Garda highlights driver caught at ‘outrageous’ 216km/h

Ireland has a problem with speeding, according to a garda who described the 216km/h speed which a driver was caught travelling at as “outrageous”.

Gardaí in Naas stopped an uninsured driver travelling 216 km/h in a 100km/h speed limit zone on the N7 on Wednesday.

The motorist was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving and the Audi car he was driving was seized.

"We regularly come across drivers that travel double and sometimes triple the posted speed limit . . . that is such a risk to them and to others around them," said Garda Derek Cloughley of the Garda National Traffic Bureau. "We have a problem with speeding in this country."

More than 118,000 fixed charge penalty notices had been issued between January and August for this year, he said. More than 90 per cent were travelling at least 10 km/h over the local limit.

People travelling at high speeds were putting their lives and the lives of others in danger, he said.

He was shocked that someone would be clocked at 216km/h. "It is an outrageous speed, it is a life-threatening speed. There's no way around it, if there was a crash how many people would be killed? Not many people would survive that," he told The Irish Times.

“We know, backed up by forensic collision data, that in one third of our fatal collisions speed was a contributory factor.”

Garda Cloughley said Ireland was not in a “good place” with the high number of deaths on the road this year.

Increase

So far this year 161 people have been killed on Irish roads, an increase of 31 compared with this time last year.

Garda Cloughley said speeding was still the highest detected offence and drivers needed to take the issue seriously.

“There should be no instance or circumstance necessary for you to exceed the speed limit,” he said.

“There’s a direct correlation between your impact speed and whether you live or die. Drivers are taking a huge risk travelling at hugely excessive speeds.”

Garda Cloughley said all drivers needed to take conditions such as weather and traffic into account when travelling.

“Our appeal is simple; the speed limit is not a target especially with the weather we’re going to be facing in the next couple of months,” he said.

He said although the “vast majority” of people were compliant with speed limits, a “core” number of drivers ignored the warnings.

“We do have a problem. A certain number of motorists that feel it’s quite alright to travel at such speeds,” he said.

He said more than 215,000 people were issued fixed charges for speeding last year.

Garda Cloughley said people caught speeding could be issued with a fine, which started at €80, and three penalty points.

He said drivers issued with a dangerous driving charge could be disqualified from driving.

“If it is extreme the judge may impose a lengthy ban and possibly even a prison sentence,” he said.

Just two weeks ago, gardaí detected a total of 341 road users travelling over the speed limit during a 24-hour operation.

During national "slow down day", the highest speeds recorded by gardaí were 139 km/h in a 100 km/h zone on the N24 at Whitehall, Co Limerick, and 139km/h in a 100 km/h zone on the N5 at Drummindoo in Westport, Co Mayo.