Case study: Breaches of driver time ‘put lives at risk’

Lorry driver Michael Kearns of Davitt Close, Castlebar, Co Mayo, was in the middle of a busy few weeks when he came upon a Garda/Road Safety Authority (RSA) checkpoint on the N5, in Co Roscommon, in March 2013.

An examination of the lorry’s tachograph – which records distance, speed and driving time – told a story of multiple breaches of regulations covering drivers’ hours.

RSA transport officer Jim Fleming also found a number of instances of Mr Kearns’s driver’s card being removed from the tachograph while the lorry continued to drive beyond legal limits.

Ultimately, Mr Kearns and his employer, Brian Cunningham of Brian Cunningham Transport Limited, pleaded guilty to a number of charges at Castlebar District Court.

The court heard Cunningham had two previous convictions for similar offences. Mr Kearns was fined €500 and Mr Cunningham €4,000.

It was a reasonable result for the RSA, but the courts have not always imposed penalties consistently, particularly in relation to coach and tour bus drivers’ hours.

In October 2013, the authority inspected a coach at Muckross House, Killarney, Co Kerry operated by Dero’s Coach Tours Ltd.

The company subsequently pleaded guilty to five charges at Killarney District Court, including three counts of causing or authorising driver Anthony McLarnon, from Headford, Rathmore, Co Kerry, to make use of another driver’s card. Mr McLarnon was not prosecuted.

Red tape

Padraig O’Connell, solicitor for Dero’s Tours, said, “Red tape is strangling these people on a daily basis.”

The court imposed convictions on the five counts; imposing a fine of €300 on the charge of failing to produce records and a €200 fine for causing or authorising Mr McLarnon to make use of another driver’s card.

The three other charges were also taken into consideration.

Many drivers are concerned but they do not want to risk their jobs. One driver for a different company – who asked not to be named – said, “Tour companies say you can get a break from driving when the tourists are visiting sites.

“But you are often up at 6am to get the bus in position at 7am and collect people from different hotels. Many tours are now doing daytrips from Dublin to sites as far as the west coast, Cork or Belfast.

“So it’s hard for them to keep within the working-time directive of 15 hours a day. After a few hours sleep, you are doing another tour the next day. The lives of about 50 passengers are on the line,” he sai