Michael Moynihan: Cork needs more autonomy where driving offences are concerned

I have one simple way to approach this - what is the Leeside street-crossing where drivers break red lights, consult their phones, and appear most inclined to mow you down if you try to get to the other side?

Eglinton Street and Albert Quay is one of my favourites. Or Albert Quay and Albert Street, where a red light seems an incentive to speed up rather than come to a stop. You have your own choices, but these are two of my own favourites from a very long list. 

What seems to be common to many pedestrians now in Cork is seeing cars sail through such intersections long after they should stop, often with drivers engaged in urgent time-wasting on their mobiles.

This has led to some serious accidents all over the country. In June, a Waterford woman got a suspended sentence for hitting a pensioner when she broke a red light in Dublin, though ‘hitting’ hardly does justice to what happened.

The victim in the case suffered a bleed to the brain, multiple fractures to her legs, pelvis and clavicle and a dislocated shoulder. She spent a period of time in intensive care and in rehabilitation after the accident, and in her victim impact statement she said the accident had had a “devastating” impact on her mental health.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that every day pedestrians in Cork - all over Ireland - have near misses because of people disregarding traffic lights, driving dangerously, or a combination of both. And yet there is a solution (relatively) close to hand.

News reached me last week of an innovation in San Francisco which is tackling this specific problem, a camera system set up around that city to stop cars from speeding. The city launched its safety camera programme on March 20, and the last camera went live on June 6. 

Drivers were well warned beforehand of this development, but there has still been general surprise at the sheer number of warning notices issued since the cameras started picking out offenders - 100,000 in total.

Local media reports suggest that most cameras are issuing 100 to 200 notices per day, but two of the 30 active camera locations are issuing far more - Geneva Avenue is recording 1,779 notices per day, and Bryant Street 944 notices per day.

Significantly, the city’s transport authority is acknowledging this development, with additional engineering works at speeding black spots to encourage drivers to slow down, such as larger and more frequent speed limit signs, pavement markings, and visible signage.

Even more interesting is the transport authority’s discovery that residents in certain neighbourhoods are already reporting a change in driver behaviour - lower speed and safer conditions for pedestrians. The organisation’s data also suggests that 70% of drivers don’t speed again once they get that first warning notice.

The eagle-eyed may have noticed that term, by the way - ‘notices’ rather than ‘speeding tickets’. That’s because as of this week the system changes - the rationale is that drivers have had months to become aware of the cameras and have received notices rather than fines, but from now on actual traffic citations will be issued. That means drivers caught speeding will be fined amounts ranging from $50 to $500.

A COUPLE of observations.

This is good news for the people of San Francisco, but it should be pointed out that this traffic camera system wasn’t an overnight success. One of its prime advocates was a non-profit organisation, Walk SF, which campaigns for safer streets in the city: it has been pushing for the camera system for almost 10 years. 

It would be good to think that instead of wrangling for years about such a measure for Cork we could take the lessons of San Francisco and move directly to the installation-and-operation phase.

Also, a local politician in San Francisco made a point which will resonate with many of us this week when lauding the new system - that “in a budget climate where things are tough, especially with security and safety and the police department, this shows that we can continue to make progress on our Vision Zero goals through technology and transformation”. 

Given what we learned about the Garda traffic corps in the last few days, perhaps this is more now applicable than ever. A much-publicised report last week stated that gardaí charged with enforcing the rules of the road were “openly hostile” to doing their jobs and “brazen” in expressing that hostility to those checking on their performance. 

If that’s the level of interest the police are taking in traffic enforcement perhaps cameras would be more reliable.

There is also a revenue element that should impress itself on Cork City Council. The local authority in San Francisco will benefit from the fines that will be imposed on drivers there from this week on, but if the warning notices issued since March had been accompanied by fines the city would have collected at least $5 million. 

Even allowing for the different administrative structures in California, the notion of a revenue stream generated by bad driving should surely have local authorities in this country salivating. At the risk of re-awakening all the old complaints about the abolition of domestic rates back in the 70s, could this be revisited?

To be fair, our own local representatives are on that case.

Cork city councillor Peter Horgan was recently quoted by The Echo on this matter citing “ ...the need for more powers to be allowed for local authorities to establish and monitor the motoring offences, rather than relying on the Dublin Government for all enabling regulations... It’s welcome that more and more bodies are coming on board with the need for camera enforcement as a measure to deter motoring offences — but we have to stop talking, and start doing.” 

I couldn’t agree more. We’re caught in a peculiar bind in that more autonomy is needed at the same time that more and more power seems to be centralised in the capital. And a perfect example of the focus of the Dublin Government, as mentioned by Peter Horgan, can be seen here.

A few days ago a new static speed camera began operation in Dolphin’s Barn in Dublin, and others are planned for Galway, Waterford, Wicklow, Donegal, Carlow, and Mayo. And yes, one for Cork. On the N22. Near Farnanes, I believe.

A speed camera may certainly be needed at that locality, but it seems odd that such a device can be found to improve pedestrian safety in one part of Dublin City but the same cannot be done for Cork City. Perhaps this is another example of a well-established syndrome: deciding whether the country as a whole can benefit from a measure only when it has been trialled in Dublin first.

In any event, mind yourself crossing the road. Until we get a few cameras on the case.