Richard O'Donoghue challenges blanket 60 km/h limits and licence rules
Richard O'Donoghue criticised blanket 60 km/h speed limits and called for local authority discretion, and raised concerns about allowing newcomers to keep foreign licences for six months. He argued the blanket limits can cause congestion on narrow roads and said differing driving patterns among people new to the country are contributing to rising accidents.
Main points
O'Donoghue told the minister he supports speed limits in principle but not a blanket 60 km/h band. He said some roads now set at 60 km/h are too narrow or unsuited to that limit and that a one-size-fits-all approach is inappropriate.
Concerns over licence conversion and accidents
He said people coming into the country are permitted to hold their foreign licence for six months before converting to an Irish licence and linked that policy to rising accident numbers. He added he was not blaming all newcomers but warned different driving patterns can affect road safety.
International comparison and behaviour
O'Donoghue recounted recent travel experience in Rome, noting different driving behaviour and fewer instances of phone use while walking. He contrasted that with local behaviour where pedestrians on phones may step into traffic, arguing there is a loss of personal responsibility here.
Road widths, congestion and local authority role
He highlighted roads he described as "6 and 7 kilometres or 6 and 7 metres wide" being placed on a 60 km/h limit, saying this causes congestion and is not always safer. He said local authorities should have discretion to set limits where accidents occur and where traffic conditions require it.
Call for shared responsibility and maintenance funding
O'Donoghue emphasised that everyone - drivers, walkers and cyclists - has personal responsibility on the roads. He also criticised the blanket approach for failing to ensure funding for local road repairs and maintenance, arguing limits should reflect road quality and width.
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Minister, I agree with speed limits, but I'm not with all of them. Speed limits where roads were brought down to 60 kilometres an hour on a blanket bank, I don't agree with. We have some roads now that are actually 6 and 7 kilometres or 6 and 7 metres wide on areas where they're down to 60 kilometres an hour. And there's roads then that you couldn't actually drive quick enough, you couldn't actually park a car in, they're also at 60. What I would have loved to have seen was if they allowed the speed limits within the local authorities, anywhere there was accidents, anywhere they can have free-floor traffic, by creating this 60 kilometre speed limit on a blanket bank, it actually causes congestion, where there could be actually people who would actually be driving at safer distances over a longer period of time. That I agree with. The other thing I don't agree with is people coming into this country, able to hold their licence for 6 months before they actually hand over into an Irish licence. We have a million people extra in this country. Our accidents are getting higher. I'm not blaming all the people that come into this country. But from people coming from another country, their driving pattern is a lot different. I was in Rome recently, and my God, I didn't find one person on their phone, but their driving behaviour was a lot different to here. In and out, in and out. Now one person walked out in front of a car, now one person walked out on their phone in front of a truck, saying, oh look at me, I'm on my phone. They had personal responsibility. But here it's gone the other way around. There's no personal responsibility for a person walking or doing that. It is all that you should be seen on the road. Everyone should have responsibility, whether you're driving a car, whether you're walking the roads, whether you're cycling. Everyone has a personal responsibility. But they should take into account the different widths of the roads, that we can actually do a reasonable speed on it, rather than put in one particular band, and then not even pay for the repair of the roads to the local authorities. Thank you very much.
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