Getting around Galway

what they're fighting against is having a 'solution' imposed that most people have not looked for and do not want. Having seen the proposed plan for the lights on the bridge, it seems clear that a straightforward footbridge is a simpler, cheaper, faster solution and could also help alleviate the traffic congestion if it reduces the number of kids being dropped off at the school gates by car. This was proposed decades ago; the question is why has that proposal not been acted upon?

A more immediate solution which in theory could be implemented immediately, would be to put two lollipop ladies pedestrian crossing consultants on duty at school start and end times to facilitate the children who walk across the bridge. That won't help the brigade who drop their kids off by car and get stuck trying to get back onto the N59 but it might convince them to let the kids walk at least from the bridge to the school. BTW there is an existing safe option which avoids the bridge in question but means walking to school from the far end of the village along the river - from the Glann road to the secondary school is about 700m

I know I'll regret this but I'll bite. What exactly does get what's coming to him mean, safer roads for everyone?

A bicycle going through a red light isn't on the same level of risk as a car doing 100kph in a 60kph zone. It's physics.

Driver behaviour in Galway is shockingly poor, "but what about that bike I saw on a footpath" doesn't excuse it.

(edit)

Gardai do need to start doing spot checks for illegal e-scooters and e-bikes, there needs to be some deterrent before numbers get out of hand.

if the safety of schoolchildren is the primary concern, then the deployment of a couple of lollipop controls either side of the bridge at school start, stop and lunch time will solve that issue until a footbridge is built (agreed by all sides as the best solution and only 2 or 3 years away if the comment in the linked article in your earlier post is to be believed). School kids are by far the main pedestrian traffic on that bridge. Outside of the lollipop controlled periods, pedestrians can do as they've always done - exercise sensible caution and vigilance before crossing the bridge. AFAIK, there haven't been any pedestrian fatalities or injuries on that bridge (at least in the past 20-30 years but I'm open to correction) and I'd presume the good folk of Oughterard could manage maintain that record for the few years it takes to build a footbridge

is that the best you can come up with?

No you haven't

Thank you for that very informative response. Let me take this step by step.

Your response to someone documenting dangerously illegal driving was the following:

You didn't choose a neutral factual description like "get attacked" but instead chose the loaded phrase "get what's coming to him", making it clear that you think the guy on the red bike deserved to get beaten up and that, if the guy recording outrageous breaches of speed limits gets beaten up, that will be deserved too.

Just to be clear, all this guy is doing is documenting speeding on our roads to highlight the danger other road users are being placed in, he's not confronting anyone, or anything like that. Yet you somehow think what he is doing is so unacceptable that you believe he deserves to be beaten up for it. And then you have the balls to follow that up with the statement:

The hypocrisy is just astounding.

If I'm incorrect in anything, please point it out. All I've done is taken what you have written at face value.

lolz , just wow.....

someone "merely" pointing out law breaking is doing so without legal authority and is a form of vigilantism as well albeit on the lighter side. Regardless on what people think good or bad, This is the role for gardai and the go safe cameras and not for members of the public. If i recall from a previous post by their own admission they were asked to stop that before when a guard came by.

Those that attempt these activities can put themselves at risk as the can antagonize the wrong person or even a "good" person on a bad day. Not everyone is happy when they are recorded in public place regardless if law abiding or not. This person obviously has the time and some money where they could put into the proper channels and appropriate forum.

Bottom line, camera and a twitter handle to state the obvious is like shooting fish in a barrel and additionally put out their own narratives. as said anyone can do that for any form of breaking rules of a road, you just need to be in a the place that it is rife. Not hard to do..... problem here is enforcing existing legislation.

if you want to engage on my previous post, happy to take a PM.

Fully aware gardai will seek CCTV and dashcam footage where a crime is committed. However they would not advocate and discourage for someone to actively pursue a caped crusade against a specific cohort that does not line up with their agenda. Especially where they are posting on a public platform intentionally for views...

Is there legal provision for this, or is it just how you think things could or should be?

That's the way it already works right now, and the new legislation is just about process of receiving a statement online rather instead of the current requirement for a signed piece of paper, so the way you describe it is how it should continue to work.

Right now if you report something you are asked if you are willing to go to court. If you say you aren't then the Gardai will still issue a FCN. If the driver disputes it then either the Gardai drop it or they come back to you and ask you if that's still your position. The few times I've done it I've said I am willing to go to court but I've never actually had to. Each time the driver has accepted the FCN.

All that should change with the online portal is that you can submit a report at home in a few minutes at your own convenience, instead of having to make an appointment and then spend 30-45 minutes watching a guard write everything out longhand, and knowing that he will have to type it into the Pulse system afterwards. The portal is going to make it much more convenient for people to submit reports, and it's also going to allow the Gardai to process them in a fraction of the time they currently need to spend on them, so I'd say it's going to result in a huge uptick in reports.