Advice for Ireland driving-I have spent about 250 nights there- my sister's a resident and I have driven about 100 days( I'm from the NYC Metro area,as a well!) the narrow country roads w too high speed limits( 80 km!!!)- make this not fun but the real danger are the Irish drivers!!! Overtaking you on the above roads at 100 km and it's 5 meters across! and more and more you are seeing( in County Tipperary,Offaly,Laois,etc- RURAL) locals w big cars- Suvs- Audi 8- Bmw 500 and now American pickups!! I go every summer and will do so again but it's always a relief to drop off the car!!!
Posted by
Penzance
276 posts
To get some perspective the road traffic fatality rate in the US is nearly 3.5 times that of Ireland.
As for the size of car this is completely irrelevant. The roads are wide enough for any vehicle that is going to travel on them. If the road is too narrow you have probably driven on to a footpath. The locals have every right to have cars that are perfectly capable of being driven down their roads. Do you think a farmer should transport livestock and machinery in a Fiat 500? People have jobs to do and vehicles to do them in. It’s not Disney Land.
Posted by
Downingtown, USA
2782 posts
Very well stated in the above post by trelawney!!. No matter where you drive, any country, anywhere, there are people who don't belong on the roads. We always joke there goes another idiot trying to get to the 24 hour convenience store before it closes!!!
Posted by
2 posts
One thing a local driver mentioned to us on our first day was to keep an eye out for the big N and L stickers on windshields.
An L means the person is still learning to drive, and an N means they’ve just recently passed their test.
If you spot one ahead of you, it usually just means they might be going a bit slower or taking things more cautiously, especially on tight roads or at roundabouts.
Just a good reminder to be patient.
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Just letting people know what it's like for someone who has driven there alot in the 20 plus years my sister has been a legal resident there in the beautiful farm country of Ireland- yes, a " local"!
Posted by
345 posts
As I've said about Scotland, too...
Just because they paint a line in the middle doesn't make it two lanes ;)
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Just drove the GrossGlockner Pass in Austrian Alps yesterday --lots of hairpins,10% grades,buses,motorcycles and bikes,etc- but EASY compared to a country lane 3 meters across,with hedgerows on one side and a rock wall on the other side w a speed limit of 80KM that's typical for Ireland!
Posted by
Portsmouth
6047 posts
Yes but nobody really drives at 80kph on those roads. It's the same as the UK, narrow country roads with a speed limit of 60mph but people rarely drive that fast except when the road opens up a bit more and visibility ahead has improved.
Posted by
Arctophilia, Northamptonshire, England
36935 posts
a difference between the US and much of Europe, is what that sign on the side of the road and the you-should-know-what-it-means National Speed Limit sign actually mean.
It has been nearly 30 years since I have driven in the US but my memory is that it is expected that if it says 45 you will drive at 45 (or a bit more).
Here it is the limit which must not be exceeded, but drivers are expected use their judgement of weather, road conditions, traffic and skill to decide what is a safe and comfortable speed at all times. You can be done for dangerous driving when driving slower than the posted limit.
Posted by
Downingtown, USA
2782 posts
Nigel I love your posts but let me be clear about our posted speed limit signs here in the northeastern part of the US. We consider them a suggestion not a mandate.!!!! Drive the speed limit on the major.highways or turnpikes is an accident waiting to happen. Give me an Irish road any day. Driving up the Conor Pass in rain and fog was piece of cake.