Speed vans in Mayo issued fines totalling €670k in four years

More than €670,000 in fines were generated by GoSafe speed detection vans in Mayo since 2019, according to figures released to the Western People under the Freedom of Information Act.

An Garda Síochána revealed that a total of €672,270 was generated in revenue from speed detection vans in the Garda divisions of Ballina, Belmullet, Castlebar, Claremorris and Westport from the start of 2019 until September 26, 2023.

However, a breakdown of fines generated by GoSafe vans by exact location is not available.

A total of 8,275 fixed charge notices (FCNs) were issued within the period. If a motorist is detected driving over the speed limit, they get three penalty points and a fine of €160, which was doubled by the Department of Transport in October 2022, having been €80 up to that point.

FCNs may go unpaid, resulting in a court appearance, or else they may be cancelled by gardaí when the evidence does not sustain a prosecution or in exceptional circumstances.

A total of €188,240 was generated in revenue from speed detection vans in Mayo in 2019 when 2,580 FCNs were issued. This figure dropped to €119,080 from 1,631 FCNs in 2020 and €110,280 from 1,518 FCNs in 2021. The decline clearly related to the reduction in traffic on the roads due to covid restrictions. In 2022, some €122,270 was generated in revenue from 1,462 FCNs.

This year, up to September 26, a total of €132,400 has been generated from 1,084 FCNs issued in Mayo.

A spokesperson for the Garda Press Office said speed is a factor in one-third of fatal collisions in Ireland. In Mayo, there have been 12 road fatalities so far in 2023, more than double last year’s figure of five and triple that of 2021, when there were just four road fatalities in the county.

The spokesperson said the mobile safety camera network had been expanded in July 2022, adding 61 new speed detection zones to the network to give a total of 1,373 safety camera zones nationwide. Further information on the location of these zones is available on the garda website.

The spokesperson added that, in September of this year, gardaí announced additional mobile safety camera monitoring hours until the end of 2023. The Mayo/Roscommon/Longford garda division, where 16 deaths had been recorded at the time of this statement, was cited as an example of how road deaths and serious injury collisions are not evenly distributed geographically.

“The primary purpose of this additional deployment will be to reduce speed-related collisions, reduce injuries and above all save lives,” the spokesperson added.

“The purpose of deployment of mobile safety cameras in high-visibility vehicles is to change road user behaviour and reduce the likelihood of fatal and serious injury road traffic collisions occurring on our roads, particularly on stretches of roads where there is a history of collisions.”