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National Ploughing Championships 2017 Get Under Way

The National Ploughing Championships for 2017 are being held in Screggan, Tullamore, Co. Offaly from and including today until September 21st next.

Travel the Blue Route: If you are travelling from the Southern Ireland, Gardaí are advising all motorists to exit the M8 at Junction 6, (Horse and Jockey, Thurles), and onto Templemore and Roscrea on the N62. In Birr, Co Offally, traffic will join the N52 travelling northbound via the villages of Kilcormac and Blueball and onto the event site at Screggan, in Tullamore.

A video for people travelling from the South can be found HERE.

Patrons arriving at their Ploughing Championships destination using this route will park in the designated BLUE car parks on the left and right hand side, beside the event grounds. Where necessary motorists will be directed by Gardaí and stewards towards the event.

A national traffic plan detailing all routes and parking areas can be found HERE.

Of course if you are looking for a break from driving, Thurles is the ideal location to halt awhile, for a snack or a cup of tea or coffee.

Sauce For Goose Not Sauce For Gander

It is not possibly fully perceived by residents of this State, but ‘surprise’, ‘surprise’ my friends, but any person who parks a car on any roadside,, with a ‘For Sale’ sign plastered across its windows and bearing a mobile phone number with which to contact the seller, can in fact be fined and / or have the offending vehicle impounded.

Such ‘For Sale’ vans, lorry’s and other vehicles parked regularly on our roadsides are seen as a distraction to other passing drivers (under Section 71 of the Roads Act 1993) and Gardaí are in fact duty bound, to seize all such vehicles, under the aforementioned legislation.

Section 71 of the Roads Act 1993 Reads:-

VW Beetle For Sale !

71.—(1) (a) Any person who, without lawful authority or the consent of a road authority—
(i) erects, places or retains a sign on a public road, or
(ii) erects, places or retains on a public road any caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing (whether on wheels or not) used for the purposes of advertising, the sale of goods, the provision of services or other similar purpose, shall be guilty of an offence.
(b) A consent under paragraph (a) may be given by the road authority subject to such conditions, restrictions or requirements as it thinks fit and any person who fails to comply with such conditions, restrictions or requirements shall be guilty of an offence.

(2) Without prejudice to the liability of any person under subsection (1), where there is a contravention of that subsection in the case of any sign or advertisement, the person on whose behalf the sign or advertisement is exhibited shall be deemed also to have contravened that subsection.

(3) Notwithstanding any other enactment, an authorised person may remove a sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing to which subsection (1) applies.

(4) An authorised person may store, or procure the storage of, a sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing removed by him under subsection (3).

(5) Where the name and address of the owner of a sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing removed and stored under this section can be ascertained by reasonable inquiry, the road authority or the Commissioner shall serve a notice upon the owner informing him of its removal and storage and of the address of the place where it may be claimed and recovered, requiring him to claim and recover it within one month of the date of the service of the notice and informing him of the statutory consequences of his failure to do so.

(6) A sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing removed and stored under this section shall be given to a person claiming it if, but only if, he makes a declaration in writing that he is the owner of the sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing or is authorised by its owner to claim it and, at the discretion of the road authority concerned or the Commissioner, pays the amount of the expenditure reasonably incurred in removing and storing it.

(7) The road authority concerned or the Commissioner may dispose, or procure the disposal, of a sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing removed and stored under this section if—
(a) the owner of the sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing fails to claim it and remove it from the place where it is stored within one month of the date on which a notice under subsection (5) was served on him, or
(b) the name and address of the owner of the sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing cannot be ascertained by reasonable inquiry.

(8) A sign, caravan, vehicle or other structure or thing shall not be disposed of under this section within six weeks of the date of its removal under this section.

(9) In this section – “authorised person” means:-
(a) a person authorised in writing by a road authority for the purposes of this section,
(b) a member of An Garda Síochána.
In this section – “sign” means:-
Any sign, hoarding or other structure used for the purposes of advertising.

(10) This section shall not apply to a sign which relates to a presidential election within the meaning of the Presidential Elections Act, 1937 , a general election or a bye-election, within the meaning, in each case, of the Electoral Act, 1923 , a local election, a referendum, within the meaning of the Referendum Act, 1942 , or an election of members of the European Parliament, unless the sign has been in position for seven days or longer after the latest day upon which the poll was taken for the election, bye-election or referendum concerned.

Now you can see why General Election and other Political Posters are permitted to take precedence over the ‘Health & Safety’ issues affecting already over taxed motorists; with giant posters often placed blocking roundabouts, long before and up to seven days after an election has taken place.
It would appear that “What’s sauce for the goose is not necessarily always sauce for the gander” after all
.

Another Death On Tipperary Roads

Yet another death on Tipperary roads, with a 16-year-old boy, named locally as Master Adam Case, the latest person to loose his life tragically.

Nenagh Gardaí this morning continue to investigate a single vehicle fatal collision that took place at Boston on the Ballingarry North to Cloughjordan road yesterday afternoon, at around 3.45pm.

We understand that the youth was fatally injured, when the car, in which he was a rear seat passenger, collided with a tree.

He was pronounced dead at the scene and his body was taken to University Hospital Limerick.

Two other occupants of the vehicle, a 22 year old man and a 17 year old girl, were taken to Tullamore Hospital and to University Hospital Limerick.

The 22 year old male driver, we understand, also remains in a serious condition.

Garda Forensic Collision Investigators facilitated an examination of the roadway, which has since been reopened.

Gardaí continue to seek witnesses and ask that same contact Nenagh Garda Station on Tel: 067 50450, or the Garda Confidential Telephone Line on Tel: 1800 666 111 or indeed any Garda Station.

Go ndéana Dia trócaire ar a anam dílis.

Male Detained For Questioning Regarding Glengoole Hit & Run

A man has been arrested following investigations by Thurles Gardaí into a fatal collision at Poynestown, near the village of Glengoole, about 14 km (8.5 mls) from Thurles town, at around 10.20pm on Sunday night last.

As a result of the collision a 68-year-old male pedestrian, named as Mr Michael Stapleton, died leaving Gardaí to believe that he was struck by a vehicle, which failed to stop at the scene. Mr Stapleton was discovered by a local person, who performed CPR on him, but despite these efforts and the efforts by ambulance personnel and Gardaí a short time later, he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Mr Stapleton died on the same road just metres away from where his brother Eugene was killed some 15 years ago.

This afternoon a male, understood to be in his 40’s, was arrested under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984, and is currently being detained for questioning at Thurles Garda Station.

Gardaí continue to appeal for witnesses to contact Thurles Garda Station on Tel: 0504-25100; the Garda Confidential Line on Tel: 1800-666-111 or indeed any Garda Station

Tipperary Man Dies Following Hit & Run

An investigation is currently under way following the discovery of the body of a 68-year-old local man, who, it is suspected, died following a hit-and-run road incident here in Co. Tipperary last night, Sunday.

The incident happened in the townsland of Poynestown, near the village of Glengoole, about 14 km (8.5 mls) from Thurles town at around 10.20pm.

Gardaí believe that the, as yet not publicly named pedestrian, was struck by a vehicle, which apparently failed to stop at the scene.

The road remains closed between the villages of Ballysloe and Glengoole, while a technical examination takes place, however local diversions have been put in place.

Thurles Gardaí have appealed for witnesses to contact Thurles Garda Station on Tel: 0504 25100, or the Garda Confidential Line on Tel: 1800 666 111 or indeed any Garda Station.

Go ndéana Dia trócaire ar a anam dílis.