COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL
MEETING OF LUCAN AREA COMMITTEE
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
MOTION NO. 17
MOTION: Councillor G. O'Connell
Cathaoirleach's Business
"That this committee requests that the Chief Executive provide the members with the following information in relation to the decision of the members of the Council to have the current 7.5T restriction on Kennelsfort Road, Wheatfield Road, Turret Road, Glenmaroon Road, Woodfarm Ave and Drive and The Oval replaced by a 3.5T restriction as is in place on Ballyfermot Road and the Ballyfermot/Chapelizod Traffic Cell of which the above roads form part, in particular (1) If the EU Directive as applied in Ireland requires that a plate must be displayed on the side of commercial vehicles indicating the carrying capacity and does this render it unnecessary for the Gardai to weight each vehicle suspected of being over the limit; (2) If it is accurate to say that the weight restriction on a road refers to the carrying capacity of a vehicle: (3) What is the role of An Garda Siochana in setting weight restrictions on roads; (4) Can he make available to this committee the reasons The Garda Commissioner gave for recommending that the 7.5T remain on the above Palmerstown Roads; (5) Does the CEO accept that the Palmerstown Roads between the R148 and the Cold Cut junction are less vulnerable from traffic above 3.5T than Ballyfermot Road and can he vouch that the EU Directive, Irish Legislation and the Council’s own HGV Policy are being fully availed of to support the safety of pedestrians and cyclists on these Palmerstown Roads; (6) Given that notices inform the public that the current 7.5T restriction is monitored by CCTV, how many vehicles have exceeded the restriction year to date and that he make a statement on the matter."
REPORT:
1. The RSA sets out the requirements for plates to accord with EU Directive 96/53/EC As follows:
In the absence of an equivalent manufacturer’s plate the following vehicle types must be fitted with a weights and dimensions plate at an NSAI approved plating centre:
- Goods vehicles (including their trailers and semi-trailers) with a design gross vehicle weight exceeding 3,500kg and,
- Buses/coaches with more than 8 passenger seats and a design gross vehicle weight exceeding 5,000kg.
A check for the presence of an appropriate weights and dimensions plate is part of the roadworthiness test carried out at the Vehicle Testing Network (VTN). The only plates acceptable are those fitted by the vehicle/trailer manufacturer (provided it contains the necessary information), or a plated fitted by an Authorised Person appointed by NSAI. Where a vehicle or trailer has been plated by the manufacturer a combination of two plates is acceptable.
- The weight restriction on a road does refer to the maximum permitted Gross Vehicle Weight of the vehicle. i.e. the total weight of the vehicle plus goods.
- Section 37 (b) of the Road Traffic Act 1994 requires that the Commissioner be consulted in the provision of statutory signage required to implement a weight restriction.
- The Commissioner in his correspondence did not outline specific reasons for the recommendation that the current 7.5 tonne HGV limit remain.
- The Council believes that 7.5 tonne is the appropriate limit and is in accordance with the adopted policy of the council on the Mobility and Management of HGV’s on South Dublin County Road Network. In addition traffic calming is in place on Kennelsfort Road, the speed of traffic is low and pedestrian crossings are also in place. The size of vehicles in the category of up to 7.5 tonnes (e.g. large Mercedes van, small 2 axel truck) do not present any issues of visibility for pedestrians or cyclists as is the case with large HGV’s.
- CCTV monitoring is in place across the road network, records are not kept of the types of vehicles using specific sections of the road network, however where patterns of use by HGV’s are observed which are not in accordance with statutory restrictions in place then a referral is placed to An Garda Siochana. No such referral has been necessary in the case of Kennelsfort Road. Analysis of cctv footage carried out by the Council shows an average of 3-4 trucks per hour which is not deemed out of line with local access /delivery needs to local residents and businesses. In addition the recent targeted enforcement carried out by the Gardai resulted in a very low number ( 6 in total) of breaches of the 7.5 tonne exemption being detected.