No more AA roadwatch on the radio

15-07-2021 5:01pm #1

When boards was offline it was announced that AA roadwatch is no more after 32 years. Many motorists have always said that it was as useful as a chocolate teapot

StevenToast · 15-07-2021 5:04pm

It was the biggest waste of airtime outside of the RTE Radio 1 weekday 9am - 10am slot.......

PsychoPete · 15-07-2021 5:04pm

I'm really going to miss the daily update that the dunkettle interchange is busy

cbreeze · 15-07-2021 5:16pm

Great to listen to it, and then go back to sleep (in bed!)

Faugheen · 15-07-2021 5:18pm

Nice to see people celebrate the fact that people have lost their jobs.

You can not like a product and still hold some decorum when that product is no more because people have lost their livelihoods.

ford fiesta · 15-07-2021 5:53pm

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117615679#Comment_117615679

they haven't lost their jobs

For Forks Sake · 15-07-2021 5:58pm

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117615600#Comment_117615600

or the demise of the Rid Cuw Rindaboot

AndrewJRenko · 15-07-2021 6:19pm

There was a big question about AA relationship with RTE, given that sponsorship of news content is illegal. More details here

https://blog.hereshow.ie/2016/06/heres-how-41-donal-byrne-of-rte/

Faugheen · 15-07-2021 9:57pm

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117615932#Comment_117615932

Yes they have...

Leonita · 15-07-2021 10:03pm

The website was very handy to have a quick traffic check before heading out the door. I never remember to plug my phone into the car socket when I'm heading out. Could they not have even left that?

C__MC · 15-07-2021 10:26pm

Kilmoon Cross must have been a regular every morning

16-07-2021 7:41am

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117617330#Comment_117617330

I mean is it really worth keeping for the minority of cases of people whose phones don't have enough juice?😀 Most people get the traffic from their phone maps app, and unless you were taking the Headford Road out of Galway or the M50 (spoiler: traffic is always heavy, and there's a crash on the Kinsale Road roundabout), you probably weren't getting local traffic updates anyway.

Now the other one I think is absolutely useless, although at least it's done in-house, is currency and markets updates on RTE and Newstalk. It's a throwback to a time when people didn't have mobile phones. Anyone who wants to know how many US Dollars, pounds or yen can be bought for a euro can just get that info online.

Indeed, you could say the same about the news and weather, but at least in those cases they're processing detailed information for the listener in 3/4 minute parcels, and that does have value.

KildareP · 16-07-2021 8:02am

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117618214#Comment_117618214

It all counts towards the 20% obligation 😉

NIMAN · 16-07-2021 8:04am

Didn't even notice it gone.

whisky_galore · 16-07-2021 8:23am

99% of the time it was usual traffic snarl ups at usual predictable times.

It'll be missed in the same way phone boxes on every corner are missed.

16-07-2021 8:33am

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117618242#Comment_117618242

Ahh, yes that would explain it.

JoeA3 · 16-07-2021 12:41pm

It was years past its sell by date.

Furze99 · 16-07-2021 3:09pm

It was pretty useful for warning notice of roadworks or accidents. Less so, the regular congestion.

Declan A Walsh · 16-07-2021 5:06pm

Summarised traffic reports are now being incorporated into news headlines - certainly on Newstalk anyway. By the way, Dublin City FM has been providing a detailed traffic report service in its weekday morning and evening shows for years. It's called Livedrive. Between traffic reports, the presenters play some music. They might get a pickup on listenership as a result of the ending of AA Roadwatch.

EDIT: Over the years, AA Roadwatch has launched some broadcasting careers.

Ger Roe · 16-07-2021 5:15pm

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117618286#Comment_117618286

Phone boxes are coming back! Bray has now several new ones around the town, just connected up.... not sure why myself, but there they are. I suspect it might be more to do with the fact that the back of them is a full height LED advertising screen. I suspect that advertising exposure on the pavement is the main motivation and the phone line will probably be used more for updating the advert display than actually making phone calls.

I asked some young people about using them.... most had no clue how to use a public phone and none could remember any numbers to call on them anyway ... unless they had their mobiles with them to look a number up.

Dan Jaman · 16-07-2021 6:09pm

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117615600#Comment_117615600

Or the Red Cow. What will I do when I make the tea and be glad I'm not there?

whisky_galore · 16-07-2021 7:42pm

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117620825#Comment_117620825

They have defribbulators in them, not phones

Ger Roe · 16-07-2021 7:51pm

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117621445#Comment_117621445

Nope... they are new style phone boxes.... more stand in shelters (not fully enclosed) with working public telephones. Installed last week and connected up this week.

Ger Roe · 16-07-2021 7:53pm

https://www.thejournal.ie/twenty-two-of-these-new-phone-boxes-will-be-installed-in-dublin-city-but-councillors-cry-clutter-5435033-May2021/

It seems that they are also being installed in Dublin too.

whisky_galore · 16-07-2021 8:00pm

https://boards.ie/discussion/comment/117621481#Comment_117621481

Weird.

If they cared about homeless people that much maybe the money could be spent on homeless services...but this being Ireland...

conndeal · 16-07-2021 8:17pm

I miss AA roadwatch. I listened to it every morning. If there was an accident on any of the routes my children would take to work I would ring them and tell them get up a bit earlier. They wont get that service from maps on their phone!!

Patrick2010 · 26-07-2021 3:48pm

All they did was rotate the same traffic reports every morning, heavy on canal to Portabello, on the quays from St Johns road , Harts corner, Dunkettle etc, could have just said usual delays, usual spots

ford fiesta · 09-08-2021 9:21am

RTE have their own travel reports now, with travel presenters, on their usual drivetime shows

Ger Roe · 09-08-2021 9:27am

I noticed the traffic reports are back on RTE alright... unbranded. Where are they coming from?

AndrewJRenko · 09-08-2021 11:22am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117726680#Comment_117726680

Sponsored by Hyundai afaik - wouldn't it be interesting to know what % of total sponsorship coming into RTE is from the car industry?

Trebor176 · 10-08-2021 7:40pm

I heard Paul Moriarty doing the traffic on Lyric this morning. There had been a chap, who I think was called Willem doing it on previous days.

ford fiesta · 10-08-2021 8:26pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117734537#Comment_117734537

Paul Moriarty has been in quite a number of roles in RTE, he must be a staffer there since he left Nova.

I also heard an American guy doing the new traffic reports, referring to Callan, Kilkenny as Caaal-Laaan

No more AA roadwatch on the radio

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