Parking fine ‘no shows’ are put off the road

A District Court judge has started to hand out driving bans in a crackdown on Galway motorists who fail to pay parking tickets and then fail to turn up in court.

At Judge Marie Keane’s latest ‘Parking Court’, nearly 70 drivers were put off the road for between three and six months and fined up to €350 after failing to appear before her.

People who have been issued parking tickets have been warned to pay the fine – or where a summons is issued to ensure they appear in court, or else face a ban.

The offences in the crackdown range from not displaying a valid parking disc to parking in a disabled space without a permit.

The defendants received summonses for the Parking Court when they failed to pay tickets issued by traffic and community wardens and Gardaí.

At the latest quarterly Parking Court, Judge Keane handed down 66 disqualifications, plus fines varying from €250 to €350.

The disqualifications ranged from three to six months on people who failed to show up in court to answer summonses for such offences as: failing to display a current tax disc; parking a vehicle in a disabled person’s space without displaying a valid permit; and parking in designated areas without displaying a valid parking disc.

See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune.