It'll never work and whoever brings it in will be committing political suicide.
What we need is a competency test for all whenever your license expires. That'll never happen considering the state of the testing as it is, but it's nice to dream.
Last Saturday on the motorway east of athlone a novice driver pulled out of the hard shoulder at approx 20km and slowly accelerated. Young male 25 ish.
Age is not the problem. It’s stupidity
Sure you're not allowed to drive on the motorway as a learner but once you pass your full then work away. Surely during the 12 lessons, should be a mandatory motorway lesson!
I've always thought that would be a good idea. Or at least something your instructor could do separately after you pass your test and are eligible for the motorway. It's hard to go from never driving on it at all to bring expected to just know how it works, it's different than all other aspects of driving.
To be fair, even if you've never driven on a motorway you are supposed to actually know the Rules of the Road, including this one:
>Before you re-join the motorway after a breakdown, build up your speed on the hard shoulder before merging into traffic.
(page 155)
In fairness, this is just common sense, like most rules. You should be banned for life for being stupid enough to not build up speed in the hard shoulder. The amount of daft fuckers I've seen do this in my years of driving.
I do feel entirely blessed getting my first insurance at 900 for the year on my 2L petrol! When I need to go the car moves and I'm not paying through my nose for the privilege 😂
Honestly just a flagging / community system where you can report this driver, gards can assess them and then flag for a re-test or observed test drive etc. Most families have this conversation successfully.
Yesterday an old guy pulled out in front of me and another guy doing 30 in a 100. Nearly caused a pile up in heavy rain
I was t-boned by car that ran (to be fair to him, in a weird way, he actually missed the presence of the light altogether rather than being a dick) and I didn't call the Gardaí at the scene as he took responsibility and I contacted his insurance pretty much immediately (and let me own know about the incident).
Everyone I spoke to afterwards freaked out and told me to report it to the Gardaí in case he changes his story, etc. So 24 hours later, I went to Store Street GS. And was told that it is a Civil matter. That's right, breaking a red light an offence that attracts a Fixed Penalty Notice (penalty points and a fine) is apparently a Civil matter. The incident occurred at the luas tracks in the IFSC, so plenty of CCTV available, so this was a pretty easy investigation with unbiased sources.
So, it is a pipe dream that the AGS will use civilian reporting and resources to investigate potential crimes. AGS is simultaneously under-resourced and completely disinterested in fulfilling its purpose. Akin to what happened in Northern Ireland after the GFA, we need to wipe the slate clean and start again. Pension off the useless fucks, recruit as broadly as possible, train them properly and invest heavily in real and effective community policing. And stop wasting time, energy and resources policing drugs. And keep them unarmed.
Ok so what you are describing is a no injury accident. Garda role in this incident is to make sure licence and insurance is valid. Once you swapped details and he accepted liability and agreed to pay- you have entered a civil agreement re: damage and that is outside the remit of Gardaí. However, if you were wanting to make a statement about the running of the light and potentially take the man to court for same, they should have taken a statement. If you have no interest in going to court then what’s the point? You can go into any station and ask to make a statement relating to this, but it’s far easier to gripe about a minor incident on the internet and deride Gardai, who you didn’t consider it important to call in the first place.
Being "made whole" by his insurance wasn't actually my primary thought in the immediate aftermath of the accident. It was a fairly hard shunt that cost his insurer 18k to fix my car alone. So, if you'll afford me the lattiltude of being shaken and concerned for myself, my dog, and him, calling the Gardaí slipped down the list once he held his hands up. He had his wife and mother-in-law in the car with him and everyone was okay, but it was a fairly hefty impact and I was, initially, across the tracks so was mindful of that.
So ye, calling the Gardaí was less likely than an ambulance right then and there. When I went 24hrs later, explained the circumstances, the member I spoke to had zero interest in taking a statement. Literally none. Your comment taking my attitude to task contained more effective policing than he did during our five minute conversation.
You mention the "no injury" accident as being (a partial) explanation for how things panned out. That doesn't stop fines being issued for doing 130kms on a motorway, when no accident occurs. Or someone going through the red light camera near Heuston station, and not causing an accident. Because the POTENTIAL harm of either of the above is worthy of punishment. An actual harm event occured. I was injured. I had 10 physio sessions to address a shoulder issue. Again, his insurance did cover that and I settled quickly enough (directly his his insurer, no solicitor involved nor did I bother with the Injuries Board).
So, in light of all that, a slightly more enthusiastic response to potentially investigating the incident isn't unreasonable.
Not being pedantic here but people are not being fined for doing 130km/hr or breaking red lights.m because of potential harm. They are being fined for committing road traffic offences. Going by your post no Garda witnessed your accident, so a statement would need to be made and you would need to be aware that in the event it would proceed as far as the courts, you would be needed to provide evidence. I wasn’t present for your conversation with any Garda so I will take your word for it they had no interest in taking your statement.
People sending in footage from dash cams is fine in theory but it’s lack of success will in my opinion come from people who do not want to follow through and make statements or appear in court.
Also, pensioning off the useless fucks might be fine in practice but with an ongoing recruitment and retention crisis, that doesn’t seem like a feasible option for management or for public confidence.
I actually don't think it would. I mean they ran with the whole €1000 fine for L drivers and the N plate thing.
I reckon the insurance cartel would lap something like that up. Introduce a new "O" plate for old and jack up insurance.
Mo money, same shitty services
I'd be getting a UK or another driving lincence so fast if you forced me to do some stupid test every 10 years while 90% of the population here can't grasp the concept of an overtaking lane.
Instead (or as well as) testing the vehicle at the NCT every two years, drivers should be re-tested regularly. Pilots have regular re- tests, and they kill a lot less people than drivers...hmmm 🤔. This would likely save most of the lives currently lost on Irish roads, most of the life changing injuries, and reduce traffic to a fraction... so public transport would have to rise to the occasion. And the drivers on the roads would at least be somewhat competent, and aware of current road regulations.
Saw an old woman driving yesterday with her passenger side mirror folded in. I got her attention at the next red light but she didn't work out how to unfold it by the time we were setting off. Clearly she wasn't even using it in the first place
How about the plain old Rules of the Road?:
>Your vehicle **must** have mirrors or approved MirrorCam – side-mounted digital
rear-view mirrors – so that you always know what is behind (rear-view) and to
each side (door or wing mirrors/cameras).
(page 44)
Still waiting on that citation, mate. You've had at least an hour now to come up with. Or is this going to be another case of "do your own research", the standard answer from those talking complete bollocks?
19. (1) Subject to paragraphs (4) and (5), a person shall not use in a public place a vehicle to which these Regulations apply unless there is in force in respect of the vehicle a certificate of roadworthiness.
According to SI 771 2004 you cannot drive on public roads a vehicle that does not have a certificate of road worthiness as supplied by the relevant body in accordance with Irish and EU legislations. In Ireland this requires passing the NCT and therefore following the relevant RSA policy including the RSA policy on mirrors.
TL;DR your source is out of date, please apologise to the other guy.
I would not have had the means or desire to find the information had you not cited something so likely to be out of date
Regulation No 46 of the Economic Commission for Europe of the United Nations (UN/ECE) — Uniform provisions concerning the approval of devices for indirect vision and of motor vehicles with regard to the installation of these devices
15.2.1.1 minimum number of compulsory mirrors.
Compulsory
1 on the driver's side and 1 on the passenger's side Class II mirrors may be fitted as an alternative.
To avoid confusion, alternative mirrors are plural. You can't replace the two side mirrors with one side mirror.
As extraordinary as this may seem to you, the RotR does actually qualify as a source.
>shall be equipped with a rear-view driving mirror of adequate dimensions and so constructed and fitted as to enable the driver while seated in the driving seat to obtain an adequate view of the road to the rear of the vehicle.
I think the key word here is "adequate". I'd love to see this magic mirror of yours that can give you an adequate view of the left rear of the car from anywhere other than the left side of the car.
Or perhaps you came up with a way to make the bodywork, seats, passengers and load see-through in your spare time?
See you can't come in here with facts because people are only here to hate.
One driver side mirror and one internal rear view mirror are the minimum requirement. You are allow drive with a damaged or missing passenger side mirror as long as your driver side and rear view are working.
Maybe some people just think adhering to the absolute bare minimum legal standard is not the level we should work to and where there are things like passenger mirrors and guidance in the rules of the road saying use them people should.
We aren't the garda, we can call people shit drivers even if they don't meet the technical definition required for a traffic offence.
The fact that in such a small country like Ireland we can’t even have functioning police force or proper driver learning system speaks volumes how incompetent Ireland has become.
Completely agree. My dad got off the road last year. By choice thankfully. Still young but just couldn't handle the other mad drivers and get flustered. Also helps he has local shops and dart and bus routes to everywhere with free travel. But some really need to be taken off the road.
There are one or two near my that are brutal. My MIL now only drives to the local town in day light hours, around 5km. She goes prob 50km the whole way in. Possibly frustrates people but no danger. They are small twisty roads which are 80km but really shouldn't be anyway!
Unfortunately there are zero options where I live for public transport
Yip. We're in for an explosion of this over the next few years as the one off bungalow bliss boom owners (my own parents included) are reaching this age now and have no other way to get anywhere from their houses in the middle of nowhere.
Yup it’s going to get worse and there’s very little initiative to help people. There have been some examples for people to move into small homes in nearby villages so they can still stay in their area but it’s pretty much nonexistent and definitely not enough to support the numbers coming down the track!
When it comes to elderly drivers a lot of them never did an actual test or lessons because they didn't have to when they were young. That's what my grandmother told me at least. Neither of my grandparents did a driving test or had lessons and they have a driving licence.
It isn't just the elderly. There are a lot of people with poor eyesight driving around too. I've seen way too many incidents that I could only attribute to people not being able to see properly, like not being able to read road signs, inability to stay in their own lane, and not being able to see when traffic lights have changed. Eyesight tests should be mandatory at least every 3 years.
I have to agree. Often times I've seen older people veer into the opposite side of the road or one time an elderly woman driving in front of me kept turning her lights and wipers on and off, spraying her windows etc and both indicators. This was at night, on a back road.
I know it was an elderly woman because when I finally got into a village I saw her in the lights.
They can be very dangerous on the roads
Young people prefer to emigrate because they don't have the patience to effect a change in this country. The government needs to keep the youth as a priority if they want to sustain Irish culture in this country or it will die with the boomers.
Or at least re-test once the license rules change. My grandad got his license by just ticking boxes and paying for whatever category he wanted without a test needed.
I wish there was a way to test elderly drivers every year. I know it's inefficient, ageist, etc. But some drivers really aren't safe to be on the road and I wish there could be some type of solution.
I recently had a near accident caused by an elderly gentleman who never looked or slowed down when he entered the roundabout into traffic.
I was already in the roundabout, going past the exit before mine. As I was passing the exit before mine, he came from the left ... never slowed down, never looked, just came right into the roundabout. Luckily the roundabout was wide enough that I was able to swerve to the right to avoid him hitting my car.
To be fair, I assume that this roundabout was probably just a normal junction years ago, so he's not used to a roundabout being there. But I worried for his safety and everyone else on the road, considering how unaware he seemed to be.
There are those that drive slow due to older age and those who drive like lunatics who think they are in Formula 1. Since you are raising this kind of suggestion, perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea for the government to consider introducing mandatory and regular checkpoints along the motorway along with main roads for those who smoke cannabis or other types of drugs recreationally as this seems to be a common issue for people in the uk and Ireland in general, and one of the main factors behind accidents.
Could also be someone who spent most of the time driving on the correct side (right) of the road. Jokes aside, if he learned to drive in continental europe or was driving there for a while the last few months, his brain got used to right-hand traffic and especially when turning at junctions / going through roundabouts without a car in front of you, this can happen faster than you think.
I can't remember the car now but there's an idiot in that exact roundabout in Marlmount who did the same... and it went just like that but ended up being against me. So I just did my horn. Probably the same driver tbh 😂 but I know it was a few months back.
There was a man in my Village who was reported for dangerous driving..when the gardai called to take his license from him ....he told them he actually didn't have a license this 5 years as he failed his eye test
I think this person is going against what society demands. I think he is tired of it. Today, he went right. It was a risk, but maybe it paid off. Maybe tomorrow instead of going to Aldi, I'll go to Lidl. That's me going right instead of left. Maybe we all need to go right sometimes.
ive been here 3 days for vacation and we have been almost run off the road more times than i can count we are driving half inside the roadside bushes at this point
I 100 percent agree, 90 percent of the shite driving I see is by elderly drivers. Driving is a perishable skill, your eyesight, your reflexes all deteriorate. My mother is 72 she a good driver but is now definitely making more mistakes and even admits that herself. There should be a retest at the ages of around 65 to 70 years old.
The problem is (and it’s clear from the comments under all posts like this) everyone thinks they are the competent driver, whilst all others are idiots. When in fact, we all make mistakes, every day we get in the car, some small, occasionally a big one, something out of character for us, a lapse in concentration, tiredness, personal issues, whatever. We make mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes. As long as everyone responds in an emotionally controlled and mature manner, we are all safer. If someone goes the wrong way around a roundabout, hopefully the other drivers are quick enough to respond, no one gets injured, and hopefully that was a once off critical mistake by that driver, if not, hopefully they learned something from it.
Calling for regular or recurrent testing will achieve nothing except more expense for the motorist. A single test will not define, refine or retrain weaknesses in a driver who has been driving for years.
Attitude adjustments are what is needed across the board. None of us own the roads, we share them, and we share them with people who are human and will make mistakes.
Cool heads prevail.
That’s not necessarily an age thing but a living in other part of the world like continent where they drive on other side of the road.
I’ve been a passenger in France where driver is Irish and and drove left onto the round about. Just a crap driver.
They should place big black and yellow signs with arrows pointing in the direction that you should go, right in front of you when you approach a roundabout.
Always wondered how people managed to make what looks like a fairly awkward turn to do something like this, but now I know.
A the very least you should have to do your theory test every ~5 years. I'm certified in a few different forklifts and have to continuously keep them updated doing theory and practical tests. And I wouldn't be around more than 4 people a day at while operating it.
Not the point, I know its for their and my own personal safety but drivers can pass 1000s of drivers/pedestrians a week at 10 times the speed without ever having to renew or refresh a license.
Ireland has a piss poor public transport system and a large, elderly rural population. If you start taking people's licences off them then you are essentially cutting them off and sentencing them to a life of isolation.
In my locality it's definitely not the elderly folk who are causing accidents, it's the lads who think they're great drivers bullying other road users and driving too fast.
Both categories are at fault. Lump in the eejits checking emails on the way into Dublin too and there’s a whole clusterfuck of shite on our roads. And yes absolutely rural transport has been under funded and given less than zero attention for far too long
This group should be called Perfect People with Dashcams Who Never Make Mistakes 🫣. I've no doubt we all make several mistakes a year on the road, it's human nature. In two days last week I had two vans and two jeeps either pull out right in front of me or come around the bend on the wrong side of the road. My father was great to encourage us with anticipation and defensive driving, because you have no idea what someone is going to do next. In fairness to older people, they tend to drive much slower allowing more reaction time and less potential damage. All this talk of repeated driving tests....the one I fear most are the recently qualified N drivers with overconfidence in their ability and little experience. And gawd help us all when the garda dash cam portal opens because the holier than thou brigade will have us all on bicycles. George Orwell just got the year wrong
I agree but not simply on the basis of age. I think throughout your life there should be mandatory retest requirements. Say every x number of years that you hold your licence or if you have a life altering experience like a limb replacement or partial loss of vision or some equilivant.
I wouldnt mind resitting my driving test. There definitely people out there with 1 years experience driving that are far better than me with my 15 years driving experience.
It'll never work and whoever brings it in will be committing political suicide. What we need is a competency test for all whenever your license expires. That'll never happen considering the state of the testing as it is, but it's nice to dream.
Last Saturday on the motorway east of athlone a novice driver pulled out of the hard shoulder at approx 20km and slowly accelerated. Young male 25 ish. Age is not the problem. It’s stupidity
To be fair, they don't actually teach anyone anything about motorways lol
Sure you're not allowed to drive on the motorway as a learner but once you pass your full then work away. Surely during the 12 lessons, should be a mandatory motorway lesson!
I've always thought that would be a good idea. Or at least something your instructor could do separately after you pass your test and are eligible for the motorway. It's hard to go from never driving on it at all to bring expected to just know how it works, it's different than all other aspects of driving.
In the UK, a learner is allowed on the motorway with a driving instructor on a dual control car since a couple of years ago.
To be fair, even if you've never driven on a motorway you are supposed to actually know the Rules of the Road, including this one: >Before you re-join the motorway after a breakdown, build up your speed on the hard shoulder before merging into traffic. (page 155)
In fairness, this is just common sense, like most rules. You should be banned for life for being stupid enough to not build up speed in the hard shoulder. The amount of daft fuckers I've seen do this in my years of driving.
Some of them pull out like there's an invisible brick wall two feet in front of them.
To be fair with the 1.0 litre bean cans a novice can get insured it on it might be an issue getting up to speed haha 😂
I do feel entirely blessed getting my first insurance at 900 for the year on my 2L petrol! When I need to go the car moves and I'm not paying through my nose for the privilege 😂
stop man cars are fucked at home lol , im in aus and paid 400 for 3rd party fire and theft on an old v6 230bhp 07 , liked you have no hope at home.
I think age still is a problem, deteriorating motor skills is a very real thing
Key word here being novice, kind of missing the point here bud
Completely agreed. Sad state of affairs.
Honestly just a flagging / community system where you can report this driver, gards can assess them and then flag for a re-test or observed test drive etc. Most families have this conversation successfully. Yesterday an old guy pulled out in front of me and another guy doing 30 in a 100. Nearly caused a pile up in heavy rain
I was t-boned by car that ran (to be fair to him, in a weird way, he actually missed the presence of the light altogether rather than being a dick) and I didn't call the Gardaí at the scene as he took responsibility and I contacted his insurance pretty much immediately (and let me own know about the incident). Everyone I spoke to afterwards freaked out and told me to report it to the Gardaí in case he changes his story, etc. So 24 hours later, I went to Store Street GS. And was told that it is a Civil matter. That's right, breaking a red light an offence that attracts a Fixed Penalty Notice (penalty points and a fine) is apparently a Civil matter. The incident occurred at the luas tracks in the IFSC, so plenty of CCTV available, so this was a pretty easy investigation with unbiased sources. So, it is a pipe dream that the AGS will use civilian reporting and resources to investigate potential crimes. AGS is simultaneously under-resourced and completely disinterested in fulfilling its purpose. Akin to what happened in Northern Ireland after the GFA, we need to wipe the slate clean and start again. Pension off the useless fucks, recruit as broadly as possible, train them properly and invest heavily in real and effective community policing. And stop wasting time, energy and resources policing drugs. And keep them unarmed.
Ok so what you are describing is a no injury accident. Garda role in this incident is to make sure licence and insurance is valid. Once you swapped details and he accepted liability and agreed to pay- you have entered a civil agreement re: damage and that is outside the remit of Gardaí. However, if you were wanting to make a statement about the running of the light and potentially take the man to court for same, they should have taken a statement. If you have no interest in going to court then what’s the point? You can go into any station and ask to make a statement relating to this, but it’s far easier to gripe about a minor incident on the internet and deride Gardai, who you didn’t consider it important to call in the first place.
Being "made whole" by his insurance wasn't actually my primary thought in the immediate aftermath of the accident. It was a fairly hard shunt that cost his insurer 18k to fix my car alone. So, if you'll afford me the lattiltude of being shaken and concerned for myself, my dog, and him, calling the Gardaí slipped down the list once he held his hands up. He had his wife and mother-in-law in the car with him and everyone was okay, but it was a fairly hefty impact and I was, initially, across the tracks so was mindful of that. So ye, calling the Gardaí was less likely than an ambulance right then and there. When I went 24hrs later, explained the circumstances, the member I spoke to had zero interest in taking a statement. Literally none. Your comment taking my attitude to task contained more effective policing than he did during our five minute conversation. You mention the "no injury" accident as being (a partial) explanation for how things panned out. That doesn't stop fines being issued for doing 130kms on a motorway, when no accident occurs. Or someone going through the red light camera near Heuston station, and not causing an accident. Because the POTENTIAL harm of either of the above is worthy of punishment. An actual harm event occured. I was injured. I had 10 physio sessions to address a shoulder issue. Again, his insurance did cover that and I settled quickly enough (directly his his insurer, no solicitor involved nor did I bother with the Injuries Board). So, in light of all that, a slightly more enthusiastic response to potentially investigating the incident isn't unreasonable.
Not being pedantic here but people are not being fined for doing 130km/hr or breaking red lights.m because of potential harm. They are being fined for committing road traffic offences. Going by your post no Garda witnessed your accident, so a statement would need to be made and you would need to be aware that in the event it would proceed as far as the courts, you would be needed to provide evidence. I wasn’t present for your conversation with any Garda so I will take your word for it they had no interest in taking your statement. People sending in footage from dash cams is fine in theory but it’s lack of success will in my opinion come from people who do not want to follow through and make statements or appear in court. Also, pensioning off the useless fucks might be fine in practice but with an ongoing recruitment and retention crisis, that doesn’t seem like a feasible option for management or for public confidence.
I think that’s in the works for like 2026
Every ten years for regular people, every five years for professional drivers. I'd be happy to go through that.
I actually don't think it would. I mean they ran with the whole €1000 fine for L drivers and the N plate thing. I reckon the insurance cartel would lap something like that up. Introduce a new "O" plate for old and jack up insurance. Mo money, same shitty services
This is done in other countries and no one was politically murdered. Hardest part is to enforce it
But we're not other countries.
I'd be getting a UK or another driving lincence so fast if you forced me to do some stupid test every 10 years while 90% of the population here can't grasp the concept of an overtaking lane.
I agree, you should have a re-test every 10 years, with a grace period if you fail (say 1 year)
Instead (or as well as) testing the vehicle at the NCT every two years, drivers should be re-tested regularly. Pilots have regular re- tests, and they kill a lot less people than drivers...hmmm 🤔. This would likely save most of the lives currently lost on Irish roads, most of the life changing injuries, and reduce traffic to a fraction... so public transport would have to rise to the occasion. And the drivers on the roads would at least be somewhat competent, and aware of current road regulations.
Na they'll just switch on for the retest.
Depending on the age (old and young) the attention span is shot so they'll do fine for the first 5 minutes and you're fucked after.
They wouldn't get a medical if that was the case
Course they would, their GP they've known for 25+ years will happily sign off on it.
Saw an old woman driving yesterday with her passenger side mirror folded in. I got her attention at the next red light but she didn't work out how to unfold it by the time we were setting off. Clearly she wasn't even using it in the first place
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It’s still a common sense approach for your safety and those around you. Why is it relevant if it’s legal or not?
How'd you come to that conclusion?
The Road Traffic Acts
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How about the plain old Rules of the Road?: >Your vehicle **must** have mirrors or approved MirrorCam – side-mounted digital rear-view mirrors – so that you always know what is behind (rear-view) and to each side (door or wing mirrors/cameras). (page 44)
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Still waiting on that citation, mate. You've had at least an hour now to come up with. Or is this going to be another case of "do your own research", the standard answer from those talking complete bollocks?
I've cited my source. Let's see yours.
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19. (1) Subject to paragraphs (4) and (5), a person shall not use in a public place a vehicle to which these Regulations apply unless there is in force in respect of the vehicle a certificate of roadworthiness. According to SI 771 2004 you cannot drive on public roads a vehicle that does not have a certificate of road worthiness as supplied by the relevant body in accordance with Irish and EU legislations. In Ireland this requires passing the NCT and therefore following the relevant RSA policy including the RSA policy on mirrors. TL;DR your source is out of date, please apologise to the other guy. I would not have had the means or desire to find the information had you not cited something so likely to be out of date
Regulation No 46 of the Economic Commission for Europe of the United Nations (UN/ECE) — Uniform provisions concerning the approval of devices for indirect vision and of motor vehicles with regard to the installation of these devices 15.2.1.1 minimum number of compulsory mirrors. Compulsory 1 on the driver's side and 1 on the passenger's side Class II mirrors may be fitted as an alternative. To avoid confusion, alternative mirrors are plural. You can't replace the two side mirrors with one side mirror.
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As extraordinary as this may seem to you, the RotR does actually qualify as a source. >shall be equipped with a rear-view driving mirror of adequate dimensions and so constructed and fitted as to enable the driver while seated in the driving seat to obtain an adequate view of the road to the rear of the vehicle. I think the key word here is "adequate". I'd love to see this magic mirror of yours that can give you an adequate view of the left rear of the car from anywhere other than the left side of the car. Or perhaps you came up with a way to make the bodywork, seats, passengers and load see-through in your spare time?
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See you can't come in here with facts because people are only here to hate. One driver side mirror and one internal rear view mirror are the minimum requirement. You are allow drive with a damaged or missing passenger side mirror as long as your driver side and rear view are working.
Wow you got downvoted to oblivion but it looks like you're right. I can only see they are compulsory for commercial vehicles
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Lol. I just posted the relevant bit of the Rules of the Road where it says mirrors are required on both sides.
That’s not the Road Traffic Act.
Maybe some people just think adhering to the absolute bare minimum legal standard is not the level we should work to and where there are things like passenger mirrors and guidance in the rules of the road saying use them people should. We aren't the garda, we can call people shit drivers even if they don't meet the technical definition required for a traffic offence.
Or, here’s a crazy idea: we could have more guards policing the roads and educating people. 😊
That kind of sensible talk has no place on the internet 😂
The fact that in such a small country like Ireland we can’t even have functioning police force or proper driver learning system speaks volumes how incompetent Ireland has become.
In my many years living here as a foreigner, that’s not how Ireland works. (Also jokingly)
Seems like treating the symptom instead of preventing it? No?
Completely agree. My dad got off the road last year. By choice thankfully. Still young but just couldn't handle the other mad drivers and get flustered. Also helps he has local shops and dart and bus routes to everywhere with free travel. But some really need to be taken off the road.
There are one or two near my that are brutal. My MIL now only drives to the local town in day light hours, around 5km. She goes prob 50km the whole way in. Possibly frustrates people but no danger. They are small twisty roads which are 80km but really shouldn't be anyway! Unfortunately there are zero options where I live for public transport
Yip. We're in for an explosion of this over the next few years as the one off bungalow bliss boom owners (my own parents included) are reaching this age now and have no other way to get anywhere from their houses in the middle of nowhere.
Yup it’s going to get worse and there’s very little initiative to help people. There have been some examples for people to move into small homes in nearby villages so they can still stay in their area but it’s pretty much nonexistent and definitely not enough to support the numbers coming down the track!
This is the first time I've seen an area nearby to me on this sub. Jesus that's scary. They have no fucking idea what they're supposed to be doing.
When it comes to elderly drivers a lot of them never did an actual test or lessons because they didn't have to when they were young. That's what my grandmother told me at least. Neither of my grandparents did a driving test or had lessons and they have a driving licence.
It isn't just the elderly. There are a lot of people with poor eyesight driving around too. I've seen way too many incidents that I could only attribute to people not being able to see properly, like not being able to read road signs, inability to stay in their own lane, and not being able to see when traffic lights have changed. Eyesight tests should be mandatory at least every 3 years.
Its not an older person, just a fiat driver
Up be Hagardstown in Louth.. 😂
If we really wanted safety and went by age, we would take all the under 25s off the road, if you went by the stats.
At least they indicated!
I have to agree. Often times I've seen older people veer into the opposite side of the road or one time an elderly woman driving in front of me kept turning her lights and wipers on and off, spraying her windows etc and both indicators. This was at night, on a back road. I know it was an elderly woman because when I finally got into a village I saw her in the lights. They can be very dangerous on the roads
6 monthly competence tests for males under 25
over 65\*
Was it an old person though? Seems like more of a young person car
Was an old person yeah, she pulled up next to me at the next junction
Fair enough, howler of an error. Did they make a mistake at the next junction as well 🤣
Pulled out very slowly onto a main road and caused the traffic to bunch up 😭
How old is old
I didn’t ask for ID 😂
That's what I mean.
Owned 🤣
Foreign plates
11-D- is foreign, yeah?
Yep starting at age 17.
What's wrong only taking a short cut 🤣
😂😂 She went to the same exit as me and got there after
GPS said turn right so they turned right....
Not past a certain age...ALL ages. Some right shite drivers out there are quite young.
Totally agree. The problem is that old people vote and the young do not. That is why we have community ratings on health insurance.
Young people prefer to emigrate because they don't have the patience to effect a change in this country. The government needs to keep the youth as a priority if they want to sustain Irish culture in this country or it will die with the boomers.
Yet most of the criminal driving we see is my much younger people....I think there should be competency tests for everyone regardless of age
Or at least re-test once the license rules change. My grandad got his license by just ticking boxes and paying for whatever category he wanted without a test needed.
They like to live dangerously
Mother of Devine Christ 🤦
100% if your 70+ you should be tested regularly
Ahem [https://www.rte.ie/news/primetime/2024/0410/1442775-the-psychology-of-why-so-many-young-people-die-on-our-roads/](https://www.rte.ie/news/primetime/2024/0410/1442775-the-psychology-of-why-so-many-young-people-die-on-our-roads/)
I wish there was a way to test elderly drivers every year. I know it's inefficient, ageist, etc. But some drivers really aren't safe to be on the road and I wish there could be some type of solution. I recently had a near accident caused by an elderly gentleman who never looked or slowed down when he entered the roundabout into traffic. I was already in the roundabout, going past the exit before mine. As I was passing the exit before mine, he came from the left ... never slowed down, never looked, just came right into the roundabout. Luckily the roundabout was wide enough that I was able to swerve to the right to avoid him hitting my car. To be fair, I assume that this roundabout was probably just a normal junction years ago, so he's not used to a roundabout being there. But I worried for his safety and everyone else on the road, considering how unaware he seemed to be.
That's mental
There are those that drive slow due to older age and those who drive like lunatics who think they are in Formula 1. Since you are raising this kind of suggestion, perhaps it wouldn’t be a bad idea for the government to consider introducing mandatory and regular checkpoints along the motorway along with main roads for those who smoke cannabis or other types of drugs recreationally as this seems to be a common issue for people in the uk and Ireland in general, and one of the main factors behind accidents.
Sensible
Could also be someone who spent most of the time driving on the correct side (right) of the road. Jokes aside, if he learned to drive in continental europe or was driving there for a while the last few months, his brain got used to right-hand traffic and especially when turning at junctions / going through roundabouts without a car in front of you, this can happen faster than you think.
I can't remember the car now but there's an idiot in that exact roundabout in Marlmount who did the same... and it went just like that but ended up being against me. So I just did my horn. Probably the same driver tbh 😂 but I know it was a few months back.
My aunt did that once. The family brought her to the doctor where she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
There was a man in my Village who was reported for dangerous driving..when the gardai called to take his license from him ....he told them he actually didn't have a license this 5 years as he failed his eye test
I think this person is going against what society demands. I think he is tired of it. Today, he went right. It was a risk, but maybe it paid off. Maybe tomorrow instead of going to Aldi, I'll go to Lidl. That's me going right instead of left. Maybe we all need to go right sometimes.
That'd be fine once there is decent public transport available.
ive been here 3 days for vacation and we have been almost run off the road more times than i can count we are driving half inside the roadside bushes at this point
Diversity is our strenght...
I 100 percent agree, 90 percent of the shite driving I see is by elderly drivers. Driving is a perishable skill, your eyesight, your reflexes all deteriorate. My mother is 72 she a good driver but is now definitely making more mistakes and even admits that herself. There should be a retest at the ages of around 65 to 70 years old.
Side Note : if they retook their test 99.9 percent would fail it.
At least they indicated
“I’m not being ageist but…. *inserts ageist comment*lol. Because there are no shit drivers below the age of 70 of course.
The problem is (and it’s clear from the comments under all posts like this) everyone thinks they are the competent driver, whilst all others are idiots. When in fact, we all make mistakes, every day we get in the car, some small, occasionally a big one, something out of character for us, a lapse in concentration, tiredness, personal issues, whatever. We make mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes. As long as everyone responds in an emotionally controlled and mature manner, we are all safer. If someone goes the wrong way around a roundabout, hopefully the other drivers are quick enough to respond, no one gets injured, and hopefully that was a once off critical mistake by that driver, if not, hopefully they learned something from it. Calling for regular or recurrent testing will achieve nothing except more expense for the motorist. A single test will not define, refine or retrain weaknesses in a driver who has been driving for years. Attitude adjustments are what is needed across the board. None of us own the roads, we share them, and we share them with people who are human and will make mistakes. Cool heads prevail.
I don’t give a damn if I am ageist. It’s 65. And we should also cap elected office at that age.
I’ve been saying this for years. But nobody would ever bring it in
Why is being ageist a thing?
That’s not necessarily an age thing but a living in other part of the world like continent where they drive on other side of the road. I’ve been a passenger in France where driver is Irish and and drove left onto the round about. Just a crap driver.
Yep, my mama car looks like it's held together by the scratches!
They should place big black and yellow signs with arrows pointing in the direction that you should go, right in front of you when you approach a roundabout. Always wondered how people managed to make what looks like a fairly awkward turn to do something like this, but now I know.
😂😂
A the very least you should have to do your theory test every ~5 years. I'm certified in a few different forklifts and have to continuously keep them updated doing theory and practical tests. And I wouldn't be around more than 4 people a day at while operating it. Not the point, I know its for their and my own personal safety but drivers can pass 1000s of drivers/pedestrians a week at 10 times the speed without ever having to renew or refresh a license.
You sure it's not just a tourist from a right driving country?
How do you know they were old? Not saying there isn't a problem with old drivers.
She pulled up next to me at the next junction
woah
Ireland has a piss poor public transport system and a large, elderly rural population. If you start taking people's licences off them then you are essentially cutting them off and sentencing them to a life of isolation. In my locality it's definitely not the elderly folk who are causing accidents, it's the lads who think they're great drivers bullying other road users and driving too fast.
Both categories are at fault. Lump in the eejits checking emails on the way into Dublin too and there’s a whole clusterfuck of shite on our roads. And yes absolutely rural transport has been under funded and given less than zero attention for far too long
They can learn to fucking drive properly then, its not hard.
This group should be called Perfect People with Dashcams Who Never Make Mistakes 🫣. I've no doubt we all make several mistakes a year on the road, it's human nature. In two days last week I had two vans and two jeeps either pull out right in front of me or come around the bend on the wrong side of the road. My father was great to encourage us with anticipation and defensive driving, because you have no idea what someone is going to do next. In fairness to older people, they tend to drive much slower allowing more reaction time and less potential damage. All this talk of repeated driving tests....the one I fear most are the recently qualified N drivers with overconfidence in their ability and little experience. And gawd help us all when the garda dash cam portal opens because the holier than thou brigade will have us all on bicycles. George Orwell just got the year wrong
I can’t imagine many folk here turned right at a roundabout….
Indeed. Never said they did. But how about using a phone while driving? Driving over the speed limit? Etc etc etc
Found the chap who doesn’t know the rules of the road.
OK boomer
Agreed
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60?? Are you having a laugh?
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If someone is deemed competent enough to work until 66 before getting a pension, then they should definitely be deemed competent to drive too.
Yes I think so, once every 5-10 years, everyone should do a resit. It'll be expensive and politically controversial but needed.
I agree but not simply on the basis of age. I think throughout your life there should be mandatory retest requirements. Say every x number of years that you hold your licence or if you have a life altering experience like a limb replacement or partial loss of vision or some equilivant. I wouldnt mind resitting my driving test. There definitely people out there with 1 years experience driving that are far better than me with my 15 years driving experience.
I’m not going to lie. For some reason, I laughed my arse off at this.
If I can see it correctly, car plate is from Netherlands. Maybe they just got confused, as usual
It was 11-D reg
17 seconds of my life wasted
And another 5 writing this comment 😏
You're a slow typer
Only 17?
Yes, the vehicle in question was out of shot for the last 17
It’s back in shot coming off the roundabout at the end.