Hearse driver will not face speed penalty
Saturday July 08 2006
Agriculture Minister Mary Coughlan said yesterday an investigation she sought as TD for the area, along with local Fianna Fail councillor Brendan Byrne, showed a flaw in the establishment of the temporary 50kph speed limit where more than 300 motorists were clocked going too fast.
There has been uproar in Co Donegal in recent days over the imposition of €80 fines and penalty points on drivers along the stretch of the N56 under repair near Mountcharles.
They received speeding tickets after a garda clampdown over two days last month.
Offenders included undertaker John Carr and about 15 cars with relatives and friends of the deceased person in the coffin. The body was being carried from Letterkenny General Hospital for burial in Kilcar.
Notices of the fines and penalty points warned drivers they could be taken to court if they didn't pay by next Monday.
But yesterday afternoon the minister and Cllr Byrne said the fines were to be rendered null and void.
In a joint statement, they said: "After investigation of the matter with the National Roads Authority, Donegal County Council and the Garda Siochana, we can confirm that the proper bye-law putting in place the 50 kilometres per hour speed limit on the N56 - a national secondary road under the road Traffic Act 2004 - had not been executed.
"Therefore no legal basis for enforcement of the 50 kilometres per hour speed limit that existed at the time."
Earlier, Minister of State at the Environment Department Pat 'the Cope' Gallagher said he was investigating the service of speeding tickets on the hearse owner and other drivers. He said he was conducting the enquiry as TD for the area.
Improper
He insisted it would be improper for him as minister to comment on the matter. "It's a matter for the garda authorities," he said. "I do believe the facts have to be established about the speed limit there."
Mr Gallagher said it was a matter for individual drivers if they wished to challenge the imposition of fines and penalty points.
Undertaker John Carr was travelling at 69kph when a speed camera clocked him in the temporary 50kph zone. More than 150 locals voted at a meeting earlier this week to seek legal advice on what options were available for a challenge.
Speed limit on the road, the N56, is 100kph. But it was reduced to 50kph on a stretch that is undergoing repairs.
- Paddy Clancy
