Check point on M1 this afternoon.

veetwin

washman3 wrote: »

Mr/Mrs Scumbag can be safe in the knowledge that they will not see one of these checkpoints again until mid December 2014 when the next PR exercise is due.
And even if they did they would approximately a 1 in 50 chance of being pulled over and questioned.
That the reality, and they know it.!!

OK the news report I saw seemed to suggest that this checkpoint was the first of many over the next while. Obviously you have more up to date information on this. Anyway don't let the facts get in the way of of a good bit of bashing:rolleyes:

washman3

veetwin wrote: »

OK the news report I saw seemed to suggest that this checkpoint was the first of many over the next while. Obviously you have more up to date information on this. Anyway don't let the facts get in the way of of a good bit of bashing:rolleyes:

And the news I saw was a blatant PR stunt they preyed on the gullible, which seems to have worked in your case at least.
Here is a 'fact' that you may like to study: 2 weeks ago a gang of scum travelled from Dublin via the M50/M7/M8 motorways to Killenaule in Tipperary where they terrorised and robbed a young family. Many hours later they were captured on the M1 by a stinger trap. Were other gangs of scum put off by this.? not in the slightest, as just last night another gang committed a very similar act when they terrorised another family in Howth, with a high probability that the M50 was used as a getaway.
So your theory that a random motorway checkpoint will somehow discourage travelling criminals is well wide of the mark.

veetwin

Ok so by that rationale the Gardai should just pack up and go home. Obviously being proactive and visible is a waste of time.

washman3

veetwin wrote: »

Ok so by that rationale the Gardai should just pack up and go home. Obviously being proactive and visible is a waste of time.

They should just cut out the waffle and PR bulls##t and do what they do best.
Irish people are grown up and educated nowadays and its a little embarrassing at this stage to watch pathetic stunts like this on SIXONE news when most people can see it for what it is.

P.S. those members of AGS who captured that scum a few weeks ago on the M1 cannot be praised highly enough.

Jesus.

Alias G wrote: »

And I would advocate targeting those areas even more so. AGS do target such secondary roads but ultimately it comes down to a question of resources.

Precisely. So why put a checkpoint on a Motorway at all instead of doing what I suggested above?

moxin

washman3 wrote: »

as just last night another gang committed a very similar act when they terrorised another family in Howth, with a high probability that the M50 was used as a getaway.

Eh, Howth is not exactly beside any motorway escape route. The nearest M1 is about 7 urban junctions away from Howth by quite a distance. And on those possible escape routes are Garda stations nearby to intercept! (Clontarf, Raheny, Coolock)

donvito99

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gardasiochana/11351410894/

Problem?

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

RustyNut

donvito99 wrote: »

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gardasiochana/11351410894/

Problem?

I wonder how long it took the director or producer or whoever was in charge to set up that shot so it didn't show the several kilometre tail back his media circus caused.

Jesus.

Rusty Nut, you're dead right. That scene just screams "staged for the camera".

Your word "circus" describes that carry on perfectly.

obezyana

I reckon they caught a sizeable amount of people for no tax/nct I wonder how many they caught with L plates?

Suasdaguna1

Bullying the public is easy with motorway theatre, bullying thieves and fronting up to them.....? Not a chance. Currently south Dublin is being ransacked by thieves and break ins......average time for Garda call out? In excess of 30mins I hear. Make your own conclusions.

newcavanman

I was heading north on the M1on Wed but I was heading to Rush and Skerries to do deliveries so i avoided the delays
However, if they had a clue about road safety, then they would really crack down on. silly speeding ie on roads that are totally inappropriate and nearly more important get stuck into drivers with broken or faulty lights,It is crazy how dangerous it is, particularly outside lit up areas when you meet these One Eyed Jacks. It would be so easy to catch these people but hey, no fancy sound bites ormedia highlights for that kind of thing

Hootanany

Only good Guard is a Mud Guard

challengemaster

listermint wrote: »

Years without seeing a checkpoint. Maybe years outside dublin on back roads

You don't have to be on back roads. I've come across maybe 5-6 checkpoints in over 5 years of driving, and at one point had gone 2+ years without seeing one. That's all with driving mostly outside of dublin, doing at least 10k miles per year.

Alias G

Jesus. wrote: »

Precisely. So why put a checkpoint on a Motorway at all instead of doing what I suggested above?

They caught someone didn't they. And motorists are now aware that they are liable to meet a checkpoint on a motorway where beforehand they may have felt immune. Effective use of resources therefore. Going round in circles with you. Frankly, the resources will never be there to checkpoint secondary roads to the extent required so personnel will be deployed accordingly. There has been one motorway checkpoint this year verses countless on lower class roads and I don't expect that ratio to alter much.

BMJD

I would be very surprised to see the likes of that again on a motorway now that the cameras are gone.

Alias G

They also managed to process 200 vehicles in an hour. Now that is a very good return on the use of their resources.

RustyNut

obezyana wrote: »

I reckon they caught a sizeable amount of people for no tax/nct I wonder how many they caught with L plates?

What makes you think that?
I recon they didn't find much more than the one suspected drunk driver or they would have been blowing their trumpets about catching tax dodgers etc, but not a word.

wonski

Alias G wrote: »

They also managed to process 200 vehicles in an hour. Now that is a very good return on the use of their resources.

200 cars/ 50 Gardai = 4 cars per Gardai in an hour.
Not such a great return at the end, not to mention tailbacks...

Alias G

wonski wrote: »

200 cars/ 50 Gardai = 4 cars per Gardai in an hour.
Not such a great return at the end, not to mention tailbacks...

A lot of Gardai certainly but not 50. 20 to 30 perhaps. But 200 motorists in an hour is an excellent throughput. People have an issue with this being a PR exercise. To a large degree that was the whole point and it has obviously been very effective in that regard. A job well done by AGS.

challengemaster

Alias G wrote: »

People have an issue with this being a PR exercise. To a large degree that was the whole point and it has obviously been very effective in that regard.

Probably because the country needs actual policing, rather than PR exercises where the gardaí are seen to be doing something.

Alias G

challengemaster wrote: »

Probably because the country needs actual policing, rather than PR exercises where the gardaí are seen to be doing something.

Because PR exercises aren't effective on people and there isn't an entire industry based on them???

If it helps in modifying non-compliant motorists behavior then well worth it.

challengemaster

Alias G wrote: »

Because PR exercises aren't effective on people and there isn't an entire industry based on them???

If all the country needed was regular PR exercises, then get rid of the entire police force and hire a PR company.

Or, the gardaí could do what they're supposedly employed to do.

Jesus.

I have to say Alias G, I find you a most unusual Motor enthusiast. I honestly never thought I'd come across a petrol head calling for more Cops and more checkpoints!

Don't you think perhaps you're on the wrong Forum?

Alias G

I have a car don't I. And I think I am entitled to a view on issues that effect me. Having been caught breaking speed limit myself I would still prefer to see more checkpoints and cameras. As for gardai not doing what they are employed to? It was a checkpoint which turned up a failed breath test. Pretty sure that's within the traffic corp remit. It had the additional function of PR. Also within their remit.

BMJD

Alias G wrote: »

A lot of Gardai certainly but not 50. 20 to 30 perhaps. But 200 motorists in an hour is an excellent throughput. People have an issue with this being a PR exercise. To a large degree that was the whole point and it has obviously been very effective in that regard. A job well done by AGS.

I would have put 50 as being about right. When I was such in the traffic jam a Transit minibus full of Gardai passed by on the hard shoulder, the were at least 12 in that alone.

R.O.R

Alias G wrote: »

I have a car don't I. And I think I am entitled to a view on issues that effect me. Having been caught breaking speed limit myself I would still prefer to see more checkpoints and cameras. As for gardai not doing what they are employed to? It was a checkpoint which turned up a failed breath test. Pretty sure that's within the traffic corp remit. It had the additional function of PR. Also within their remit.

Delaying thousands of law abiding motorists for over an hour? Not within the remit of the Gards I would have thought.

Dionysius2

listermint wrote: »

Apparently thats waffle. How would a garda chopper have the ability to tell if someone was actively avoiding the checkpoint. And if it thinks you are is it going to follow you home

No, no....they have that new SmartGlow Spray thingy which they swoop and pee onto your ve-hi-cle and that way they can pick you out on your next rat run.

Alias G

R.O.R wrote: »

Delaying thousands of law abiding motorists for over an hour? Not within the remit of the Gards I would have thought.

If everyone was law abiding then it wouldn't have been necessary.

visual

Alias G wrote: »

If everyone was law abiding then it wouldn't have been necessary.

If the focus was on crime rather than revenue enforcement their would be no need for PR stunts

Alias G

visual wrote: »

If the focus was on crime rather than revenue enforcement their would be no need for PR stunts

The focus was on both as both have proven effective. 2013 has been a poor year on the roads with regard to mortality rates but in general the trend has been markedly downward due in no small part to PR and enforcement.

Jesus.

Like I said Alias, you are the most bizarre motoring enthusiast I've ever come across. I'm starting to think you mightn't be one at all, but a mole from the Emergency Services Board. Probably a member of An Garda Siochana an' all.

Sheldons Brain

In policing, it is not only about people being caught, but the perception that they might be caught causing people to stay on the straight and narrow in the first place. Call this PR if you will, but it has a role to play.

I think the Gardai can be fairly criticised, because if they ostentatiously stopped a few middle lane hoggers or lane cutter acrossers then this would also dissuade also a larger number of others. But this checkpoint is not wrong in itself, if it was well managed and did not cause excessive delays.

And it is not bizarre for a motoring enthusiast to to support this, someone might (say) support the speed limit on the M1 being 140kmh while also supporting every effort to keep drunken persons off it.

visual

Alias G wrote: »

The focus was on both as both have proven effective. 2013 has been a poor year on the roads with regard to mortality rates but in general the trend has been markedly downward due in no small part to PR and enforcement.

The road fatalities decline has by and large been due to new motorways and road improvements as infrastructure spend has stopped so has the decline.

But your in good company with Gaybo and RSA who chosen to ignore facts such as most accidents are due to human error and see motorists as easy revenue and introduced lots of fines and penalty points to enable insurance companies line their pockets with additional charges.

Im not condoning motor tax evasion but while its unsafe to walk the streets and house break in are common and more serious crime all increasing.

I rather see the AGS put the resources where it is needed and protect the public rather than spend all their time enforcing revenue laws.

Alias G

Jesus. wrote: »

Like I said Alias, you are the most bizarre motoring enthusiast I've ever come across. I'm starting to think you mightn't be one at all, but a mole from the Emergency Services Board. Probably a member of An Garda Siochana an' all.

The term motorist will suffice for me, I will leave the enthusiasm to yourself. Motoring is an expensive practicality for me. One which I utilise minimally. The notion that I am a guard is a funny one but even if I was I dont see why that should deprive me of an opinion. How many posts do I have in the emergency service forum btw. The answer is zero. There is nothing bizarre in supporting actions which improve road safety when there are 1000s who have lost a loved one this year.

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

Sheldons Brain

I rather see the AGS put the resources where it is needed and protect the public rather than spend all their time enforcing revenue laws.

This kind of statement occurs here all the time, except that if nobody enforces the revenue laws then AGS won't have any resources.

Nuttzz

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gardasiochana/11351410894/lightbox/

I count 20 gardai in this picture

4 of them are actually doing something, two at the top picking out the cards to pull, 1 guy talking to the jeep driver and 1 guy talking to the second car in the queue. In that snapshot (and I appreciate its just a snapshot) 16 of them are scratching their holes.

At least 4 private guys are also hired to man the electronic equipment to notify drivers of the checkpoint.

Looks to me like a costly venture to make a point, perhaps if they feel the need to run checkpoints like this they could hold them at night when people are more likely to be speeding and drink driving...

Alias G

visual wrote: »

The road fatalities decline has by and large been due to new motorways and road improvements as infrastructure spend has stopped so has the decline.

But your in good company with Gaybo and RSA who chosen to ignore facts such as most accidents are due to human error and see motorists as easy revenue and introduced lots of fines and penalty points to enable insurance companies line their pockets with additional charges.

Im not condoning motor tax evasion but while its unsafe to walk the streets and house break in are common and more serious crime all increasing.

I rather see the AGS put the resources where it is needed and protect the public rather than spend all their time enforcing revenue laws.

I never suggest road improvement wasn't a factor but it isn't the sole one. The idea that ags are involved in revenue generation is laughable when you factor the cost of these operations
What have the traffic corp got to do with Street crime and burgalries btw.

visual

Alias G wrote: »

I never suggest road improvement wasn't a factor but it isn't the sole one. The idea that ags are involved in revenue generation is laughable when you factor the cost of these operations
What have the traffic corp got to do with Street crime and burgalries btw.

Safer roads was the biggest single factor in reducing road fatalities. Nothing to do with RSA or AGS

Human error the next biggest factor ignored

The smallest factors speed and defective vehicles RSA and AGS have been all over like a rash.

Traffic corp only focus on motorist revenue offences, speed being the favourite while ignoring many other rules of the road. Its a large part of why the driving standard is so poor on roads with lane hogging at epic levels on every major road countrywide.

Plus the garda there where not all from traffic corp

As said by another poster if they wanted to catch drink drivers there is much easier less dangerous ways than bring a motorway to a close for the cameras.

My local garda at typical check point would catch 1/2 dozzen for various offences and there only be two of them. No cameras and if the traffic was backing up they would wave cars on.
But they aren't stupid enough to stand in a motorway for the cameras.

Im repeating myself saying this was a stupid PR stunt but that my opinion.
Your opinion is different and I conceed that the message may be more important than the action.

Alias G

visual wrote: »

Safer roads was the biggest single factor in reducing road fatalities. Nothing to do with RSA or AGS

Human error the next biggest factor ignored

The smallest factors speed and defective vehicles RSA and AGS have been all over like a rash.

Traffic corp only focus on motorist revenue offences, speed being the favourite while ignoring many other rules of the road. Its a large part of why the driving standard is so poor on roads with lane hogging at epic levels on every major road countrywide.

Plus the garda there where not all from traffic corp

As said by another poster if they wanted to catch drink drivers there is much easier less dangerous ways than bring a motorway to a close for the cameras.

My local garda at typical check point would catch 1/2 dozzen for various offences and there only be two of them. No cameras and if the traffic was backing up they would wave cars on.
But they aren't stupid enough to stand in a motorway for the cameras.

Im repeating myself saying this was a stupid PR stunt but that my opinion.
Your opinion is different and I conceed that the message may be more important than the action.

It is a sweeping statement to put the lower mortality rates purely down to improved infrastructure as there have been several factors which also correlate over a similar time frame including better driver education, safer cars and improved enforcement. To omit any single factor is simply foolhardy. And speed has proven time and again to be the most catastrophic factor in road deaths.

mitosis

visual wrote: »

The road fatalities decline has by and large been due to new motorways and road improvements as infrastructure spend has stopped so has the decline.

But your in good company with Gaybo and RSA who chosen to ignore facts such as most accidents are due to human error and see motorists as easy revenue and introduced lots of fines and penalty points to enable insurance companies line their pockets with additional charges.

Im not condoning motor tax evasion but while its unsafe to walk the streets and house break in are common and more serious crime all increasing.

I rather see the AGS put the resources where it is needed and protect the public rather than spend all their time enforcing revenue laws.

So, are you in favour of or against random breath testing?

And serious crime increasing: Can you support the allegation?

Q2 2013 figures:

- weapons and explosives offences (down 13.9%)
- controlled drug offences (down 12.6%)
- attempts/threats to murder, assaults, harassments and related offences (down 10%)
- fraud, deception and related offences (down 10%)
- burglary/aggravated burglary (down 9%)
- sexual offences (down 7.9%)

pred racer

visual wrote: »

Safer roads was the biggest single factor in reducing road fatalities. Nothing to do with RSA or AGS

Human error the next biggest factor ignored

The smallest factors speed and defective vehicles RSA and AGS have been all over like a rash.

Traffic corp only focus on motorist revenue offences, speed being the favourite while ignoring many other rules of the road. Its a large part of why the driving standard is so poor on roads with lane hogging at epic levels on every major road countrywide.

Plus the garda there where not all from traffic corp

As said by another poster if they wanted to catch drink drivers there is much easier less dangerous ways than bring a motorway to a close for the cameras.

My local garda at typical check point would catch 1/2 dozzen for various offences and there only be two of them. No cameras and if the traffic was backing up they would wave cars on.
But they aren't stupid enough to stand in a motorway for the cameras.

Im repeating myself saying this was a stupid PR stunt but that my opinion.
Your opinion is different and I conceed that the message may be more important than the action.

I agree 100%

Jesus.

Alias G wrote: »

The term motorist will suffice for me, I will leave the enthusiasm to yourself. Motoring is an expensive practicality for me. One which I utilise minimally.

Indeed, which is why I ask again: Are you sure you're on the right Forum?

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

visual

Alias G wrote: »

It is a sweeping statement to put the lower mortality rates purely down to improved infrastructure as there have been several factors which also correlate over a similar time frame including better driver education, safer cars and improved enforcement. To omit any single factor is simply foolhardy. And speed has proven time and again to be the most catastrophic factor in road deaths.

The propaganda of speeding being the primary cause isn't reflected in RSA own data that is published yearly

Alias G

Jesus. wrote: »

Indeed, which is why I ask again: Are you sure you're on the right Forum?

I'm a motorist aren't I. This issue directly effects me.

Alias G

visual wrote: »

The propaganda of speeding being the primary cause isn't reflected in RSA own data that is published yearly

So there is no relationship between the speed of a collision and the survival rate of those involved?

visual

mitosis wrote: »

So, are you in favour of or against random breath testing?

And serious crime increasing: Can you support the allegation?

Q2 2013 figures:

- weapons and explosives offences (down 13.9%)
- controlled drug offences (down 12.6%)
- attempts/threats to murder, assaults, harassments and related offences (down 10%)
- fraud, deception and related offences (down 10%)
- burglary/aggravated burglary (down 9%)
- sexual offences (down 7.9%)

In the last 3 months two houses a few doors from me, both robbed with the owners being woken up one was threatened with a knive as they demmanded car keys. Its fine have a motor tax check point at bottom of road weekly but not much use unless your stolen car has no tax to draw attention of garda.

A friend who lives in a small rural town last in last couple of months 7 houses where broken into.

Thats real crime happening every day to real people because its not on the news or captured in someones selective statistics. Its more than enough for me to realise a motor tax check isnt my biggest concern.