Deaths on the roads !!

[A face]

People, the body count is rising every weekend with the death on our roads, .... it could be you next !! :eek: Your driving licence has two check boxes at the back, make sure you tick one of them and carry your blood type in you wallet ..... if you are not in then you cant win !!

[paul_oshea]

mate that last bit isnt really funny.

this is unreal though another 6 this weekend. unreal. people seriouslly have to be careful. it could literally be you next.

[A face]

mate that last bit isnt really funny.

It is not meant to be funny .... what i am saying is, it could be the difference between you getting the attention you need or you dying in a pool of your own blood because no one knew your blood type, and remember congealed is a nightmare to get out of your car seat covers.

Make sure you tick one of those boxes, and i dont want to hear "Ahh ... i'll do it when i get home" .... dont put it off, do it now !!

[Superhoops]

.... what i am saying is, it could be the difference between you getting the attention you need or you dying in a pool of your own blood because no one knew your blood type,.....Assume you have ticked your blood type box and added 'but not if donated by one of those Shels filth!" :rolleyes:

[dahamsta]

Assume you have ticked your blood type box and added 'but not if donated by one of those Shels filth!" :rolleyes:Now that isn't funny.

adam

[paul_oshea]

another two this weekend, how many has this been this year already????? is it only because in ireland we cover it? i mean what are the eu stats, you never hear of anyone dying from accidentts in england, but i assume thats because they focus on more "pressing" matters ( in their opinion )

[anto1208]

its mainly down to the fact people are thought and tested on driving at 30 miles and hour around estates , not for driving at 60 mph on dodgy roads .

i have nt heard of many fatal crashes at 30 mph

[paul_oshea]

aye, but i mean there are several places in england and the uk with roads as bad as ours. the main problems at the end of the day is our infrastructure i.e. our roads, how many crashes are on motorways??? and people are doing well up on 60 or more.

[Macy]

Gives the cops an excuse to target dual carriageways and motorways to bring in revenue. Every death gives them the exuse for more and more "fish in a barrell" speed traps on safe roads, so keep on going on about the deaths, which gives less come back about where they actually police the roads...

Also in this country it's all about catching people, not preventing speeding - hence cops hiding behind bridges/ hedges, the unmarked GATSO vans etc etc.

[A face]

A good idea would be for trainee drivers to attend a college for a week and actually learn about driving and the whys and why nots, most people in this country are thought how to driver so they can pass the test ... safety is secondary or an obstacle to be overcome in the test. The points system is a positive recently, but it shouldn't stop there.

But this issue has always been a potical football ... no one ever tackling it comprehensively.

One more point .... people dont know how to drive on dual carrigeways and roundabouts in this country .... seriously bad at times, and i put money on both of the mbeing the cause of a large percentage of accidents in urban areas .... and these are things are not covered in the test .... WHY ??

And how long has the backlog been an issue ..... definitely in the last 8-9 years it had never been at an ok level !! .......... WHY ??

[Macy]

The points system is a positive recently, but it shouldn't stop there.
The points system could be a positive development. Imo it's not, because it just shifts focus on to the number of points issued. No point in the traffic cops being on the motorway bridge in Bray at 7am on a Monday morning racking up the penalty points - they should be on the back roads at 3am Saturday morning getting the drink drivers and slowing down the kids driving home from Cluso's....

[paul_oshea]

in theory its a great scheme, but because its not being carried out effectively in pratice is not, is what you are trying to say.

It is a great idea, and well done to those americans who started it, and as usual we had to jump on it, but it is now down to the garda to enforce it effectively like you say above at 3am in the morning when lads are locked/trying to race/trying to impress.

its too much hassle for guards to do the above.

[Macy]

One more point .... people dont know how to drive on dual carrigeways and roundabouts in this country .... seriously bad at times, and i put money on both of the mbeing the cause of a large percentage of accidents in urban areas .... and these are things are not covered in the test .... WHY ??
Whatever about roundabouts, don't think dual carriageways are that bad. Plenty of crap driving - e.g. people staying in the overtaking lane when the inside lane is clear - but doubt many accidents, particularly fatal ones.

Roundabouts definitely cause of accidents in the citys - but mainly minor I would suggest. People don't know which lane to go in, how to indicate at them etc....

[Macy]

in theory its a great scheme, but because its not being carried out effectively in pratice is not, is what you are trying to say.

It is a great idea, and well done to those americans who started it, and as usual we had to jump on it, but it is now down to the garda to enforce it effectively like you say above at 3am in the morning when lads are locked/trying to race/trying to impress.

its too much hassle for guards to do the above.
Yes, but also the media and politicians have to take some of the blame by focusing on the number of people with points. If the garda commissioner and the politicians said - look we don't care how many people get points if you can get road deaths down - I don't we'd be in the situation we are in with sneaky speed traps and the continued loss of respect for our police force.

[paul_oshea]

look we don't care how many people get points if you can get road deaths down

ya but how do you propose that other than what you said below.

i assume you mean that they dont have to get their quotas for each month? so that the guards dont have to focus on major places with heavy volumes of traffic????

imho that would make feck all difference, because the guards would get lazy, they can still go out on a saturday and firday night and do what we were saying above the way it currently is, they just dont want the hassle.

Its the general members of the garda that have to start making a difference.

[A face]

I suppose the biggest problem here ... and you can even see it in this thread, the driver never has to pick up the responsiblity .... it is always a measure to stop the driver or to prevent the driver from doing damage etc. .... it is never the driver themselves who has to step up to the plate.

It is too easy for us aswell though .... i seriously think that drivers are not thought about the dangers so dont really think of avoiding them, obviously no driver wants to get into a crash but few are prepared to change their driving habits. If they knew more of the end product and its impact then that should go some way towards it.

[A face]

Its the general members of the garda that have to start making a difference.

Cant remeber the town in question but remember hearing some small rural town, the same cop there for years and years and never once pulled someone for speeding .... the force introduced speeding guns and the guy pulled in well about the average in the first year. Trigger happy !! :D

The garda have limited resources as it is ... and their coming under increasing pressure ... society is changing and FF are still in power .... the demands put on them are unreal .... some of them cant even use their radio as it doesnt work ... they have to use their own moblies. They can only do so much.

It has to come down to the motorist aswell !!

[paul_oshea]

some of them cant even use their radio as it doesnt work ... they have to use their own moblies

aye, that must be why i see them texting away the whole time, anytime im home. a face, in fairness the guards down the country have it handy and unless you have a relation in teh force then you should be willing to admit this.

at the end of the day as i say ( oleary) , it is the responsibility of the driver, but if he is too ignorant/arrogant/thick or whatever and wont take that responsibility it has to be taken up by the next in line which is the gardaí

[A face]

aye, that must be why i see them texting away the whole time, anytime im home. a face, in fairness the guards down the country have it handy and unless you have a relation in teh force then you should be willing to admit this.

No relation ... but that shouldnt make a difference anyway .... i am not siding with them at all. Practically their job is getting harder ... there is no getting away from that, .... look at the amount of guys shot dead in the country since Jan .... ??? ..... THAT is alarming. The gardas are always saying they are under resourced .... and to say they have it handy ..... handy .... i know that down my way .... they are chronically under resourced in the City and i hear of situation out in the country where gardas have to cover 40 mile radius's (grammer!! :) ) .... do you know what that involves .... 40 miles is a long way, given that if they have to make up that ground, then they are already at a disadvantage ever before they get there. Now .... take their radio out of the equation !!! ..... Logistically, do you know what that does ?? ... seriously think about it .... that is madness and a losing battle ... there is no way you cannot say they are not up against it.

Anyway .... why are gardas having to catch people speeding ??? What is the not a traffic unit and why cant people take it upon themselves to slow down and sort out their driving ..... we give out about a nanny state but people cant even drive properly .... think about it ..... all the science is done, all the info is there ..... the death toll is like playing slot machines every week ... how do you explain it anymore to people .... its not like it is a secret. The people speeding are screwing te tax payer.

[Macy]

Anyway .... why are gardas having to catch people speeding ??? What is the not a traffic unit and why cant people take it upon themselves to slow down and sort out their driving ..... we give out about a nanny state but people cant even drive properly .... think about it ..... all the science is done, all the info is there ..... the death toll is like playing slot machines every week ... how do you explain it anymore to people .... its not like it is a secret. The people speeding are screwing te tax payer.
Why are the garda's needed at all then A Face? Sure if people should be trusted not to speed, then surely people should be trusted not to fight on a Saturday night, not to break into houses etc etc....

Dual Carriageways and Motorways are the safest roads due to their make up. Probably the speed limits are too low. However, why do the guards with their limited resources insist on concentrating on catching people speeding on them. I've never seen them catching people speeding on the rural roads in the mornings or evenings, including an accident black spot. I regularly see them on the dual carriageway. It's purely to do with meeting quota's, not with prevention of accidents.

Surely their job is to prevent speeding and prevent accidents rather than catching people for speeding? There is a difference, obviously too subtle for the pigs and politicians to grasp.

[paul_oshea]

well said macy.

laws are made, guards are there to enforce those laws and uphold them. that is the definition of a garda in my mind. going over the speed limit is breaking the law, the guards should therefore be enforcing that that law isnt being broken.

a face, just a quick example for you. they could prioritise if they were so "under resourced" at 2:30, on a saturday morning off oconnell street my brother went to releive himself, the cops came in an unmarked car, was a very funny incident actually, but 3 hopped out all "professional", and stayed there for 15 mins or more giving hte 3rd degree, fair enough he shouldnt have been doing that, but if they are so under resourced dont ye think they should be putting their services to better use i.e. a fight that was breaking out just outside burger king! :rolleyes: ;)

A face, i know a few of the young police at home, and off the record they will say that they have it handy. fair enough in the bigger cities the guards up there have a lot more serious crime to deal with, like shootings et al, but most of the accidents occur in the country, and these guards dont have to deal with shootings etc. to say that the guards down the country are under resourced and have to deal with the same as those in the bigger cities where about 10% of fatal accidents occur, is quite naive.

[FarBeag]

Another disaster on out Road's this evening. Five school girls killed.How sad.I feel for their families and friends.

[hamish]

How many of you have an organ donor card? I have and bring it to hospital every time I go, which is a lot. It's good to think that I could be helping someone else with an organ or bodypart.

[Green Tribe]

How many of you have an organ donor card? I have and bring it to hospital every time I go, which is a lot. It's good to think that I could be helping someone else with an organ or bodypart.

I have

[hamish]

You're slipping KT, the last sentence was primed for a good slag at my expense but this being a serious thread, perhaps not.
I think everyone should have a donor card. I'll tell you a funny yarn in the brutal jokes thread which is true about a friend of mine and involved organ donation.