The Minister for Transport has said plans for a minimum passing distance for cars overtaking cyclists were unenforceable.
The Attorney General has warned Minister Shane Ross that the plan to force drivers to leave a specific amount of space when overtaking cyclists would face consistent legal challenge.
The proposals would have made it an offence to pass closer than 1m to a cyclist on a road with a speed limit under 50kph. The passing distance was to rise to 1.5m on roads with higher limits.
On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, Minister Shane Ross said it would have been too difficult to prove passing distances in court.
“The Attorney General feels that that is not a way forward because of the enforceability measure,” he said.
“That it would not be possible to do that and that it would be challenged – and it would be successfully challenged – in the courts.
“I think it is a matter of measuring the 1.5m.
“In other words, there is not the technology available at the moment to measure the 1.5m in which case it would be challenged in every case.”
However campaigners have insisted the law would have been enforceable.
Phil Skelton, founder of the Stay Alive at 1.5 campaign said distances can be measured using identifiable road features and cameras.
The Green Party’s transport spokesperson Cllr Ciarán Cuffe said: “This U-turn is bitterly disappointing and is hard to understand, particularly as other countries such as Australia have had minimum passing laws in place for some time.”
“It seems that the Attorney General has adopted a somewhat cautious approach to these much-needed changes.
“Over fifty cyclists have died on Irish roads in the last five years and we desperately need to improve their safety.”
He said the Government must now fast-track plans for new infrastructure segregating cyclists and motorists, “particularly in higher speed, congested locations.”
Minister Ross said the Government remains “really concerned” about cyclist safety – warning that nine cyclists were killed on Irish roads last year.
The new Road Traffic Bill will now make the dangerous overtaking of cyclists an offence, however it will not specify a safe passing distance.
