One driver, in a high-powered BMW, was the object of a multi-county alert yesterday, as Gardai got reports of a car driving dangerously and speeding south on the M8.
Garda controllers handled multiple reports of the dark BMW travelling well over the speed limit, aggressively passing cars or undertaking them on the inside lane or hard shoulder.
The car was first spotted outside Portlaoise, and Gardai were able to track him moving south, and make plans to intercept close to the Cork-Tipp border.
It was a challenging weekend on the roads for Gardai in Munster – in Kerry, officers seized ‘speed hacked’ e-scooters and bikes including on that was tuned to do 100kmh.
Posting a pic of the pulled over motor on their social media, Cork Gardai said: “Reports came in regarding a car driving dangerously from Portlaoise to Fermoy, allegedly undertaking and overtaking at high speeds on the motorway.”
Unfortunately for the driver, RPU Cork County from Mitchelstown were out in force. They successfully stopped the vehicle and found more than just bad driving – non-conforming plates were also added to the list of offences.
The driver is now facing a trip to court for dangerous driving.
Since 2019, Gardai have been developing their policy on what are known as ‘Spontaneous Pursuits’ or fast pursuits on busy roads. Road Policing Units will have trained drivers and rules against engaging in fast pursuits. And the general approach now is to carefully plan interceptions where dangerous drivers can be slowed and stopped wihtout increasing the danger to the public.