New polling carried out on behalf of the Irish Daily Mail has shown that over half of people agree with a Circuit Court judge who said that cyclists on our roads are “a nightmare.”
The research by Amarach found that 49 per cent of people agreed with the judge, while some 30 per cent disagreed. The remainder neither agreed nor disagreed. The response means that of those who expressed an opinion, roughly 62 per cent agreed with the judge.
Last month, judge James O’Donohoe said that cyclists had become a “nightmare” in Dublin, making the comments in court during a damages award for an injured cyclist, prompting a formal complaint against the judge to the Judicial Council.
The judge made the remark after he had decided to reduce the amount of damages awarded to a cyclist – from €50,000 to €10,000 – who suffered a brain injury after he collided with a motorbike six years ago, ruling that the injured cyclist had been mainly responsible for the accident.
“You never know with cyclists what they are going to do or anticipate what they are going to do. Cyclists have become a nightmare in Dublin,” said the judge.
The comments led to heavy media coverage, as well as an outpouring of criticism from cycling advocacy groups and politicians in the Dáil. Raising the comments in the Dáil, Labour’s Ivanna Bacik said: “I was deeply dismayed by the negative remarks about cyclists made by Judge James O’Donohoe. My colleague Deputy Ciarán Ahern has submitted a formal complaint to the Judicial Council and I note that many judges have expressed criticism. Some judges even cycle, as many of us in the Oireachtas do.
“Unfortunately, the comments generated a great deal of negativity. We have seen some scapegoating of cyclists in public discourse. It was appalling to see the Irish Road Haulage Association use the opportunity to punch down on cyclists this week. Fourteen cyclists were killed on our roads last year and 45 were killed in the past five years. Cyclists are vulnerable road users. We, as a country, should be encouraging more people to cycle and promoting cycling as a safe option.”
This led to the Taoiseach saying he rejected “any stereotyping or categorisation of cyclists.”
The Daily Mail polling, published on Monday, found 22 per cent of those asked strongly agreed, while 27 per cent agreed that cyclists are a “nightmare.”
Una Morrison of the Dublin Cycling Campaign, which previously criticised Judge O’Donohoe’s comments, told the paper that the findings were “very disappointing.”
“I think it shows that cyclists are not seen as human beings wanting to get around the city safely. Everybody needs to be more empathetic on the road. Everyone needs to respect red lights.”
She added: “Yesterday I saw a cyclist nearly getting killed going through a green light. They were a hair’s breadth away from being hit.”
However, Eugene Drennan of the Irish Road Haulage Association told the paper that cycle lanes have “empowered cyclists to positions that they have left safely behind in their own right.
“Once they’re on the cycle lane they tend not to take cognisance or notice of the traffic or what’s about them. They’re either singularly focused on getting from A to B, or they have earphones in or they’re on the phone and they feel a sense of entitlement that they’re going to be in the right.”