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Call for Gardaí to show more ‘goodwill’ after 4,400 parking fines issued

The figures, which were released by the Department of Justice to Sinn Féin, revealed that the Dublin metropolitan region north had the highest number - with over 1,170 fixed penalty notices issued. 
Molly Cantwell
Molly Cantwell

12.25 16 Jan 2025


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Call for Gardaí to show more ‘...

Call for Gardaí to show more ‘goodwill’ after 4,400 parking fines issued

Molly Cantwell
Molly Cantwell

12.25 16 Jan 2025


Share this article


Gardaí have been urged to show drivers more “goodwill” after 4,400 parking fines were issued to motorists last year. 

The figures, which were released by the Department of Justice to Sinn Féin, revealed that the Dublin metropolitan region north had the highest number - with over 1,170 fixed penalty notices issued.

On The Pat Kenny Show, reporter Josh Crosbie spoke to those who want greater enforcement and to those who are calling for a more localised approach.

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Cars in Bremen city centre, Germany, parked on the sidewalk. Credit: Sina Schuldt/dpa/Alamy Live News Cars in Bremen city centre, Germany, parked on the sidewalk. Credit: Sina Schuldt/dpa/Alamy Live News

Dublin Labour Councillor Dermot Lacey said he wants to see more “goodwill” considered in the approach to this issue.

“We have a real problem in Ireland that all of our laws are sort of one size fits all and we don't live in a one size fits all world, we don't live in a one size fits all series of housing estates,” he said.

“Therefore laws should reflect the reality and deal with situations -that's all I'm trying to do.

“I do fully accept people in wheelchairs, people weaving buggies, people with disabilities have to have a right to walk safely on our footpaths.

“But I also want to see a living city, a city that caters for people living within those cities. So with goodwill, I think we can find a solution.

“It's the goodwill that sometimes is missing from these debates.”

"Deal with reality"

Cllr Lacey said people are often up against a lack of options for parking.

“A lot of housing estates that were built, say in the ‘50s and early ‘60s, the roads are narrow… and residents have very often reached agreement locally that, you know, on one side of the road, they will park in the footpath and on the other side, people park if you want, normally on the road,” he said.

“That can work if there is local agreement but there has to be that local agreement for it to work.

“This is a conflict between the rights, and they are rights, of people to walk the streets safely and to walk the footpaths safely and the reality of the physical building of estates that don't allow for both sides parking.

“I'm personally in favour of trying to find a way where each local authority can, in certain cases, in restrictive cases, develop policies to recognise the reality of the rights and the physical layouts of an estate.”

Cllr Lacey said he is not suggesting this be a widespread solution but he thinks the “facility to allow authorities to deal with reality” should be introduced.

A bright yellow parking ticket is placed on the windshield of a parked vehicle. Image: Alamy A bright yellow parking ticket is placed on the windshield of a parked vehicle. Image: Alamy

The Access for All Ireland campaign co-founder Bernard Mulvany said there is a lot for people with mobility issues to consider and stress about when they come up against a blocked footpath.

“When you have access to free footpaths you can go anywhere and do anything but when there's a car parked on the footpath, you now have to look at ‘How am I going to either cross the road or I'm going to go on the road’,” he said.

“You're going to have to do what you're going to have to do, so you're going to go on the road, you're going to have to deal with traffic, you're going to have to deal with trucks, lorries, busses, whatever that may be and hope that they see you and don't take you out of it.

“The other issue is, then you have to find a drop curve further on down the road so you can get back on the opposite side footpath or the footpath you were just on.”

"Put in jeopardy"

Mr Mulvany said the cost of parking on footpaths and blocking access is the independence of those with mobility issues.

“I mean, there's areas in Dublin where the whole footpath is just one long line of continuous cars parked,” he said.

“We've had all the excuses put to us, you know, ‘We have nowhere to park, we don't have driveways in our homes’.

“While, yeah, we're sort of empathetic to that - it's at a cost and the cost is the independence of that person with the mobility issue.

“Why should they be put in jeopardy? Or why should they be confined to their house due to the fact that, you know, you can't park your car outside your front door?”

Wheelchair user struggles to pass by badly parked car on pavement and double yellow lines in Brighton UK, 11-02-2016. Image: Simon Dack / Alamy


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