asked the Minister for Justice if he will take steps to ensure that the regulations against parking on both sides of Kildare Street will be fully enforced in view of the traffic jams continually occurring in that street.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Parking in Kildare Street, Dublin.
11.
The Garda Síochána realise that Kildare Street, by reason of its location and the variations in its width, is liable to become congested at times, and they pay particular attention to the enforcement of the Parking and Waiting Bye-Laws there.
In the year ended 30th September, for example, 190 summonses were issued for obstruction and 322 summonses were issued for unauthorised parking in the street and, in addition, a large number of oral and written warnings were given to motorists.
Two Gardaí are normally on traffic duty in Kildare Street but because of especially heavy demands made on the services of the Gardaí engaged on traffic duty over the past month, arising from extensive road works in another part of the city, only one member could be allocated for traffic duty in Kildare Street. It is hoped, however, that a second Garda can be restored to this duty in the near future.
Is the Minister aware that often cars are double-parked outside the main gate of the House? Three months ago, when trying to turn into Kildare Street, I crashed into a motor cyclist because I could not see down Kildare Street. Will the Minister see that cars are kept away from the vicinity of the House because I do not want a by-election any more than the Government Party does?
While I fully sympathise with the Minister's willingness to enforce the parking regulations, has his attention been directed to the particular difficulty of motorists in this street? Is this not the street in which you have to renew your licence if you are a motorist in Dublin? Might not some suggestion be made to the municipal authorities, or whoever is responsible, that the office for that function should be transferred to some less frequented street as it is not easy for people who have to hurry to get their licences in order to carry on with their normal business to go there on foot and then go back and find their car again and pass on? If that office were moved to some less frequented street a great deal of the obstruction could be averted.
That is one feasible way of dealing with that situation. The real way I suppose would be to prohibit parking altogether at that end of the street but the matter with which we are dealing at the moment, the particular congestion raised in this Question, is due in the main to the fact that where we had two Garda doing duty, for the last month or five weeks we have had only one, because of work that is being carried out in the vicinity of the City Hall. That will be eased in the very near future and we may have to consider the question of prohibiting parking completely on one side of the street. In respect to Deputy Sherwin's remarks, I know from my own experience that cars do not park outside the gate in the manner in which the Deputy has suggested and if he were involved in an accident he would have to examine his own conscience, to see if he were not himself responsible for the accident.
Is the Minister aware that the Garda at the gate has the particulars? He asked me whether I would prosecute. I went to turn right and I could not see because there was one car alongside another outside the gate and I could not see around it. I am not exaggerating the incident.
The Minister is surely aware that cars are often double-parked there? I see them regularly.
Outside the gate?
Yes.
I have never seen them.
The Minister may go out the back way but if he went out the front way he would see them.
I have gone out through the front way as often as the Deputy——
I am afraid the Minister has not.
——and for a much longer period.
But it is only in the last year that it has happened.
There is a method by which the Gardaí at the front gate ensure that cars will not be parked close up to the gate. They are certainly parked convenient to the gate——
And double-parked.
——but not to the extent that a motorist exercising proper care could drive out and drive into a cyclist.
They are often double-parked.
Has the Minister considered the desirability of restricting parking in Molesworth Street to only one side of the street in view of the continued interference with the movement of traffic? It is a positive scandal.
This question refers only to Kildare Street.
I should like to impress the importance of this matter on the Minister. I had an experience when I wanted to get back to the Dáil from the centre of the city and there was such a traffic jam in Kildare Street that I was diverted to the extent that I had to drive a mile to get there.
I agree. I do not dispute that.