Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
LOCAL AUTHORITIES WILL have to review speed limits in residential areas, following a campaign by the family of a young boy who was killed when hit by a car last June.
Six-year-old Jake Brennan died after being hit by a car outside his family home in Kilkenny.
In the wake of his death, his family launched Jake’s Legacy Campaign in a bid to reduce speed limits and introduce mandatory speed bumps.
Today Transport Minister Pascal Donohoe issued a circular calling on all Local Authorities to review speed limits in residential areas and housing estates to improve road safety for cyclists and pedestrians.
After meeting with the group, Donohoe’s department carried out a survey on the issue.
The research found out that about 14% of the 8,725 housing estates surveyed have speed ramps. €3,200 is the average cost of a speed bump.
Excluding Dublin City Council, 135 estates (1.5%) have 30 km/h speed limits.
Three residential areas in Dublin City have a 30 km/h speed restriction, namely Marino, Irishtown and an area adjacent to the South Lotts Road.
Local authorities will now have to determine whether or not appropriate speed limits are in place.
As part of the consultation they are also being asked if a 30 km/h speed limit sign should be accompanied by a yellow warning sign showing ‘children at play’ at the entry to a housing estate.
Donohoe said that the most important objective of the campaign is to “improve safety for pedestrians and cyclists, and especially children”.
Local Authorities have to submit a proposed timeline for implementing any new measures by 7 November.
€3200.00 for a speed bump..? That can’t be right… Can it?
I suppose after the foundation, the roof and the sun terrace goes in it does David.
Ah sure the council have to have their taste, the man who appoints the contractors has a taste and then the engineers have some. €50 a piece from china and the rest is classed as planning permission
Don’t forget we have to pay for the tea, the biscuits andvthe milk
I heard during the bom that some were costing up to 25k, although I’m not sure how true that is or how rare it was. I really wouldn’t be surprised though.
Kids shouldn’t be playing on roads, even in housing estates
He was crossing the road, it was an accident, no one was at fault.
Speed signs also need to be looked at. I have all to often been informed that I am now entering a 100 km section of road only to be confronted by a series of dangerous bends just seconds after. We have grass growing up country lanes with 80km speed limits for Christ sake!
@tom . It’s a limit not a target .
True Alan which is why I have not had an accident personally. That said it’s important that these signs are not put in areas were they are a potential boobytrap for less the type of driver you are referring too.
It’s up to the coroner to decide “fault” not you Maggie
Just to clarify that the young boy this campaign is about was a few meters from his front door and his mother and father were with him as well as other family members the house is at the end of a cul de sac and he wasn’t out playing on the road he crossed over to the green area and the accident happened in a split second unless you actually know the facts don’t comment
I’m against all of these speed bumps being introduced. Education & safe driving is what’s needed.
And for the idiots who don’t drive safely?
Traveller in Enniscorthy drove straight through a housing state crazily last week, crashed into the local community workshop. How he didn’t kill stone was a miracle.
He nearly killed a lad coming out of soccer, just missed him
From the Astro?
Poor family. It can easily happen blue mist so don’t judge. I’ve a 5 year old son and I let him play out the front with the gates closed. The road in front of us is a busy little road and ive caught him going out after a ball onto the road despite trying to drum it into his head how dangerous it is. You can’t keep them in a bubble as much as all parents would love to but it’s also impossible to know what they are going to do next . Little boys are adventurous and care free. Prayers to his family I can’t imagine what they are going through.
Not sure a lower limit will stop people being killed.
Yes it will
Sara, no point in trying to reason with a lot of the commentators. Oh course travelling slower gives a child a chance, and no matter how vigilant you are kids will run across roads chasing friends, chasing dogs etc. I watch my child, have taught him about crossing the road safely but he is a child and on occasion just heads off across a road. Who didn’t as a child. For God sake people you are adults, slow down, the child might not think to do so.
Speed wasnt a factor in this tragic case. Speed ramps etc would have made no difference. Educating children about road safety would be money better spent.
You don’t know that speed wasn’t a factor in this case as its still under investigation
And who’ll be there to enforce the speed limit in a housing estate?…There’s few Gardaí on the roads don’t mind the chances of seeing one in a quiet housing estate!
Speed ramps usually enforce the limit.I’ve seen some that need sherpas to help cars get over them.The down side to them is if constructed incorrectly they can damage cars and they are expensive to install.
I wouldn’t trust the contractors to do a decent job. It seems to me that actually quality work went out the window years ago.
Case in point the red asphalt which deteriorates after few months. As a cyclist I’ve began to notice a heapload of road works resurfaced terribly, it’s like these lads never used a spirit level before. Never mind spirit level, it just has to match the level of the road and they can’t even manage that.
I’m all for safety, but this is a bit overboard. Speed ramps in every estate? Quick conservative roughwork puts the minimum cost of this at 24 Million at 1 speed ramp per remaining 7503 houses that lack said features. Throw in road signage and maintenance and the already conservative figure will inflate.
There has to be a better way.
Our road was a rat run. A week after the speed ramps went in the traffic just melted away.
Tell that to jakes parents , you do understand physics don’t you ronan , the faster you go the longer the stopping distance .
@John I don’t think he meant it in the way you took it. If lower speed limits were enforced, it would clearly work, shorter stopping distances etc, but lowering the limit from 50kph to 30kph is useless unless Gardai are out enforcing it because the average driver will not drive at 30kph on a clear road, housing estate or not.
exactly , how is that 30kph working out in the city centre. I’ve travelled it many a time and stuck tot he limit, but people move around me to get by
What was he doing on his own crossing a road.
He wasn’t on his own he was meters from his own front door where his parents were standing the house is located in a cul de sac if you don’t know what you’re talking about don’t comment
Will the signs be taken down each night or are children playing on these estates all night ?
How about a 0 kph speed limit ?
Or how about we teach kids to only cross at a cross roads like the rest of Europe and stop jay walking like all the Irish do
You hardly mean people should teach their children to cross at cross roads… that makes no sense?! Or do you mean at a pelican/zebra crossing? Very few estates have those. I’m in an estate of about 500 houses/apartments and there isn’t ONE designated crossing zone. Not one!
Horrible and all as it is to consider a five year old hit by a car doing 30 kph will still be killed. And as others have pointed out the current limits aren’t enforced. Sometimes accidents are just not preventable however hard we try.
I think all estate should have ramps, after such a tragic accident . Kilkenny Co.Co are usless been honest, we have been asking for our light to be fixed and ramps put in but we keep getting fobbed off . They reckon not all estates need them … So their value on a life is zero !! once their books ballance … Disgraceful and disgusting on there behalf
One person dies so every estate needs speedramps? Where’s the logic in that? We had for years, and may still have the safest roads in Europe. What’s the figure for housing estate road fatalities in Ireland?
I would support ramps perhaps in estastes where there seem to a higher than average rate of “incidents”. Tell me, what of those not living in housing estates? Do they not deserve ramps outside their own houses? Should we ramp all of Ireland? Perhaps we should introduce a universal speed limit of 30km/h in all areas where there are people. When you do stop with the measures? Where does personal responsibiility come into it? Parents? Education?
Has there been an inquest in this case yet? Has it determined speed to be a factor? Did the vehicle exceed 30kph? We need these answers before anything is implemented.
Hell no to speed limits in every housing estate. Their are more sensible traffic calming measure which aren’t as disruptive.
The sense of space and visibility distance for a driver effects how fast they feel they are driving. Lots of things to do to encourage drivers to slow down without ugly and annoying speed bumps. Stupid to take the unthinking route and slap up crappy speedbumps.
http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/episode-68-built-for-speed/
*Ramps not limits.
Everyone is entitled to their opinion about the motions being fought for by Jakes Legacy but please bear in mind that an inquest into Jake Brennans death is still ongoing so please do not make flippant comments about the details of the incident itself.
Bit of an over reaction! 1 30kph is a joke of a speed and 2 i’m sick of crap ramps wreckin my car! 3. Spend the money on educating kids on how to cross the road instead of forcing every car user to bounce over ramps on roads made for driving!
10 kpm in estates I think anyway
i could jog quicker than that.
I commented on this topic the other day in favour of reduced speed limits in build up areas and got more red thumbs than green??
Very angry reading some of these comments especially one where it says one person dies so we have to have ramps in all estates?? Are you for real?? He was a six year old boy adored by his family and all some of you people can do is judge without even knowing the facts you should be ashamed of yourselves, speed bumps may be annoying for some but as a parent id do anything to make sure my children were safe, and as regards educating the children and adults about road safety, that’s also part of the campaign, if people don’t know the facts surrounding this tragedy then don’t make assumptions about it its not fair his family are trying to do some good for the safety of all children they should be commended not criticised.
Lets put 30kph signs up and lets put guards in every estate with speed guns patrolling them! Ain’t going to happen! Iv seen this woman on facebook, i can only imagine her pain but she needs some counselling badly! It cant be easy for the person that hit the child either to have to see and hear the constant ….
U don’t know what you’re talking about at all so keep your stupid opinions to yourself
How about the Gards enforce the current limits? Speed bumps just destroy people’s cars and make it difficult for ambulances and fire trucks. The speed limit is fine, it’s just
Terrible reading these comments, ridicolous that some think parents dont tell there children about road safety, we all tell our children not to run out after balls,friend etc but wat happens when a driver isnt paying attention to the road ,all the road safety education isnt going to prevent another tradegy if the adult driving the car is too busy on the ph r rushing somewere and not been vigiliant, especially in housing estates were children are out playing, while some might still not adhere to speed limit signs they cant ignore the speed bumps !
Twenty is plenty
Children need to be taught from a very early age about road safety at home, in school, in crèches. They need daily practice to develop safe road crossing habits. This is very difficult for parents because kids can be stubborn and not listen but consistent hard work put in in early years pays dividends. Drivers are equally responsible. I live in a built up estate with lots of little kids and teenagers crossing roads with phones locked to their eyeballs. I’m very, very cautious about reversing out of my drive and looking out for small kids who can be invisible to motorists. I’m sure every parent posting here has had near misses with their own kids. I hope to never experience the loss this poor family experienced and I think it’s great that they’re trying to do something positive to prevent future deaths.
Think these comments speak yards, they wont pay attention to signs,but will to speed bumps because they are more concerned about damaging their cars than another person !
A very sad story but reducing speed limit won’t stop the idiots who drive fast to drive slower and at a cost of 3200 per speed bump, no wonder we can’t afford to get necessary works done, that’s ludicrous….
have your say