We have just had a lovely holiday in the west of Ireland. I had been to Ireland briefly years ago but this was the first time I'd driven there.
My observations over about 1000kms of motoring were that the general standard of driving was high. Much less tailgating than in UK although, as everywhere, we observed the occasional nutter.
The N roads are very good where modernised and acceptable elsewhere. A novel feature is the provision of a hard shoulder along single-carriageways as well as dual-carriageways, which result in the habit of slower vehicles, especially tractors, pulling over to the left without having to stop when letting people pass. However there was a lack of lay-bys along these routes and people seemed to stop on hard shoulders for non-emergency purposes.
It seems that black is the fashionable colour for new cars in Ireland - so many black cars. Because of taxation a lot of 4x4's have blanked out rear side windows coloured as the vehicle's paintwork. I don't know if this loophole still applies. Also boy racers like to blank out the rear side windows of their cars too, in body colour. Perhaps there is a company that sells transfer panels to cover your windows!
We didn't visit any big cities so I don't know what driving in Dublin is like - probably like any other big city - i.e. terrible unless you know exactly where you are going!
|
Did you experience the wonderfully bumpy (but not pot holed) country roads?
I noticed many Irish cars seem to drop tyre pressure by a couple of PSI to cope with this.
The other thing is there is much less traffic !
|
|
|
Glad you enjoyed your visit, SS!
You'll find many of the cars pulled over on the hard shoulder are using mobile phones - with the recent introduction of penalty points for using a phone while driving, many motorists err on the side of caution. They don't always exercise the same caution in choosing where to pull in, though!
Yes, the tax loophole for blanked-out 4x4s still exists - they're commerical vehicles, with no back seat, so exempt from VAT.
And did you notice how many of the boyracermobiles have "for sale" signs displayed - which actually mean "ring this number if you want a race"? Mind, a few have been caught out when Garda O'Brien rings, asks for a race and turns up at the appointed time and place with three fellow coppers and a squad car :-)
As for Dublin, yes, its like driving in any other city except nobody, even the residents, know where they're going. Locals rarely cross the Liffey, and the newly arrived workers from the rest of Ireland and furhter afield usually only know the route from home to work. Which causes chaos when a main commuter route is blocked and nobody can find alternative routes - so they sit and sit and sit in traffic jams waiting for the blockage to clear. And Dublin Corporation keep revising the one-way system in a futile attempt to ease traffic congestion.
|
Did a tour of the west coast myself this summer, took our own car and enjoyed it a lot. Beautiful scenery, quiet roads and generally good driving behaviour.
Except
On the way back through Dublin to the port, traffic was very heavy and it was raining hard. Bedlam. Nowhere near the discipline we have at home (can you imagine!!) people cutting each other up left right and centre, in bad conditions don't forget.
Had one particular brainiac go mental at me because I wouldn't speed up - I was in a queue of traffic as far as the eye could see, doing 45mph as was everyone else. Both lanes the same, no-one going anywhere fast. He eventually forced his way into Lane 1 and then forced his way back in front of me. I wasn't best pleased.
There's an expensive tunnel under the city so no-one uses it. We were only going the once so we did - it was deserted. The C4 has cruise and digital speed control so I set it for 50kph and trundled off. Caught up with the only other car on the road, the Volvo that had earlier carved me up.
As he pulled into the ferry terminal with me behind, the look on his face said he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him.
However, unlike here, he apologised and we ended having a chat.
It's a grand country to visit.
--------------------
Citroen C4 Coupe, Mazda MX5 Mk2.5, Kia Cee\'d LS
|
Once (if!) it becomes established - i.e. once people realise its there and are willing to pay for it - the plan for Dublin's Port Tunnel is to restrict it to trucks and buses, at least during rush hours.
Unless your destination is Dublin or its hinterland, I'd strongly recommend using ferryports other than Dublin and Dun Laoghire. In the south of the country, Cork/Ringaskiddy is preferable to Rosslare. There's a primary route from Ringaskiddy to the Cork bypass that will take you directly onto most N roads north and west of Cork; the approach to Rosslare is single carriageway and becomes congested easily.
|
>>Unless your destination is Dublin
Would agree with that - we got a good deal from Liverpool so it worked for us, but the motorway peters out long before you get to Galway. Although you still make decent progress, it's fairly hard work. (compared to the mway)
Lots of strawberry vendors at the side of the road though, nice healthy snack to break the journey!
-------------------------
C4, MX5, Cee\'d
|
|
|
|
We didn't visit any big cities so I don't know what driving in Dublin is like - probably like any other big city - i.e. terrible unless you know exactly where you are going!
Driving in Dublin is easy, because unless you are driving in the middle of the night, the only control you need is your handbrake :(
|
NowWheels - you're not wrong there! Try getting from the Southside to the Northside of the City on a Friday evening. Took me two hours to do about 10 miles. As soon as we headed into Pearse Street that was it - nothing moving apart from handbrakes :-)
M50 is great fun too , especially the queue to the Toll Plaza.....
|
|
It's known as the M50 because it's twice as bad as the M25
|
yes, i went there this summer. Great, only carp driver I met was British!, amazing. Dublin was Ok but the tolls on the bridge was a larf, a person was collecting the toll and throwing it in the auto dispenser!
I found driving very relaxed and obviiouly slower than here, and petrol pump attenants that spoke to you, pleasantly?
B&B were brilliant value, again welcoming- and speak English- mainly, but again not hang ups.
Pity about the widy crossing delaying the ferry, never mind very good holiday destination
|
|
|
|
![2021 Fiat 500 1.0 Mild Hybrid Dolcevita [Part Leather] 3dr](http://images.honestjohn.co.uk/imagecache/url/crop/90x60/https/assets.heycar.co.uk/t_default-export/f_auto/application_assets/vehicles/pictures/b4a6cba4badadf6f9edde1e9acc733cf/4670c07026c08ef73be21158a79edb7f.jpg)
