Fewer drivers speeding on M7
Round the clock monitoring of speed by drivers on a section of the M7 motorway near Birdhill over the past nine months has resulted in a dramatic reduction in the average speed of drivers.
The checking of speed of all drivers and imposing of fines and penalty points on those breaching the law has slashed the percentage of offenders to a miniscule level.
The system was introduced after it was claimed that more than 40 per cent of drivers on the accident prone section of the Dublin-Limerick Motorway were exceeding the maximum legal speed limit of 120 kph.
The section of motorway was recording the highest accident rate in the country, which had resulted in several fatalities over the short period since the motorway was opened.
The 13km section of the M7 between Carrigatoher and Birdhill became the first section of open motorway in the country, to monitor the average speed of all drivers and the only location outside of Dublin to have fixed 24/7 speed monitoring cameras in operation.
The camera system, which went live in April 2022 monitors each driver’s average speed as they drive between Junction 26 (Nenagh West) and Junction 27 (Birdhill) of the motorway, in both directions, via the camera's operating at both ends of the section of motorway.
Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) analyses of speed data on the M7 corridor since 2017 had identified speeding as a “significant issue”, with approximately 40 per cent of drivers exceeding the 120 km/h speed limit on certain sections.
Gardaí said analysis of traffic data by TII showed that speeding is “typical of driver behaviour on low traffic volume sections of the motorway network throughout the country”.
“This type of driver behaviour is very dangerous, and it is compounded during rain or hail showers increasing the potential of serious accidents,” a statement added.
Review of the piloted system has shown that there was immediate benefit in reducing the number of drivers exceeding the speed limit and the improvement has continued.
The official records show that within three months the incidence of drivers exceeding an average of 120 km/h on the section of motorway was down to 47 detections per day and the latest data, shows a further drop to 24 drivers per day being penalised for speeding on the section.
The Moneygall to Annacotty section of the M7 Motorway had become notorious for accidents and multi-vehicle pile-up in the immediate aftermath of a hail shower and calls were being made for an in-depth investigation into the cause of the terrifying experiences of drivers.
The camera system monitors each vehicle travelling in either direction and determines their 'average' speed by calculation of the time taken to travel the distance between the two cameras.