Traffic Problems In Dublin City, Ireland 1962

In 1961 over 11,000 motorists were prosecuted for minor traffic infringements. In addition, 64,000 motorists were cautioned on the roadside. These figures relate only to those drivers caught in the city of Dublin.

The Rules of the Road are printed by the Department of Local Government but the number of offences raises the question

As to whether most motorists understand what they can do and what they are prohibited from doing.

At the nerve centre of Dublin traffic control at the Garda depot in the Phoenix Park, reporter John Ross meets the chief driving instructor Sergeant Eamon O’Boyle. From the Garda training centre they take to the streets of Dublin to observe some of the mistakes that drivers make when they get behind the wheel of a car.

They witness drivers breaking red lights, driving through pedestrian crossings, failing to indicate correctly, driving too close to the car in front, ignoring white lines, switching lanes erratically, double parking, and opening car doors on to oncoming traffic. These are just some of the mistakes that motorists make, mistakes that could cause accidents and injury.

All of this poses a very real problem indeed.

Superintendent J A McDermott, head of traffic in Dublin, says that the problem relates to the growing number of cars on the roads of Dublin. During the last three years there has been an increase of 19,000 cars registered in the city. Superintendent McDermott believes that constructive measures are necessary to resolve the problem through providing adequate off-street parking in the form of underground or multi-storey car parks.

An RTÉ News report broadcast on 9 March 1962. The reporter is John Ross.