 1 2012 and January 8 2013) raises so many difficult questions.
One I cannot avoid is whether the fact that Macia was Mozambican contributed in any way to the extraordinary violence. The other is the violent nature of South Africa. I hate to contribute to a stereotype of SA, a country I love, but the stastics tell a grim story. When Veena Steenkamp was killed by Oscar Pistorius recently she was one of over 2,500 women to be murdered in one year.

http://mg.co.za/article/2013-03-02-proposed-bill-to-see-traffic-offenders-help-in-mortuaries

[Baron von Biffo]

Fourth speeding offence and previous for no insurance and still she's not disqualified.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news...-29114668.html

Is it any wonder the RotR are disregarded by so many drivers?

[Baron von Biffo]

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news...-29114666.html

If I was the judge, the driver would be the one paying compensation - for wear and tear of the cane.

Parking on footpaths is illegal and potentially exposes wheelchair and buggy users to danger by forcing them into traffic on the roads.

[DCon]

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news...-29114666.html

If I was the judge, the driver would be the one paying compensation - for wear and tear of the cane.

Parking on footpaths is illegal and potentially exposes wheelchair and buggy users to danger by forcing them into traffic on the roads.

Irish Courts are unlikely to find against someone who has a Rolls and a Driver.

[Baron von Biffo]

Irish Courts are unlikely to find against someone who has a Rolls and a Driver.

It's probably more a case of bad laws than judicial bias. People who break the law and thereby inconvenience others shouldn't be able to use the courts to get compensation.

[Count Bobulescu]

I

f A Driverless Car Crashes, Who's Liable?
Technology isn't the only hurdle for computer-driven cars.

Some number of years from now, the technology may exist for cars to drive themselves. This could save thousands of lives a year (90 percent of fatal car accidents involve human error).
But getting the technology right won't be enough. Governments and courts will have to figure out lots of new legal and regulatory issues. One key question: If a driverless car crashes, who's liable?

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2013/...c=pmb-20130308