Written Answers. - Amendment of Road Traffic Acts.
Nora Owen
Question:
158
Mrs. Owen
asked the
Minister for the Environment
if he will amend the Road Traffic Acts to enable local authorities to prosecute drivers of vehicles which deposit soil and stones on the public roads as a result of building developments or farming.
There are a number of relevant legislative provisions which include
1. Section 101C of the Road Traffic Act, 1961, which empowers local authorities to make by-laws controlling access to and from construction sites by vehicles, including by-laws requiring vehicles to be cleaned before leaving a construction site.
2. Section 3(2) of the Litter Act, 1982, which provides that "a person shall not load, transport, unload or otherwise handle or process any substance, material or thing, or carry on a trade, in a manner that creates or tends to create litter in a public place or litter that is visible from a public place".
3. Article 96(4) of the Road Traffic (Construction, Equipment and use of Vehicles) Regulations, 1963, which provides that "a load shall not be carried on a vehicle on a public road in such a manner that part of the load is liable to fall on the road, or drags on the surface of the road, so as to cause damage to the road or to be liable to cause danger".
I will consider the adequacy of these provisions in the context of the next appropriate legislation.
