New anti-speeding measures are to be introduced in the Dublin Port Tunnel with drivers being clocked as they enter and leave the tunnel to calculate their average speed going through it.
The Republic’s first “time over distance” speed cameras are currently being installed at the tunnel and are expected to begin operation in the autumn.
The cameras will photograph motorists as they enter the tunnel and again when they leave it. The distance will be divided by the time taken in a calculation to establish the average speed of the vehicle as it travelled between the two cameras.
If the average speed is in excess of the standard 80km/h, the motorist will get a fixed charge notice in the usual way, including a fine and potentially penalty points.
Speed monitoring in the tunnel is currently done by video or g at a fixed point.
Michael Nolan, chief executive of Transport Infrastructure Ireland, said the move was in response to a 40 per cent increase in the number of vehicles using the tunnel over the past five years.
“As a result there is statistically an increase in the potential for collisions and accidents.”
He said the new enforcement system typically offered a 50 per cent reduction in collision rates.
All drivers using the tunnel are likely to notice large yellow poles with cameras being installed from Thursday. Once the cameras are mounted, testing will commence. Average speed is recorded between two camera positions covering all lanes, so switching lanes will have no effect on monitoring.
A motorist travelling through the tunnel without breaking the speed limit should take at least 3 minutes 30 seconds to complete the journey, a spokesman for Transport Infrastructure Ireland said.
Chief Supt Aidan Reid of the Garda National Traffic Bureau welcomed the new cameras.
“Due to an increase in traffic travelling through Dublin Port Tunnel, this new enforcement system provides additional support toward maintaining a safe travel experience for all users of the tunnel,” he said.
