The drop in the number of penalty points issued in October is most likely due to increased Garda activity, transport consultant Conor Faughnan believes. 

Usually around 14,000 penalty points are issued every month. However, in October 2022 that figure dropped to 13,000. 

It has been suggested that it is down to the doubling of fines for a variety of motoring offences that month - something that Mr Faughann does not believe is likely.  

“There was no change to the penalty points but the underlying fine went from €80 to €160,” he explained to The Pat Kenny Show. 

“Did that mean that motorists changed their behaviour? Is that why fewer of them were caught? It’s highly unlikely.” 

Instead, he believes that a more visible deterrence is more likely to be behind the change. 

“It’s much more likely that it correlates directly with Garda activity,” he added. 

“The number of Gardí on the roads drops, the number of motorists [getting points] drops as well.” 

Day view of average speed traffic camera over a motorway.

Furthermore, he believes that doubling the fines is a relatively ineffectual way of dealing with the dangerous driving; whereas the prospect of penalty points, he believes is a far greater deterrence. 

“The penalty points really do have teeth as a punishment,” he said. 

“Much more effective than the fines. 

“Nobody wants to part with 160 quid but we know it doesn’t change behaviour. 

“Whereas the prospect of getting penalty points does. Very few things control the behaviour of a motorist like the sight of a speed camera or the flash blue lights.

“The enforcement has to be visible and obvious and then it works."

Main image: A Garda at a speed checkpoint on Conyngham Road in Dublin in 2015. Picture by: RollingNews.ie