View Full Version : Deaths on Irish roads are the fault of the public (drivers) and not the Government
max power
10/02/2006, 1:20 PM
discuss.........
Obviously people are responsible for their own behaviour.
However the government is failing grossly in its own public duty. The government statement is like say street muggings are the fault of irish people & no blame to the state for not policing the streets.
Anyone have a link to the quote...?
max power
10/02/2006, 1:25 PM
i hope the name says it all, people roar and shout that the Government should do this that and the other to lower road deaths,
BUT
should we as drivers not slow down, take care on the roads, don't drink drive. follow the rules of the road and if an "L" driver keep within the rules that licence sets out.....no motorways or driving alone when you should have a fully qualified driver with them.
Block G Raptor
10/02/2006, 1:45 PM
Dont see the point in the whole Full licence driver sitting in the passenger seat with a learner what are they going to do grab the controls in the split second it takes to have a crash, Perleeeeeease !
finlma
10/02/2006, 1:53 PM
A reasonably low-cost solution which has greatly reduced road deaths in countries such as Sweden and New Zealand should be implemented here instead of throwing money at more cops, random breath tests, etc.
Introduce barriers in the middle of the road so that over-taking becomes impossible (most accidents are caused by over-taking) and every 5-10km have an overtaking lane. I lived in NZ and the overtaking lane is a great idea - it really reduces the number of people trying risky over-taking manouvers.
Its a relatively low-cost solution and hugely successful.
finlma
10/02/2006, 1:54 PM
if an "L" driver keep within the rules that licence sets out.....no motorways or driving alone when you should have a fully qualified driver with them.
If there wasn't a 12 month waiting list for driving tests this might be feasable. Government are certainly at fault here.
max power
10/02/2006, 1:58 PM
If there wasn't a 12 month waiting list for driving tests this might be feasable. Government are certainly at fault here.
agreed, but that is not the 1st time that has happened, wasn't there a driving licence amnesty in the 80's ???
but i must admit, i dont drink drive because i need my licence for my business, not out of any social pressure.
finlma
10/02/2006, 2:03 PM
but i must admit, i dont drink drive because i need my licence for my business, not out of any social pressure.
I don't drink drive so that I don't kill anyone - no other reason.
max power
10/02/2006, 2:12 PM
but if we lived in an honest society and not a PC one you would get more answers such as mine, i also speed, i have a full clean licence, because i have never been caught.
but a lot of drivers dont know the basic rules of the road, such as using roundabouts, yellow boxes, indicators etc. a lot of these casue accidents.
add to that cyclist who think traffic lights are there becasue the colours are nice and that lights on bikes are not needed.
the there are the people who just walk where they want cause " ah sure they'll see me and stop"
as a socity we are mad we have no thoughts of how our actions on the roads will effect others.
All full licence holders have come through the dodgy provisional licence laws so no higher ground here. However I do believe the manner in which you are able to drive unlicenced (have either never sat or have failed a driving test) directly contributes to how we as a society treat driving.
Theres nothing done well on irish roads.
- Speeding laws not enforced by gardai (shooting turkeys on motorway culture).
- Drinking driving laws not enforced.
- Road surfacing not acceptable.
- Road signage inconsistent or non-existent.
- Full licence test too easy
- No requirement to pass a test to drive on roads.
- Irish drivers do not know what an overtaking lane is.
I could go on...
max power
10/02/2006, 2:36 PM
All full licence holders have come through the dodgy provisional licence laws so no higher ground here. However I do believe the manner in which you are able to drive unlicenced (have either never sat or have failed a driving test) directly contributes to how we as a society treat driving.
Theres nothing done well on irish roads.
- Speeding laws not enforced by gardai (shooting turkeys on motorway culture).
- Drinking driving laws not enforced.
- Road surfacing not acceptable.
- Road signage inconsistent or non-existent.
- Full licence test too easy
- No requirement to pass a test to drive on roads.
- Irish drivers do not know what an overtaking lane is.
I could go on...
drink driving not enforced.....but your not meant to drink drink, its not the governments fault if you drink and get into your car....its yours.
the same with speeding, its your choice to put your foot down.
overtaking lane.....more like "sit in and annoy other drivers lane":D
the state of the r roads in the country is a disgrace and the full licence test is easy i do agree.
and the idea that you can drive as long as you like on a green licence is a joke.
but the deaths are mainly caused by speed and drinking, both are a personal choice by drivers, that is where the blame lies on the deaths issue.
a lack of road signs doesn't cause 58 deaths so far this year or does the overtaking lane, personal choices by drivers has in a lot of cases.
Dricky
10/02/2006, 2:40 PM
learning to drive and learning to pass a test are two very different thing. Start them young while in school and get this sorted once and for all. Gov responsability as the are the legislators.
Failing your test and being able to drive home that is a joke.
Tired&Emotional
10/02/2006, 2:51 PM
It is drivers' responsibilty to slow down take more care etc and you can say it's ALL up to drivers but the government can't sherk their responsibilty by putting the onus on drivers at the top of there lists of solutions to road deaths. The fcuking cheek of them!
But where would society be without any laws & enforcement of them. The government need to get the finger out. Whatever it takes, give the gardai whatever they need to police the roads, get the points system working efficiently and get the courts moving. An awful amount of drink-driving charges for example have been struck out of court in recent years because the system was/is being successfully challenged on technical issues!!
Tired&Emotional
10/02/2006, 2:53 PM
learning to drive and learning to pass a test are two very different thing. Start them young while in school and get this sorted once and for all. Gov responsability as the are the legislators.
Failing your test and being able to drive home that is a joke.
Exactly - people learn how to pass the test rather than how to drive!
(it does make sense,think about it!)
...its not the governments fault if you drink and get into your car....its yours.
Thats obviously true but its human nature to do things that are bad unless some legal consequence.
You have a 200/1 chance of being breathalysed on any given year. Given we have maybe 50 years of driving each that means only 1 in 4 of us will be breathalysed in our lifetime. :eek:
Very few people make link between driving at 55mph (instead of 50) & accidents. If there was a good chance guards would catch me at 55mph then i wouldn't do it.
I've tracked this for years & for years the NRA refused to admit that central barriers on motorways was required dispite being out of touch with basically the whole western world. They used to quote 30 year old US research to backup their case. Noticed how they have started to retro-fit motorways with central median barriers? Ever wonder why they doing that? How can it have been deemed safe to law the road without barriers & suddenly they required? That is the state (civil servants to blame there not political parties) linked to ignorance we all are dealing with...
This can be debated to death but truth is this state does not take the road infrastructure & driving seriously.
This Government has to take responsibility for the numbers of unqualified drivers on the road, the state of the roads, the lack of enforcement overnight on regional roads (as opposed to fish in a barrell day time checks on motorways/dual carriageways). They've been in power since 1997, and no progress has been made - afterall this time the solution is still Drivers have to take responsibility.
Until they have lock down on country roads around nightclubs fook all is going to change. It's the combination of speed and drink and bravado at 2-3am that is a cause of a lot of accidents imo. (The farmers having their couple of pints and driving home cause fook all accidents as far as I can see, so not even as simple as simply drink driving).
What is done about it? A load of penalty point offences that target rush hour drivers, no doubt a Garda clampdown that will result in huge numbers of fish in a barrell speed traps to get detection numbers up, and a claim by Cullen that progress is being made....
max power
13/02/2006, 1:16 PM
This Government has to take responsibility for the numbers of unqualified drivers on the road, the state of the roads, the lack of enforcement overnight on regional roads (as opposed to fish in a barrell day time checks on motorways/dual carriageways). They've been in power since 1997, and no progress has been made - afterall this time the solution is still Drivers have to take responsibility.
Until they have lock down on country roads around nightclubs fook all is going to change. It's the combination of speed and drink and bravado at 2-3am that is a cause of a lot of accidents imo. (The farmers having their couple of pints and driving home cause fook all accidents as far as I can see, so not even as simple as simply drink driving).
What is done about it? A load of penalty point offences that target rush hour drivers, no doubt a Garda clampdown that will result in huge numbers of fish in a barrell speed traps to get detection numbers up, and a claim by Cullen that progress is being made....
all valid points macy but i still have to come back to our attitudes on the road, the drink driving and speeding issues, as bad as i think cullen is, he doesn't pile pints into me or press my foot down on the pedal. that are personal choices.
the nct has made cars safer ( and the government money ) the penalty points has reduced insurance costs on motorists with some getting an amount off for having no points, PP havre slowed me down, if it was just a fine i wouldn't care but the points and the chance of losing my licence does.
the R roads need vast improvments not only on their structure but also on their speed limits, there are R roads where you can do 100km but honestly if you went over 60 you'd be in a ditch, yet you are driving within the legal parameters set out, its mad :confused:
also as soemone who is on our raods at 2 and 3 am weekly i can say i have honestly been stopped at a garda checkpoint once in 10 years. But i have been stopped early evening cheaking for tax and insurance ( not killers i think ) which of course are the money makers which is where the additude is at the moment in the powers that be, BIG numbers that look good on paper in stats and increase the amount of money brought in every year,
We could say murder was the responsibility of the citizens of the state not to kill people but we still have gardai to catch the offenders.
It took this government 7 years to implement a very basic penalty points system - they say it rule & ledger approach. I don't understand the apparent disinterest in improving things. I can't just be about money? There are no lobby groups (exclusion of tester unions) opposed to change that i can see...?
NY Hoop
13/02/2006, 1:35 PM
Someone here mentions start them young. Good idea. In New York they can drive at 16 provided they pass a vision and written test to get a learner permit. After this they must do a mandatory driver education course and when they get their certificate from this only then do they get to do the road test.
I cant be sure but I think they study driving in school there.
Contrast to here as when I wanted an extra form of ID I just bought a provisional license without any test:eek:
Also in the states some cars have the seat belts come across you automatically. An idea for all cars sold here but this would involve years of red tape through the EU etc.
The Rules of the Road here are a decade out of date which is a disgrace.
Incredibly full driver licenses were actually sold, I think, in the 60s. Whatever minister brought that in has blood on his hands.
KOH
There are no lobby groups (exclusion of tester unions) opposed to change that i can see...?
Even the tester unions aren't opposed. They're opposed to permenant outsourcing, and made a suggestion for an alternative solution, but they see the need for clearing the backlog. What's holding up is the Government embargo on public service recruitment, and Cullen's insistance on trying to privatise it. Putting his PD principle's above lives.
also as soemone who is on our raods at 2 and 3 am weekly i can say i have honestly been stopped at a garda checkpoint once in 10 years. But i have been stopped early evening cheaking for tax and insurance ( not killers i think ) which of course are the money makers which is where the additude is at the moment in the powers that be, BIG numbers that look good on paper in stats and increase the amount of money brought in every year,
This is the problem, and a direct result of Government policy. The only relevant measure of road safety is road deaths. The number of speed checks, convictions, penalty points issued are irrelevant. Until the Government (actually the whole political establishment) and the Gards accept this nothing will change in enforcement.
I think we can disagree of different flavours of the road issues but we can all agree the governemnt is doing sh!te job in this area for which there is no excuse.
I think we can disagree of different flavours of the road issues but we can all agree the governemnt is doing sh!te job in this area for which there is no excuse.
Yeah, doubt they'll be too many arguements with that. Some kind of policy, even if I didn't agree with it, would be progress...
max power
13/02/2006, 2:14 PM
This is the problem, and a direct result of Government policy. The only relevant measure of road safety is road deaths. The number of speed checks, convictions, penalty points issued are irrelevant. Until the Government (actually the whole political establishment) and the Gards accept this nothing will change in enforcement.
well said, its all a numbers game and with cullen at th helm little will change :rolleyes:
Wiseguy
15/02/2006, 2:13 PM
There are so many problems with this issue it will take years to sort.I do agree that drivers are responcible for there own actions but it's down to more than just that.
Driver Education
There are to many idiots on the road.So many people on our roads have no idea how to drive or drive with due care and attention.Fools not dipping their lights.Driving up your arse and tail gating you.Idiots who constantly brake everytime a vehicle approaches.People who hug the white line and won't move over to let you pass them.I could go on and on but firstly the government need to provide a proper driver education course.
Enforcement
Most people break the rules of the road because they know the chances of them getting caught are very small.Most speed checkpoints are in 50 or 60km zones and these areas are much safer as they are usually lit up,have footpaths and are well marked out.If there is a speed checkpoint around most people will flash you and let you know one is up ahead.I have never come across a drink driving checkpoint in all my years of driving.
If the rules of the road were enforced rigorously and people were afraid of being caught this would greatly reduce road deaths.People who break the law should be punished and for enforcement to take place there needs to be a dedicated road traffic corps which works around the clock every day of the year with every resource at it's disposal for this to work.Lets be honest,there is no chance of that happening.Cases being thrown out of court on technicalities is rediculous.No matter what,if you broke the law and the facts are there to prove it then that should be enough.
The State of the roads
It is a disgrace that in this day and age we are still driving on sub standard roads.Pot holes, no markings, poor signage and so on all make driving on our roads dangerous.Every road should be or a minimum width by law and have clear markings,cats eyes and reflective posts and all signs should be further from bends,junctions ect.. and be replective so they are easy to spot.Hedgerows should be constantly trimmed and removed at all juntions to allow clear sight lines and all road surfaces should be pot hole free and turn into skating rinks once wet.I pay over €500 road tax each year along with the tax i pay on diesel and some of the roads in this country are of 3rd world standard.It's just not acceptable and it's time the government acted.The only problem is that they show an interest for a while and when the hype dies down it's swept under the carpet.
fosterdollar
15/02/2006, 3:09 PM
learning to drive and learning to pass a test are two very different thing. Start them young while in school and get this sorted once and for all. Gov responsability as the are the legislators.
Failing your test and being able to drive home that is a joke.
Don't have time to discuss the other topics but on this one i echo Dricky's sentiments.
I have passed the National Driving Test, the Hibernian Ignition course (run by IAM) and the IAM Advanced Driving Course, which i will choose to 'top-up' every 24 months or so. By far, the most inadequate in terms of testing or proving one's driving abilities is the National Car Test. The approach taken by testers is ridiculously "by the book". It is a one-off, practically useless, waste of time, energy and money.
I don't know the figures off hand but I know those who have completed the IAM Advanced course have a significantly decreased chance of being involved in an accident. This, i believe, is because you are genuinely taught how to drive safely. The promotion of the application of 'defensive driving' i.e. actively trying to prevent an accident from occurring, regardless of who's at fault. A friend of mine has been driving on a provisional for quite some time now and still breaches the rules by driving without full licence holder in car, driving on motorways, etc. One thing I often pick him up on is when he looks for confirmation that if 'this guy on the roundabout' had hit him he wouldn't have been at fault. It's almost as if he couldn't care if the accident happened or not. And this is typical of the passive aggressive attitude that preparing for the National Test creates. i.e. As long as you stick to the rules, your A OK.
In my view, preparation for the car test needs to be reviewed along with the test. Modularisation should be looked at. There are many 'subject' areas in driving skills and these should tested seaparately - not in one 20 minute drive around an urban area. Candidates should have proof of their attendance at certified courses. Privatisation may need to be looked at here with two/three year term contracts partially based on improvements in road safety.
The amount of road deaths is a sad reflection on our society. Wanton waste of often young lives. Ignorance, inability and negligence are all to play in this but there is no system in place to prevent drivers displaying these symptons from obtaining licences.
I don't know the figures off hand but I know those who have completed the IAM Advanced course have a significantly decreased chance of being involved in an accident. This, i believe, is because you are genuinely taught how to drive safely. The promotion of the application of 'defensive driving' i.e. actively trying to prevent an accident from occurring, regardless of who's at fault.
I think thats an important point about standards in this country. I've been driving for 10 years & never had an accident as i feel i'm fairly attentive (we have the odd scare) anticipating other drivers actions. Too many people in this country are ignorant of any other user of the road.
I also wish the media were able to broadcast the real cause of a crash. What we get at the moment is: "Two killed in a road 'accident' in Co. Carlow".
I wish they were able to say something like: "the 23-year old female was using her mobile phone at the time, which caused the crash" or "the 55-year old man was tailgating, when the car in front had to stop suddenly" or "if the young guy had been going 10km/h slower the little girl probably would have survuved".
They can't do it now, presumably because of libel laws, but if the public were constantly being reminded of how accidents really do happen (time and time again), then maybe they might re-evaluate their own driving behaviour.
Thats obviously true but its human nature to do things that are bad unless some legal consequence.
Well then human nature is what has to be changed not endless legislation. It is very simple, you are getting in a vehicle going at least 50kph, therefore it's not the safest method of travel in the world unless you are capable of handling the said vehicle. And therein lies the problem people think they can drive, but cannot. I'm sure everyone on this site and everywhere else could come up with another piece of legislation to 'help' with road deaths and road safety. This though will not stop the 'carnage'. No matter what legislation comes in, Irish people will settle into old habits again the effectiveness of the penalty points shows this. The same if not more deaths are occurring - and regardless of how detailed the penalty points system is, the old habits will return.
When you buy a packet of peanuts, you take the responsibility that you will not choke on them or have an allergy to them, yet you still see "may contain traces of nuts" because the company has to cover themselves because some will not take responsibility for themselves and blame the company. If you decide you can eat them safely, then once you buy them, it is your responsibility. Similar to a car, once you start a journey - you are responsible for the car. The car does not do anything you don't make it. The story: "The car hit a wall". No, it didn't. The driver drove the car into a wall is the accurate story. I have heard on the Big Bite today that a father was complaining about his daughter killed because the car skid on loose chippings (?) on a Donegal road and he was blaming the county council for not signposting the chippings. If the car was being driven safely through the loose chippings, I doubt whether it would skid. How many cars had been through that stretch of road before and after and managed not to skid? This is a prime case of blaming the council/government for something where the driver was solely at fault.
The driving test cannot test how people react on a foggy morning or similar unsuspecting hazard, it can just go through the theory and hope that the person will have gained enough experience to cope with the problem at the time.
Driving is taken for granted. Everyone thinks they can drive. I say this as a test taker soon enough. I want to be able to drive, but at this rate I don't see myself driving very much when I see the lunatics on the road. I don't know how I would react, but I know that I wouldn't be blaming the council or government.
It will be my responsibility to ensure that I am capable enough to drive my car from a to b safely. This regardless of enforcement of already ridiculous amounts of legislation and whatever state the roads are in. If safety is dependent on roads being perfect, we have some shocking drivers in Ireland - you should be capable of driving on any surface if you are to take the wheel.
It is time for drivers to take the responsibility for their mistakes. What I see as the causes of death are irresponsibility and being too quick to blame the Government like everything else it seems in this country. Driving a car etc. is not as routine or easy as some people think it is - if you were use to a plane as often as we do a car, eventually you'll be on a flight where something goes wrong.
I'd love to know how many road journeys are taken in this country in one year to see the percentage of journeys that cause death to the amount of journeys. I am sick of the emphasis on speed in this country. Every single time you get in a car, you can die - either going at 10kph or 1000kph.
Perhaps if concentration was focussed on the road rather than interminably at the Government the number might decrease somewhat. Ultimately the Government is a much easier target than human nature, I suppose.
Driving is taken for granted. Everyone thinks they can drive. I say this as a test taker soon enough. I want to be able to drive, but at this rate I don't see myself driving very much when I see the lunatics on the road.
I find it hard to take your post seriously after that comment.
Given that the full test is basically sh!te anyone who cannot pass (even if this means they just learn to drive in a test passing manner) such an easy test should not be on the road.
No one is going to dispute that irish people are idiots on the road & need to change their habits but such is life that a stick is required to beat those habits out of people. Anyone who says they have never broken the speed limit is either a lier or does not drive.
CollegeTillIDie
15/02/2006, 9:13 PM
Well a small percentage of those killed on the roads last year, were immigrants from the EU states who are used to driving on the other side of the road.
Wiseguy
16/02/2006, 9:40 AM
Well a small percentage of those killed on the roads last year, were immigrants from the EU states who are used to driving on the other side of the road.
Some of the worst and most dangerous driving i have seen has been from Northern and Non national drivers.I know they're not the only offenders but i was coming out of my estate one morning and i witnessed right in front of me a non national driver who couldn't even get the car to move without it jumping and stalling it.Before she knew it she was out in the middle of a busy road.I walked up to the car and offered to move it out of the middle of the road and she gave out to me and told me to leave her alone.Some other lady rang the Gaurds and i don't know what came of it but these are the type of people we have to deal with on our roads.As long as there is no enforcement and weak penalties to those who do get caught then people will break the law.You need to put the fear of god in people and have them think that they will be caught and when caught they will pay the penalty.
Some of the worst and most dangerous driving i have seen has been from Northern and Non national drivers.I know they're not the only offenders but i was coming out of my estate one morning and i witnessed right in front of me a non national driver who couldn't even get the car to move without it jumping and stalling it.Before she knew it she was out in the middle of a busy road.I walked up to the car and offered to move it out of the middle of the road and she gave out to me and told me to leave her alone.Some other lady rang the Gaurds and i don't know what came of it but these are the type of people we have to deal with on our roads.As long as there is no enforcement and weak penalties to those who do get caught then people will break the law.You need to put the fear of god in people and have them think that they will be caught and when caught they will pay the penalty.
To be fair, that's just an example of unqualified drivers being able to drive on our roads. Nationality doesn't come into it. Most of the shít driving I see is in Irish reg cars.
It's all very well people going on about deficiencies of the test, but lets get everyone on the roads through that first. It's the equivalent of people wanting to reduce the drink drive limit when the majority caught are at least 2 times over the present limit. Enforce what we have first, then look at improving it.
crc - I whole heartedly agree with giving the causes of accidents. The safety council says speed kills, but then it came out in the drink driving campaign before christmas that most deaths involve drink. We need a proper break down of the causes of the accidents, the road conditions (including markings, potholes etc), time of night, speed etc to make informed decisions. It would help with enforcement too, as with proper back up they can justify where their focusing resources.
CollegeTillIDie
17/02/2006, 7:45 AM
Well I have long believed the following maxim
Yellow licence plate 3 letters 4 numbers = homicidal maniac :D
max power
17/02/2006, 8:38 AM
Well I have long believed the following maxim
Yellow licence plate 3 letters 4 numbers = homicidal maniac :D
not only that but southern irish drivers driving on english licences can't get points so speed away.....
also out of 50 or so dead on our roads so far this year, 9 are from eastern europe, that is alomost 20% and a large number
not only that but southern irish drivers driving on english licences can't get points so speed away.....
I wouldn't say that, as they still get the fines and the points are backdated if you ever get an Irish licence. Also the cops give you shít (even at checkpoints etc), and say you have to change even when legally you can keep another eu licence for ever.
My UK licence gets me cheaper insurance as the standard of testing is higher, and it's valid till i'm 65 so I don't have a stealth tax every few years to renew it. I don't keep it to avoid points, as it will still affect your insurance by having the conviction whether points are applied or not.
Well I have long believed the following maxim
Yellow licence plate 3 letters 4 numbers = homicidal maniac :D
Thing is, people in the north will say the same about irish plates up there.
max power
17/02/2006, 10:15 AM
I wouldn't say that, as they still get the fines and the points are backdated if you ever get an Irish licence. Also the cops give you shít (even at checkpoints etc), and say you have to change even when legally you can keep another eu licence for ever.
My UK licence gets me cheaper insurance as the standard of testing is higher, and it's valid till i'm 65 so I don't have a stealth tax every few years to renew it. I don't keep it to avoid points, as it will still affect your insurance by having the conviction whether points are applied or not.
does the picture ever change, i can imagine a 65 year old being stopped with a pic of him when he is 17 :D
i can understand the garda givin you sh1t and its good to know the insurance companies realise the british test is of a higher standard and cost insurance in line with it.
does the picture ever change, i can imagine a 65 year old being stopped with a pic of him when he is 17 :D
What photo?
i can understand the garda givin you sh1t
But legally I'm entitled to hold it. Cops will tell you otherwise, but that's they're problem, they can see me in court over it.
max power
17/02/2006, 12:38 PM
What photo?.
the one on your licence ????
the one on your licence ????
No photo on an old style UK licence. Think new ones now have to be photo one's, but sure I'll worry about that around about that around 2041. :D
Correction, valid till I'm 70, so 2046.
CollegeTillIDie
22/02/2006, 7:56 PM
Well the worst crime anyone commits in this country is buy a car!
VRT, VAT on the purchase price. Which makes the car in Ireland one of the most expensive to purchase in the EU .You have to be insured to have the car on the road. You have to pay Road TAX to have it on the road legitimately. More than 50% of the cost of your fuel is either TAX or DUTY payable to the government.
You have to pay road TOLLS and then if you park it somewhere convenient you either pay PARKING meter or discs and if you don't park in the right place you pay for a CLAMP or your car is "stolen" by the local authority and then you have to pay a ransom to get it back!
strangeirish
22/02/2006, 8:48 PM
Well the worst crime anyone commits in this country is buy a car!
VRT, VAT on the purchase price. Which makes the car in Ireland one of the most expensive to purchase in the EU .You have to be insured to have the car on the road. You have to pay Road TAX to have it on the road legitimately. More than 50% of the cost of your fuel is either TAX or DUTY payable to the government.
You have to pay road TOLLS and then if you park it somewhere convenient you either pay PARKING meter or discs and if you don't park in the right place you pay for a CLAMP or your car is "stolen" by the local authority and then you have to pay a ransom to get it back!
Walk:D
I am a realistic with respect to car taxes - this country made a decision some time ago to fund a large part of the states spending by car taxes, in other countries they would have property tax or other forms. While i believe VRT to be the truest double tax there is & most probably illegal I don't see it changing anytime soon.
Passive
23/02/2006, 1:51 PM
Most crashes are down to driver behaviour but the appalling condition of many rural roads is a problem that must be addressed by local authorities. Where the government has failed us is by not implementing their road safety strategy, a document which is top class but which has been criminally ignored by the very people who brought it in.
TheOneWhoKnocks
08/11/2014, 12:21 AM
It's not the Government's fault that people disobey speed limits, refuse to use indicators, drive out in front of other cars, overtake and force oncoming cars to pull into the side of the road, have no idea which lane to be in at roundabouts, don't drive suitably to adapt to the weather conditions......
Every time I make a twenty minute journey, I count at least 10 serious driving errors without even paying much attention.
People are just f'ing clueless. The death rates will continue to soar. I'm just surprised they aren't a lot higher.
dahamsta
10/11/2014, 3:01 PM
Dear god, it's an eight year old thread man!
Eminence Grise
10/11/2014, 8:43 PM
Ah, in fairness, Adam, he didn't break the speed limit in replying to the thread. Leading by example, and all that! I'm looking forward to more witty repartee in 2022.
dahamsta
12/11/2014, 12:57 PM
I'll wait here.
NeverFeltBetter
12/11/2014, 1:54 PM
We'll all be dead by road accidents by then.
It's not the Government's fault that people disobey speed limits, refuse to use indicators, drive out in front of other cars, overtake and force oncoming cars to pull into the side of the road, have no idea which lane to be in at roundabouts, don't drive suitably to adapt to the weather conditions......
Every time I make a twenty minute journey, I count at least 10 serious driving errors without even paying much attention.
People are just f'ing clueless. The death rates will continue to soar. I'm just surprised they aren't a lot higher.
I am shocked they aren't higher myself. Using indicators are a thing of the past did you not know?!!!! LOL
Don't get me started on drink driving......
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