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LONG TAILBACKS WERE reported in various locations around Ireland this morning as additional garda checkpoints were erected in a bid to enforce Level 3 Covid-19 travel restrictions.
There will be fixed garda checkpoints at 132 roads across the country under Operation Fanacht for at least the next three weeks.
In a statement a spokesperson said An Garda Síochána has “re-commenced Operation Fanacht as a nationwide policing operation focused on supporting public compliance with public health measures”.
They added: “People are being encouraged not to travel out of their county unless for essential reasons.”
At a press conference yesterday afternoon, Garda Commissioner Drew Harris said gardaí will not have any new powers to restrict people’s movements.
“People will not be able to travel around the country. You will be restricted to your county, you should only go to your workplace if absolutely necessary, otherwise your journeys are going to be extremely difficult,” Harris said.
Waterford Roads Policing Unit were conducting an early morning checkpoint in support of #OperationFanacht at Newrath, Ferrybank, Waterford. pic.twitter.com/5M3HjUm8us
— An Garda Síochána (@GardaTraffic) October 7, 2020
Early morning checkpoint on the N4 at Rathowen, Co.Westmeath as part of #OperationFanacht pic.twitter.com/2drfnD5QzQ
— An Garda Síochána (@GardaTraffic) October 7, 2020
Some tailbacks have eased but AA Roadwatch is reporting a queue of about 6km on the N7 westbound from J3 Citywest to J5 Athgoe in Dublin. Traffic also remains heavy westbound on the M4 between J5 Leixlip and J6 Celbridge in Kildare.
Kelly says people today are held up on the M7 for up to two hours trying to get to appointments in Dublin due to checkpoints
— Christina Finn (@christinafinn8) October 7, 2020
AA Roadwatch says it’s still heavy on a number of other routes including:
AA Director of Consumer Affairs Conor Faughnan told the Pat Kenny Show on Newstalk that a visible garda presence on roads can impact driver behaviour.
However, he said he isn’t sure that checkpoints during morning rush hour is the best approach as it causes traffic congestion.
“I do believe gardaí can do this job for us without the need for draconian powers, they’ve done it before.
“I think as a general rule, we don’t want to give the gardaí draconian powers – and they don’t want to have them.”
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A yes I saw about 5 to 7 miles of trucks trying to get about and deliver their products. They are essential workers in total gridlock as 1 person in 4.5 million people died yesterday.
@Colm Beck: a nurse on her way home from a 13 hour nightshift stuck in traffic due to the checkpoints according to the radio this morning. Why do they need to pick the morning rush-hour to do this? Anyone travelling for reasons other than work will choose another time in the day. But I suppose it gives maximum visibility to the garda presence this way.
@Anna Anna: 100% the visibility. Maybe it’s the pessimist in me but I honestly don’t think being stuck in traffic for an hour so you can be annoyed for 2 minutes at a checkpoint is going to change anyone’s behaviour once they get out of the car. At least not in a positive way.
@Colm Beck: Harris made it quite plain last night when he said that gardai had no power to restrict travel, but that they would set up checkpoints to make journeys extremely difficult
state harrassment
@Anna Anna: I think it’s an fu from the Guards to the government for getting them to enforce health guidelines which is not their mandate.
They know the people will be pisd off with this.
A lot of people delayed this morning were frontline workers. The irony of the whole practice.
@Catherine Gaffney: Its also catching out the peopel who live in Dublin but have thought it fine to leave Dublin every weekend in their non Dublin registered car. If you’re looking after a family member or travelling for work best of luck to you. If you’re travelling for a social purpose then I’m all for the Garda teling you to turn around. This will hopefulkly make those pople think twice next time. If it doesn’t the Garda needs more powers.
@Catherine Gaffney: As a people we’re more interested in making everything worse for each other than better. its mad really but hey, it’s who we are.
@Gareth Murran: yes, a lot of catches underway i’m sure. I mean, who would miss a picnic, a house party in the countryside or a mini holiday on a grey, rainy wednesday morning in October…
Is it cosy inside the bubble?
Absolutely slated on media all morning. This is NOT the way to get support from people! Do they not think people can also just simply lie. Going to work. They’re hardly going to call each persons employer and check!
@kevinhunt101: agreed, this government is losing the people
@George Demo: they lost them at Golfgate.
@kevinhunt101:
Government increase garda powers from:
“stop that”
to
“ah, cmon now stop that”
@kevinhunt101: I disagree. They need ways to put a stop to the people who insist on traveling between counties. It’s spread the virus all across the country.
@Gareth Murran: absolutely esp to the south east
@Kavsie: next it’ll be Operation Down With This Sort Of Covid Thing
@Gareth Murran: it’s not long ago they were pushing staycations. But with the amount of tourists(home & abroad) we’ve had here in the south-east the figures are still low.
@kevinhunt101: a lot of businesses will provide a letter to their employees saying they are going work.
@Gareth Murran: people need to travel for work Not everybody has the luxury working from home, or living and working in the same county
@Gareth Murran: sure that’s what’s doing it. It has nothing to do with tens of thousands of kids spending hours in close proximity, passing it around and bringing it home without even knowling, being asymptomatic or less affected that the adults.
I feel sorry for the Gardai . The whole country knows they have no power to limit movements but they still have to go through the motions for cosmetic reasons. A joke.
@Murph11: only in ireland would taxpayers be asked to fund additional millions in overtime budgets to spend for Garda to mount checkpoints and do the easy policing -with no powers to enforce -will make tangible difference whatsoever to the people intent on making nonessential journeys and cause 6km tailbacks for the people who do have make essential work travel – honestly this country is beyond stupid sometimes..
@Dave Hammond: And they said NPHET didn’t think their recommendations through!!!
@Dave Hammond: only sometimes????
@Murph11: The majority of people have respect for the Garda doing a tougfh job and will pay attention to the increased presence. If they dont it just justifies increased powers and suggests that they’re required.
@Gareth Murran: Take a look around, I think you might be misreading the general vibe. I doubt there is much respect left for either garda or government the way things are going.
I seriously think the government are trying to drive people mad, it is nonsense having road blocks when no laws are being broken, people are already at their wits end.
@Honeybee: they’re succeeding as well
Hopeless exercise this morning.
Stopped between Waterford and Kilkenny at 7.15am.
Pointless operation only affecting workers.
Even the guards seemed a little embarrassed by it all.
My children half an hour late getting to school because of the traffic tail backs… This is not the way to get people on side
More likely the traffic will stop people from travelling than the powerless advice of the Guards
@Thomas Quinn: It’s very counter-productive all round. No-one is spreading the virus *while* they are driving in their car, unless it’s actually at a checkpoint, and being stopped at a checkpoint doesn’t seem very likely to effect the behaviour of most people when they get where they going, which is the actual problem. I guess if you can’t do what would be best, police large gatherings, then you do what’s most visible, stand on the road annoying people. Which is really just a very visible way to waste money at the end of the day.
@Thomas Quinn: I think that’s the point of the whole exercise… make travel inconvenient and hassle so people will travel less > less travel, less spreading of the virus among counties. Which of course only makes sense if some counties have a lot less incidence than others.
Dublin has been on lockdown for a number of weeks now and this was not deemed necessary before today. Madness
@Anne Marie Devlin: people that live in Dublin generally work there too and don’t travel outside their county for work. This is to stop people from other counties leaving their county. And now they’re further discouraging people in Dublin travelling to work – which they should have done earlier
@Rorymcrory: Kildare, Meath, Wicklow and also Laois and North Wexford are basically B&B’s for people working in Dublin. Not everyone can work from home.
Thanks for the advice guard
@Anna Anna: That will be 15m in garda overtime, expensive advice!
@Mairead Jenkins: the only people the delays will bother are the people travelling to and from work. Further delays to their commute
@Mairead Jenkins: sure the overtime is handy for them coming up to Christmas
Essential workers late for work of course!!! W…T…F like
Why the hell are they doing this at rush hour? Majority of people are going to work and not shopping or for a little spin. As usual they have gotten it ar$eway$.
They do this for show on the first day any time there’s new restrictions and aren’t seen again for the next 3 weeks.
@Rochelle: we hope!
I’m sure this is gonna get people to agree with the lockdowns lol
This was just a concession to #NPHET. You’re not getting your level five but we’ll upgrade the rest of the country (even those counties doing well) to Level 3 and we’ll throw in a few roadblocks for good measure.
Pathetik
I love how the mass media, leadership and gardai especially argue as if these insane traffic jams are essential and unavoidable. It’s as if shows of force are the goal here, or are more important than anything else. It’s as if the entire population decided this morning to flout the newly announced restrictions and must be stopped and punished.
It’s almost mid October… the days are short, the weather is bad most of the time, holidays are over and almost everybody is back to school or work. People are fed up and trying to get back to some kind of normality, while also going about their lives and keeping their jobs. If people are out and about it’s most likely not because they’re having fun. If there are traffic jams, it’s because cops are needlessly causing them, crippling this country’s economy even further.
Cop on cops and politicians! No need to blame it on the average Tom, Dick and Harry just because there’s nothing else you can do at this point.
Definitely looks like an exercise in optics with checkpoints setup at rush hour. I would have thought evening would be better but mid-term will be bedlam with people trying to sneak away and most likely during early rush hour. Either way the police will get bad press over this regardless of time of day.
I’d say the Greens are loving this!
Love the way govt advice as an alternative to public transport is walk or cycle. No mention of driving. Lol
@Joe: I don’t have or want a bike, and I’m not walking 14km to work Eamon get your act together.
@Joe: indeed. dont mention the safest way to get around without spreading the Chy-na Virus
If they are really desperate to do these checks, then it shouldnt be done during the week when people have to head to work. Do it at the weekend when people are mingling.
This country is becoming an absolute joke. A pointless meaningless checkpoint with no powers whatsoever, whose sole purpose was to make it look like the Government are doing something. All this served was to make people even angrier than they already are, and late for work.
Absolute BS and a waste of Garda time and resources. Maybe Leo can explain this well not thought out farce to pass on advice that is not enforceable. A 6km tailback to give advice that Leo has shown that all can choose to ignore.
So it won’t take long for all the back roads to be the new way back and forth to work. Its all those early morning shoppers who should be stopped. Oooo wait who goes shopping at 7 in the morning? Not enough to justify road blocks
Stopping people on the way to or from work or school in rush hour traffic. It was absolutely ridiculous. Most mornings it takes me 15 minutes to get to where I was going but took me an hour this morning. I don’t think stressing people out at this time is the way to go.
Expect the number of drug seisures to go up again.
Did they not know there would cause a long wait when they named it Operation Fanacht….?
|a mid wife coming home from a 13 hour shift was delayed over an hour by this nonsense
Unless your back from Mars then everyone knows the rules at this stage. Less carrot and more stick is the better approach.
@Munster1: but this is using the stick on the wrong people. Plus they should actually be enforcing all the guidelines more not just the roads. It is an ill thought out idea from government and lazy policing from the Gardai. When the government decided to reject public health advice they assured the nation they could get the desired effects from level 3 with more enforcement. They then give the Gardai no extra powers and mount a huge pr campaign through the Gardai at taxpayers expense, without actually increasing enforcement of anything.
Was the checkpoint in ferrybank sending people back to Kilkenny or back to Waterford
This whole government is a complete joke. Was stuck in traffic this morning and ended up an hour late for work and we have another 3 weeks of this. The people of Ireland have had enough of this nonsense.
Health and Safety issues for Front line Hospital Staff, working in stress fueled environment, then sitting in gridlock, when should be at home, getting jobs done before sleep and doing it all again. Also remember staff waiting to finish shidvand nonsogn of the staff to replace them and then handover when you should be at home etc etc
Absolute madness. Causing inconvenience to people trying to go to or from work. They are not going to catch the Gobdaws who refuse to abide by the regulations between 8and 9AM.
Any chance they might be in Dublin on Saturday afternoon.
Are these checkpoints on borders of counties or in random spots in counties?
All of this just a publicity and visibility exercise. We live in Kells and just drove through a checkpoint in Navan which is causing delays. Have to wonder the sense in having checkpoints right in the middle of a county. Surely all checkpoints should be on roads crossing county borders
The country is out of control with no one in charge. People that failed in their jobs in the past over the national emergency team.
Wow, on a working day the mind boggles, maybe a Saturday Sunday i understand but a Wednesday
What do the people in Waterford City do ……part of it is in co. Kilkenny
Will someone please tell this government that it is unacceptable to cause the traffic jams that we witnessed this morning. They are quickly losing any support they have
These will be gone in a few days
All posturing up for show
Threats of fines now but how do you find someone out for not travelling for genuine reasons its far too subjective
We need to get the people to buy in, well this ain’t the way to do it. Ridiculous in the extreme.
But why Dublin and why the motorways? The whole country moved to level 3. No logic in it.
I wonder how many people actually believe Gardai want to do these checkpoints. They wouldn’t be necessary if people followed the recommendations. Don’t forget many of these Gardaí were caught in traffic this morning too after a 12hr shift last night and these same Gardaí doing these checkpoints will be delayed this evening by their colleagues after they finish a 12hr shift.
It’s mid week, middle of Autumn who the hell is traveling the country for unecessary reasons? Very few, I guess.
The vast majority of people traveling are workers. If it was holiday season I’d understand.
You could tell the Gardaí your playing golf and they couldn’t stop you.
Ah gang on we have a load of lorry’s coming down the road we’ll have to stop them and see why they are traveling.
Allot of legitimate negative comments but I feel this was essential three weeks ago and it’s now better than nothing.
I think it’s great. Fair play to them
Unfortunately, using fear and threats to ‘encourage’ compliance has been considered an acceptable tactic by this and recent governments in Ireland.
I spent last winter in the US and it was noticeable how less alarming the headlines tended to be there, just perusing Google News.
Mind you, it was rare to have 10 minutes there without hearing an alarming siren of some sort. Let’s hope the control freaks in FG/FF don’t start on that one…
Sometimes I think the term public servants is a very inaccurate description, as was this case today. Who do they think is paying for their wages.
Dubexit being reversed no point in being in the holiday home down the country
There’s one group to blame for this only. Senior Garda Management.
Their answer to everything is a bloody checkpoint. It’s a pointless exercise, completely about optics that really impacts the lives of workers trying to go to and home from work, for no good bloody reason. It’s a disgrace
I travelled through Co Offaly, Co Laois & Co Carlow on the N80 this morning and only came upon one check point manned by two Garda, and on the return journey no check points at all. Did the same return trip in the afternoon, no check points. So total days drive just under 400km and only one check point and 3 counties travelled through. (P.S essential work)
Absolutely ridiculous. Teachers delayed due to traffic congestion. No supervision of kids in school. It’s like promoting transmission!
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