Feckin' Modified Car On Me Road!!!!

cpoh1

wet-paint wrote:

Wow, you were being serious? Man, I think that's a bit callous to turn to the owner of poor fido who you've just mashed into the ground, and go looking for a bit of cash to replace the lights. I know you're right, but I'd swallow the cost of it, unless it was a large amount, or the guy started acting the dick.

My dog was run down just after christmas in my housing estate, shes a golden retriever and big boned, the car needed a new bumper and drivers light and I paid up for the damage no questions asked, like was said earlier its the owners responsibility.

kbannon wrote:

Thats all well and good but if you were not driving at an appropriate speed then you are entirely at fault.

I wish that were the case but its not, from a legal point of view anyway. Its entirely the fault of the dog owner as he should be under control at all times, there's no clauses or subsections in the law for any exceptions to this is clear as day.

GTC

And if you are in any way found to be negligent causing the death of any minor, you will be charged with dangerous driving causing death. You are fully responsible for the consequences of not taking into account all conditions pertinent to the way in which you should drive. You don;t have to be speeding to be arrested/convicted.

Small estate or cul-de-sac, 50 kph limit is observed, but slow down, you are still required to be able to stop within the distance you see to be clear, knowing that a child may cross your path at any time.

Jumpy

cpoh1 wrote:

Thats coming from a father and car enthusiast.

Can you ask the father and the car enthusiast to explain variable safe speeds to you as well while you are talking to him?

mike65

Parents should take responsibility for thier children and drivers should act responsibly in a high risk environment. A cul-de-sac or indeed any narrow residential street is almost by definition high risk.

And lets face it you killed a child would you shrug it off and blame the child, the parents, God? Of might you just reflect for the rest of your life that you were not paying as much attention to your environment as you should have been?

Mike.

Seth Brundle

cpoh1 wrote:

I think kbannon you'll find that im agreeing with everything you say. I never said for one second that a driver shouldnt be aware of all potential hazards on the road. I am also saying that parents have the ultimate responsibility for their childrens actions and no matter what a driver does to prevent an accident by taking precautions it wont change the fact that an unsupervised child can run out in front of a car and be knocked down.

I was out playing football with my 3 year old yesterday (on a green space - not the road!). you cannot physically watch them the whole time. You might turn your back to retreive a ball or whatever - you can't watch them the entire time. Even if you do - it does not give carte blanche to drivers to drive at a speed where they will not be able to stop without a kid going through their windscreen!

cpoh1 wrote:

Instead of worrying about the speed cars on public roads are driving at id be more inclined to worry about my childs whereabouts and the wisdom of leaving them unattended on a busy road. Thats coming from a father and car enthusiast.

Using the term 'public roads' broadens the debate though - we are talking about roads within housing estates here.

GTC

kbannon wrote:

I was out playing football with my 3 year old yesterday (on a green space - not the road!). you cannot physically watch them the whole time. You might turn your back to retreive a ball or whatever - you can't watch them the entire time. Even if you do - it does not give carte blanche to drivers to drive at a speed where they will not be able to stop without a kid going through their windscreen!
Using the term 'public roads' broadens the debate though - we are talking about roads within housing estates here.

Excellent point. Parents are indeed responsible, but if you took greater care also, a death may be preventable, and let's face it: Drivers, Guards, everybody wants to see fewer pedestrian deaths. I personally don't mind if a boy racer impales himself on a pole by driving like a moron, so long as he doesn't take anyone with him.

stovelid

@cpoh1 - remind me never to move to your estate.

Parents are blamed for kids getting knocked down by cars and if somebody kills your pet, they expect you to shell out for the damage to their car...




Not making fun of your dog BTW...sorry to hear about that.

yop

Gran Hermano wrote:

I'm guessing the dog wasn't on a lead or under effective control of it's
owner when it was knocked down. The Gardai should have reprimanded the
dog owner for breaking the law by letting it's dog run wildly around the roads,
I know if a dog hit my car I'd be claiming off the dog owner.

I'm not going to get into a big discussion on this, the dog was lethal for been out anyway.

My point been, the next time it could be a child, these guys are driving probably 20 mile per hour over the limit on a road which has the wrong speed limit in the first place, they are not driving within the limits of the speed or the road conditions.

Something may give, I hope its not a child or innocent driver they are pulling out.

cpoh1

stovelid wrote:

Not making of your dog BTW...sorry to hear about that.

No offence taken there wasn't a scratch on the dog, she's built like a horse €400 of damage to the car though.

Lads im not for one minute saying that people shouldnt exercise the utmost caution on residential roads (they are still governed by the rules of the road!), but if a parent isint responsible for their child then it doesnt matter if someone is under the speed limit and on the look out, if a child walks out from behind a parked car then there is nothing that can be done to prevent it and that child will end up in a serious condition. At the end of the day the buck stops with the parent when it comes to ensuring this doesnt happen. Concentrating solely on the driver and having the attitude that they should slow down and expect the unexpected is a cop out, you can never drive slowly enough to stop if a child walks out 2 yards away from your front bumper. What scares me is that there are very few people (and it scares me to say it parents) on here who wont accept this point.

Seth Brundle

GTC wrote:

I personally don't mind if a boy racer impales himself on a pole by driving like a moron, so long as he doesn't take anyone with him.

Im sure you mind the aftermath though. I could never imagine the difficulty you guys have in knocking on the next-of-kin's door.

stovelid

cpoh1 wrote:

No offence taken there wasn't a scratch on the dog, she's built like a horse €400 of damage to the car though.

I thought she was killed. Sorry. I would also offer to pay in your circumstance of course.

richie_rvf

cpoh1 wrote:

... but if a parent isint responsible for their child then it doesnt matter if someone is under the speed limit and on the look out, if a child walks out from behind a parked car then there is nothing that can be done to prevent it and that child will end up in a serious condition. At the end of the day the buck stops with the parent when it comes to ensuring this doesnt happen. Concentrating solely on the driver and having the attitude that they should slow down and expect the unexpected is a cop out, you can never drive slowly enough to stop if a child walks out 2 yards away from your front bumper. What scares me is that there are very few people (and it scares me to say it parents) on here who wont accept this point.

Your responsibility as a driver is to drive with due care and attention.

You are not in a position to tell a parent what they should be doing. We all know only too well that there are parents out there that should not be allowed dress themselves never mind bring up a child.

If you hit a child while driving you are in the wrong - end of story!

I would prefer to drive as slow as fook through a housing estate/cul de sac to avoid anything like that ever happening, it's not as if you have to commute through housing estates and it surely would not hurt to be on the safe side.

When you get behind the wheel you have to presume that people/children WILL do the unpredictable.

As someone said already - expect the unexpected.

Getting back to the OP - If it were me I would try to get speed ramps put in, I don't think there is really a whole lo that can be done about the noise.

Richie.

lightening

There is two man racer fellas on my road. These guys are sad, the usual, late twenties, living with their ma's, think they are Gods gift in their cars, I'm sure they get the ladys all the time. One of them revs the crap out of his car on the road, one of my dogs is scared sh*tless of him! The other one just tootles up the road...

I dunno, its a urban area, people out mowing the grass, walking the dogs, kids playing and this plonker roars by with his bean tin exhaust, I don't know how he isn't embarrassed. Poeple are all looking at him amused or shaking their heads. My exhaust is pretty loud (munfacturer exhaust) but when you keep the revs down its ok.

Gatster

I say egg, you say chicken. Typical of the posters on here instead of answering my valid points about parents responsibilities in looking after unsupervised children on public roads they go off in a tangent

Tangent - you'll note the OP's original post mentions the words 'knocks down a kid'. He does not ask for your parenting tips or opinions.

Are you stupid enough to suggest that me making a point that if a child walks out in front of a car the fact that its travelling 25kph or 80kpgh will not prevent that child from being runover equates to me speeding in residential areas? Gatser go away and have a drink of water and relax.

Where did I mention you speeding in residential areas? I asked if you speed past schools :rolleyes: Ok, here goes:
The child that steps out in front of a car travelling 25kmh is much less likely to be injured (or the injuries will be less severe) by said car as stopping distance is much less - the vehicle will stop quicker and as the distance between where the child is when spotted by the driver will be covered more s-l-o-w-l-y, this may give the little tyke time to get out of the way.

I agree children should be taught road safety as early as possible and be made aware of the dangers of playing in a road, even a cul-de-sac, but even with constant reminders, kids will act like kids, and when driving in these areas anyone driving should be more aware:

Originally Posted by kbannon
I was out playing football with my 3 year old yesterday (on a green space - not the road!). you cannot physically watch them the whole time. You might turn your back to retreive a ball or whatever - you can't watch them the entire time. Even if you do - it does not give carte blanche to drivers to drive at a speed where they will not be able to stop without a kid going through their windscreen!

colm_mcm

good luck to anyone explaining to the guards that the child stuck under their car shouldn't have run out on the road.

Henry Ford III

colm_mcm wrote:

good luck to anyone explaining to the guards that the child stuck under their car shouldn't have run out on the road.

Top post.

mikemac

I've every sympathy for the OP but some people take the noise issue too far.
I drive a 50cc scooter and I've had two neighbours complain about the noise.

But it's not as if I go fast (speeding can difficult to achieve on a 50cc scooter )
Yes, I know it sounds like a hairdryer but it's got a standard exhaust so nothing can be done. For sure, mopeds are loud and probably louder than a car being driven at a sensible pace, but there's an example of pointless complaining by neighbours with nothing better to do.

Mr.Diagnostic

cpoh1 wrote:

you could land yourself in a lot of trouble for aggressvie behaviour like that.

But I didnt......and my kids are still alive

It could also backfire and you could end up with serious bumps and bruises, lots of fellas including myself carry protection down the side of the drivers seat, id have no hesitation in using it if someone threated me like this.

and you go on to talk about laws being broken!! Have you any idea how many laws were being broken by the three heros on my road

Its amazing how many self righteous upholders of the law we have on here, quite frankly some of the comments about deporting people etc. make me feel sick and embarrassed to be a fellow Irishman.

I never mentioned about deporting anyone so I assume that was not intended for me. There again, you seem to have had trouble reading my post. i do not think the nationality of any offender is an issue, just the offence

have you any idea of what the situation was on my road and how bad it was? How can you make a judgement on a situation that you know nothing about.

Your opinion as stated in later posts that the kids are at fault shows just what type of idiot you are.

Volvoboy

Right, has a word with a mother on our road who of which has two kids 5 and 7, she said her and a few other mothers condfronted him about it about a month ago, she said that he said that he wasnt hurting anyone and he's a good driver, so i got one of me mates to ask his cousin who is a Guardi in Store St station, he said that they are powerless to help unless they catch him in the act:rolleyes: what we pay our taxes for



-VB-

Mr.Diagnostic

Hi Volvoboy,

I think the Guard is wrong about not being able to do anything. If you and the concerned mothers are prepared to attend court and give evidence then the Guard can pursue the matter with the DPP.

The fact that he took that attitude seems all too typical.

cpoh1

Mr.Diagnostic wrote:

Your opinion as stated in later posts that the kids are at fault shows just what type of idiot you are.

It just shows what type of idiot you are if thats what you interpreted my posts as saying. If children are let to run around unattended its the adults at fault if a child steps out in front of a car blind with no stopping distance

colm_mcm

It doesn't really matter who's at fault in that situation, a driver should take these things into consideration and adjust their speed accordingly.

Mr.Diagnostic

cpoh1 wrote:

It just shows what type of idiot you are if thats what you interpreted my posts as saying. If children are let to run around unattended its the adults at fault if a child steps out in front of a car blind with no stopping distance

Ah well, that makes it ok so.

I sincerely hope the idiocy of your stance never comes home to roost.

Quint

There's a few of them in my estate, doing doughnuts in the shops car park, wheelspinning around corners in the estates, basically a shower of pricks. One guy crashed killing his mate (he was fine, but he has a lot to think about), all the boy racers were leaving flowers at the crash site, but continue to drive like idiots in the estate!
This guy sounds like a prick too, why the hell doesn't he just do the simple thing, that will stop all the fuss, agro and worry on the street and drive slowly down the cul de sac! Simple as that! Just fecken do it, instead of the bull****e lines that he's a safe driver? Because he's a dickhead, that's why.

Victor

Volvoboy wrote:

he rallys up and down my road .... day or night he must be going up and down the road at least 10 - 15 times a day

I think this is part of the problem - its not like he just drives up to his house, he is doing it repeatedly. If he wants to go for a cruise, use main roads.

yop wrote:

now they are sitting outside the houses at nite revving the crap out of the cars.

Noise pollution people in the local council.

layke wrote:

Guys, there IS NO LAW against after market exhausts.

Of course not, however, there is the Noise Pollution Act and the regulations that someone else posted.

cpoh1 wrote:

Id also like to point out in the young fella in the lancers defence that sound does not always equal speed,

Loud noise = intimidation
High speed = intimidation

If the guy is not breaking the speed limit then he is doing nothing wrong

As someone has pointed out, you need to take all circumstances into account on the road. The speed limit is a maximum, not a target.

cpoh1 wrote:

Crosstownk you might think its ok for a 3 year old to play at the edge of a raod but I certainly wouldnt let my youngfella do it.

And don’t you thinks it’s a sad existence that traditional play areas for children have been converted for parking and “rallying”?

Its typical of Irish people, blame somebody, blame anybody but themselves. I would always look at what I can do before blaming someone else

But you want to blame parents and/or children.

cpoh1 wrote:

Instead of worrying about the speed cars on public roads are driving at id be more inclined to worry about my childs whereabouts and the wisdom of leaving them unattended on a busy road.

The only reason the Volvoboy’s road seems to be busy is that this guy is up and down the road 10-15 times a day.

Gran Hermano wrote:

I have to agree with cpoh1, it amazes me how 'responsible' parents complain about motorists when they allow their little treasure to play on the road.

Children have forever played on streets. The new feature is motorised traffic and the parking thereof. It is for the motorist to yield, not the children.

On occasion whilst driving at 5-15 km/h within an estate I've had to stop because some parent can't see the problem in letting their toddler sit on the middle of a road on their tricycle.

Legally a tricycle is a vehicle and you have to yield for it if it is there before you.

Housing estates have green areas and gardens for a reason.

Where I grew up (a cul de sac) we had no green common space. The nearest park was more than 500m away, across two main roads.

Gran Hermano wrote:

I suppose if there was a large/deep river running close to a house and the parent 'accidentally lost sight' of their toddlers only for one of them to drown you'd blame the river - and not the parents who should not have let the incident to occur. What is the problem with modern society whereby parents can not take responsibility for their own children. I know if I lived near a hazard - be it a lake, river or road - I would ensure my children were supervised at all times.

As someone said, you can fence off the river, but fencing off the road in a cul de sac is a bit impractical and while motorists have the right to use the road, so do pedestrians.

Quint

I'm sure every poster who lives in an urban area has played on a road. Big difference with a residental cul de sac road, with some sort of main road.

Seth Brundle

Any more personal insults will be rewarded with a banning!

nastysimon

I find a lot of the attitudes on this thread a little disturbing. If a kid runs out in front of a car because their parents didn't supervise is properly, it is the fault of the parent. If the car hits them, that is the fault of the driver, so there are two parties to blame. The proportionality of the blame is entirely dependent on the circumstances, though I tend to side with the parent. Unfortunately, the one innocent party is usually the one that gets hurt. Kids are not dogs or cats and the consequences of their behaviour should not be compared.
Speed limits are not targets and are often too high, and just as often too low. They do not excuse people driving dangerously by driving with inappropriate speed. Speed ramps are not the best solution (I've seen what joy riders can use them for) and will increase the noise pollution (I know, I lived beside them and the noise of cars accelerating between them is greater than if they didn't exist). Your neighbour will roar up to them, crawl over them and roar to the next.
Finally, I grew up on a quiet estate road and we were never allowed to play on the road and not without good reason. There are looney drivers out there, they may not live in your estate, but they will come to it from time to time and if your kids are out playing on the road and get hurt, you will have to accept that it was partially your fault. If you don't teach them to play safely, you have to accept that you're a negligent parent. I know that it is easy to let them, but would you let young kids play near a stream, even a fenced off one?
Drivers need to take responsibility for their driving and parents need to take care of and responsibility for their kids. Good driving with errant kids running around will be fairly safe. Well attended and taught kids with looney drivers will also be fairly safe. But there will always be one bad driver out there and one errant kid, so in reality it's only safe when we have good drivers and safe kids.

furtzy

Volvoboy wrote:

Right, has a word with a mother on our road who of which has two kids 5 and 7, she said her and a few other mothers condfronted him about it about a month ago, she said that he said that he wasnt hurting anyone and he's a good driver, so i got one of me mates to ask his cousin who is a Guardi in Store St station, he said that they are powerless to help unless they catch him in the act:rolleyes: what we pay our taxes for



-VB-

Sounds like a right twat. Mate of mine and his neighbours had the same problem with a similar idiot in their estate a while back. They repeatedly asked him to slow down and quit with the silly revving but he told them to get lost so my mate used a bit of this up his exhaust

http://www.makingdiyeasier.co.uk/unibond/nomorebiggaps.html

along with a polite note and he finally got the message

stovelid

lightening wrote:

I'm sure they get the ladys all the time. .

Not sure what type of ladies though

micmclo wrote:

I've every sympathy for the OP but some people take the noise issue too far.
I drive a 50cc scooter and I've had two neighbours complain about the noise.
.

Actually there is a lad very near to my house who leaves around 630 every morning and drives a scooter and the noise can definitely wake you up. I had a Vespa (125cc) in the past and wouldn't complain personally (except on style grounds if was it a moped ) but you should be aware that the things can be surprisingly loud for the size, especially if he's had a kit fitted or something.